Many Mentors

Before Christ, I was a know-it-all, often correcting my high school teachers and anyone else I thought was wrong. After Christ, that attitude messed with my spiritual growth. Over the years, learning that I need to learn has been a most challenging discipline. Finding a mentor is challenging also. Moving often didn’t help. How many mentors can keep up with someone whose address keeps changing? Never mind that smarty-pants attitude.

Discipleship is encouraged in Christian churches. I wanted to do it but didn’t see my own need for it. Eventually, God showed me several things. One is that only Jesus can mentor anyone and everyone. He is omniscient; no one knows more than He does or can do anything good that He cannot surpass. I do not know it all!

Second, when a person keeps moving from city to city or even country to country, they need more than one person to do their mentoring. More about that later.

When Paul went to Corinth, people were saved and needed to be taught the things of God. He didn’t rush in, hold an evangelistic meeting, then leave . . .

Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized. And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. (Acts 18:8–11)

These verses have me thinking about discipleship and how it has been part of my life. My first Christian mentor was a woman. God used her to teach me about sin; what it is and the hold it has on people’s lives. She also was a powerful example to show me that death and loss are not to be feared. Then we moved . . .

Yet God provided mentors along the way. With more than two dozen moves, I can mention only a few of my disciple-makers. God used a pastor to show how doctrinal differences cannot ruin fellowship yet can be debated in humor and love. God used a friend to teach me about perseverance and how to deal with false teachers. He used my husband and my sister to teach me about giving and that I cannot out-give God. He used another pastor and two friends to teach me that His love is unconditional, pure and complete. He used an entire congregation to show me that love is action, not mere words.

God also showed me that people are different than I am for many reasons. One of them is that He gives various motivations through spiritual gifts that come in various strengths. One of those gifts is ‘teacher’ — often defined as a person with a hunger for information and a desire to pass that information to others. The downside of that gift is a human tendency to think that knowing truth is good enough, neglecting to personally applying it. For that, I need others, like the ‘encourager’ who will say “And what are you going to do about it?”

He has sent people into my life to mentor me in other ways too. The ‘comforter’ who cares about feelings (and I tend to not) is my example when others are suffering and need to know God loves them. The ‘server’ who cares about getting things done gets me off my backside and into the kitchen or on to some other task. The ‘administrator’ helps me see God’s ways of planning projects and completing them, delegating if necessary.

My teaching/information-gathering tendencies are coupled with a strong desire that people know and understand God. The word used in the Bible is ‘prophecy’ which is about knowing and declaring the will of God. This is a black and white mentality and not popular just as most of God’s Bible prophets were not popular. 

A person with this gift sets high standards and often feels that they cannot measure up. Turning inward and having pity-parties are common. However unwelcome this gift is to most who have it, when combined with any of the other gifts, it enhances them to focus on the will of God.

^^^^^^^^^^^

Jesus, with all this understanding, You have given me a good lesson in why the ordinary idea of a mentor or disciple-maker has never quite worked for me and why I have trouble doing follow-up with new Christians. I jump in with information-overload, push for a radical focus on You, and am impatient with those whose greater interest is in feeling good. Now that I get that, are You asking me to change? You know me and my tendency to be satisfied with just knowing something. Show me how/what You want me to do with what You are showing me today and give me motivation and opportunities to put it to good use.

Passing it on and yet pressing on

2 Samuel 20:1–21:22, 2 Peter 3:14–18, Psalm 146:1–10

Yesterday I was asked to mentor high school students. My first thought was that there is too large a gap between them and me, not just the age difference, but in the way we think. For instance, I would rather talk than text, rarely use social media, and my favorite music would raise their eyebrows. The main thing we would have in common is that as Christians, we both war with the same spiritual enemies.

That request prompted a different perspective to today’s OT reading than I might have had. It reminded me of how God wants us older people to pass the torch. In yet another war between the Philistines and Israel, David went down with his army. They fought together against the Philistines, but David grew weary.

I know the feeling. For the past couple of days, I’ve felt like ‘retiring’ from this business of being a Christian.  Figuring out the will of God so I can serve Him seems like too much work. I’m getting weary.

However, in the reading God didn’t tell David to press on as I may have expected. Instead, He used the men David had trained to do the fighting for him. When one of the descendants of the giants (like Goliath) thought to kill David, “Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid and attacked the Philistine and killed him.” Then David’s men swore to him, “You shall no longer go out with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.” It was okay for David to take a break. He did not have to keep on.

But that didn’t stop the enemy. After this there was again war with the Philistines at Gob. A warrior named Sibbecai struck down another descendant of the giants. Then Elhanan from Bethlehem struck down Goliath the Gittite. The war went to Gath where another huge man also descended from the giants began to taunt Israel. Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down. These gigantic enemies fell by the hand of David’s men, people he had trained. (2 Samuel 21:15–22)

The Word of God stresses the importance of mentoring the next generation. Not only do they need to be equipped to deal with attacks against their spiritual lives, but also encouraged to obey God. So do I need that kind of encouragement. Peter gives the reason why and exhorts me to always keep growing . . .

