January 2016 Spare Change
3 Reasons Mentoring Matters
- It’s the Best Way to Invest in Someone
When it comes to investing in another person nothing beats one-on-one personal mentoring. You get the opportunity to pour your life into someone else. I have a student that I mentor at AIS 1st Avenue. I meet with him once a week for about 40 minutes. We talk about life skills, personal stuff, homework, school behavior, etc. We also set goals, draw pictures, and play games. There are times we talk about serious stuff and times we can’t stop laughing. It really is a great joy. At first I didn’t know what kind of impact I was making, but after a few weeks of meeting, one teacher couldn’t believe the transformation. My student was not getting into trouble as much, he was handling stressful situations better, and his grades started to improve. I give all the glory to God, I just gave up some of my time.
- It Shows You Really Care
Mentoring also shows how much you care. Time is our most valuable commodity. When we give our time we really show we care. Anyone can buy stuff, it really isn’t that special in our culture, but what really expresses care is time. It is our most precious resource; but here is the great thing, it doesn’t take that much to make a difference. I have met with many people over the years for mentoring or discipleship. Usually it’s an hour or so a week. That’s only 52 hours a year. I know time is precious, but who doesn’t have one hour to make a difference in someone’s life?
- It Makes a REAL Difference
Mentoring is one of the ways to make a permanent difference. Think about people that have invested in you over the years. Maybe it was a teacher, a coach, a parent, grandparent, or pastor. You can easily think back and remember them, why? Because they made a huge impact in your life; they made a real difference. In the church setting it’s easy to talk about spiritual things and often mentoring leads to deeper faith in the students. It’s a little different in the school. I do get an opportunity to talk about spiritual things, but it’s much more covert. I ask the student how I can pray for him, we talk about church, and I answer any of his questions about faith. Even with some minor restrictions, I still know that I am making a difference.
At AIS 1st Ave we only have a handful of mentors that meet with a few students. We need more people of faith that are willing to share their lives. If you have an hour a week during the day, maybe your lunch break, then you can make a huge impact. Even if you can’t mentor at AIS, there are students and adults alike in our church that need a mentor. They need someone to walk with them in the matters of life and faith. Find someone at church you can share your life with. The result will be impactful for both of you. It might even surprise you how much you will grow in your faith also. I’ll always remember what one of my teachers said, “You’re never more like Jesus then when you’re giving your life away.”