No matter what your age, you can be a mentor!
Believe me, I have benefitted from the mentoring of some very young people in my life. Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and I know firsthand how important it is to be discipled. I would not be where I am today were it not for the love and time and prayers and energy, instruction and guidance that my mentor gave me. And the funny thing is we were the same age!
Years ago when I was fresh out of the hospital and still a teenager, I was in desperate need of discipleship. I needed instruction; I needed to be guided; I needed some counsel. I didn’t know anything about growing in Christ or how to do it. All I knew was that the Bible probably contained answers for my questions and doubts … but I had no idea where to begin, I had no idea where to look. And once I read a verse, I wasn’t sure how to even put it into practice. Thankfully, one of my high school classmates was able to observe all this. She saw my confusion and stepped in to help.
The amazing thing is Diana White was my peer. We were the same age. The difference was though she had come to know Christ at a much earlier age than I did. And so, right after I got out of the hospital, God used another 18-year-old to come alongside me and provide the mentoring I needed. Diana may have been my age, but she was years older in terms of spiritual maturity. She spent countless hours walking me through God's Word.
I remember us studying the topic of gratitude where she helped me memorize certain verses about giving thanks in all things. Then, when we were together at certain times – like at the mall, or with other friends – when she caught me whining or complaining, she’d whisper in my ear, “Joni, what was it we learned about giving God thanks in all things?” Yikes! I was convicted by the Holy Spirit, but as my mentor, her words hit home. And as we studied other topics and memorized more verses, I started to grow in the Lord. Man, I had so many blind spots back then about my own lack of character and need of help, I just don’t know what I would have done had God not provided Diana to me as a mentor… someone to disciple me. And now, many years later as I look back, I am still amazed that she was so key, so instrumental in my life… yet we were the same age.
The point of all this? Well, if you’re in your teens or 20’s… you can and should have a mentoring relationship with another Christian (maybe even a Christian your own age, but one who is maybe younger in the faith than you… or someone who, like me, has come upon hard times needing guidance and discipleship). Like the apostle Paul told Timothy, “Don’t despise your youth…” – you do have something to say, you do have something to give. And you should keep giving it throughout your life.
In fact, if you are discipling someone right now, I’d like to send you a little booklet I wrote called “God's Word My Home.” In it I talk about the importance of digging deep into the Bible… not just listening to what it says, but doing what it commands because it is the way to grow. And I’d like you to pass this little booklet on to the person you are mentoring. You can get your free copy of “God's Word My Home” by just going online and visiting our radio page at joniandfriends.org. Or you can always jot a note of request to Joni and Friends, P.O. Box 3333, Agoura Hills, California 91376 and ask for “God's Word My Home.” Remember, friend it’s all about passing on to others that with which God has blessed you – it’s a lesson my high school buddy Diana White taught me very, very well.
I’m Joni Eareckson Tada. Thanks for listening to Joni and Friends.
Used by permission of
JONI AND FRIENDS
P.O. Box 3333
Agoura Hills, CA 91376
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