“You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” (2 Peter 3:17–18)

No matter how weary I am, obedience and continuing to grow spiritually are still important.

The reading from the psalms stresses an important perspective when I feel too tired to go on; some of the verses point to the eternal aspect of following Christ. That is, this does not end. There is no retirement for Christians, no permission to disobey or to stop growing in my faith. That is reserved for matters of this world, not eternal matters.

“Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever.” (Psalm 146:3–6)

The average person makes plans, yet death ends all that. However, those who worship God know that life goes on forever with Him. I am bound to the Living God for eternity. Whatever I do in this life in obedience to Him will last, not go to a grave and stay there. This is motivation . . . even though I am still very weary.

God’s blessings are not limited by enemies or troubles

Ezra 7:1–8:36, 1 John 4:1–6, Psalm 107:1–22

In ancient times, kings seldom honored foreigners with a decree and rarer still would a king offer his own wealth to help a foreigner. Yet King Artaxerxes of Persia sent Ezra and those Israelites willing to go with him to his own land with much of the king’s silver and gold. Ezra was going to rebuild the temple, but another prime task was to teach the Word of God to the people.

“Ezra went up from Babylonia. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses that the Lord, the God of Israel, had given, and the king granted him all that he asked, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him . . . . For on the first day of the first month he began to go up from Babylonia, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him. For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.” (Ezra 7:7, 9–10)

God motivated Ezra to study and teach the Word of God to His people, then sent him from Babylon to do it. The king gave him plenty of supplies and told him, “Whatever else is required for the house of your God, which it falls to you to provide, you may provide it out of the king’s treasury.” (Ezra 7:20)

If God wants His people to do something, God will provide direction, give the authority to proceed, and provide the means and support for the task. Our church leaders have an incredible vision for the future. If this is from God, we can move forward with confidence. Whatever we need will be provided!

Ezra also had the task of appointing others to share the load. “And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the province Beyond the River, all such as know the laws of your God. And those who do not know them, you shall teach.” (Ezra 7:25)

God’s man needed to be careful to select the right leaders and ensure they were trained for the job. As our church moves forward, we will need to train people that are part of the team. We also need to be careful in our selection for there are many who attend church yet do not know the Lord. For that, the NT reading gives instruction . . .

“By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God . . . . We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” (1 John 4:2, 6)

Sharing the vision could mean first sharing faith in Christ and the leading of the Holy Spirit. Giving responsibility to people without the Spirit and without faith would be disastrous. They would lead us astray. It has happened in the past in other churches and could happen in ours if we are careless.

The psalmist speaks of the grace of God and how He listens to those who became careless in their spiritual lives and wound up in trouble because of it. “Some were fools through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities suffered affliction; they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction. Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!” (Psalm 107:17–22)

God uses trouble to get the attention of wayward believers as well as people without faith. Yet He is also gracious to hear those who cry out to Him. This is part of the ministry of the church — to tell this good news to those who suffer because of foolish choices. They need to hear that God will answer their call. Unlike Ezra, Christians do not need to be specifically called by God to do that task. He calls each of His people to glorify Him and to bring His grace and steadfast love to others who will then tell others, in songs of joy, about His wondrous works.

A Pattern for Leadership

Most would define leadership as the function or ability of standing out in front and getting followers to do what they do or at least do what they tell them to do. It is associated with setting goals and reaching them, getting people on board to do the work and supervising that work.

Lately I’ve been studying this topic in the Bible. Scripture’s definition of leadership is not quite like that. Instead, it is not about the leader being followed but the challenge of serving others so that they can better follow Jesus Christ.

My devotional reading today is about the lack of good leadership in the modern church. At the end, the author says that “the church is sick and distorted because we’ve lost sight of Christ, His Word, and the Spirit. . . . and tolerated a lower standard for leadership than the Bible allows. The essence of Christianity is becoming more like Christ. . . .”

When a person is growing in Christlikeness, they are also growing in works of service. Their relationships improve. They share the Word of God and reach out to the needy. A Christlike person cares about the needs of others.

Perhaps the church has always struggled with a shortage of godly leaders. While Paul may have used some hyperbole here, he did write,

But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, that I also may be encouraged when I know your state. For I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 2:19-21)

Paul discipled Timothy well, yet this younger man had a good start. His mother and grandmother taught him the Scriptures when he was just a child. He knew what God required and had a heart for following the Lord Jesus. He was sometimes timid and needed encouragement from Paul. Nevertheless, Timothy loved others more than himself and cared about their needs more than his own.

I’ve been disappointed at the scarcity of godly mentors. Those who have had faith longer than I have are not always mature in their faith. In this me-first culture, the church suffers from the same disease. Paul’s description of Timothy will ring in my ears today, instructing me as a good mentor might, telling me to stop being so concerned about me, my and mine, and sincerely care for others, seeking the things of Jesus Christ while I’m at it.

Thank You Lord for giving us Paul and Timothy who are both clear patterns for the rest of us to follow.