Mentor Leadership Paper

Christian Mentorship Interview Profile

A paper submitted to Dr. William Higley
Liberty niversity !heologi"al niversity
#or partial fulfillment of CL$D %&'
(athaniel )ones
*ubmitted+ August ,- .'&.
Mentorship Interview Profile
!he word /mentor0 is defined as /a wise and trusted "ounselor or tea"her.0 Although /mentoring0
doesn1t appear in the 2ible- *"ripture does give us numerous e3amples of mentoring. Moses was
mentored by his )ethro father4in4law- first as son4in4law and then as a leader 5$3odus &67. !he mentoring
relationship between $li and *amuel prepared *amuel for the tas8s and responsibilities that were his
after $li1s death 5& *amuel &9:7. )esus mentored His dis"iples 5Lu8e ;7- and both 2arnabas and Paul
e3"elled in mentoring 5A"ts ;9&%7.
)esus made His style of mentoring "lear+ He led so that we "an follow. He said- /If anyone will "ome
after me- let him deny himself- and ta8e up his "ross and follow me0 5Matthew &,+.:4.,7. 2e"ause He is
our leader and we are to follow Him- Christian mentoring is a pro"ess dependent upon submission to
Christ. (either the mentor nor the "andidate "ontrols the relationship. As su"h- the pro"ess is best
"hara"teri<ed by mutual sharing- trust- and enri"hment as the life and wor8 of both parti"ipants is
"hanged. !he mentor serves as a model and a trusted listener. !he mentor relies on the Holy *pirit to
provide insight- "hange lives- and tea"h through the modeling pro"ess.
!he Apostle Paul spelled out mentoring as his leadership model very simply. /#ollow my e3ample as I
follow the e3ample of Christ0 5& Corinthians &&+&7. /Whatever you have learned or re"eived or heard
from me- or seen in me=put it into pra"ti"e0 5Philippians :+;7. In essen"e- he is saying- /Let me mentor
you. Let me be your role model.0 He reminds the new Christians at !hessaloni"a to /follow our
e3ample0 5. !hessalonians >+?7. $3ample. !ea"h. Model. !hese are all fa"ets of mentoring whi"h are
indispensable in developing fully devoted followers of )esus and in transmitting the faith from one
generation to the ne3t. It goes without saying that if mentors e3pe"t others to follow their e3ample@ they
must be wholeheartedly "ommitted to following Christ. Any hint of hypo"risy /do what I say- not what I
do0 will be detrimental to both the mentor and his "harge.
(ot only )esus and the apostles- but elders in the lo"al "hur"h also do their wor8 by mentoring. Peter
"ommands- /2e e3amples to the flo"80 5& Peter %+>7- and Paul e3plains to the elders at $phesus- /Aou
8now how I lived the whole time I was with you0 5A"ts .'+&?7. In other words- Paul is telling the elders-
/I showed you- now you show them.0 In all truth- if a Christian leader is not mentoring someone- to that
degree he or she is not living up to his or her "alling. Bf "ourse- Cod has filled the body of Christ with
many potential mentors besides those who are named as elders or shepherds. !he offi"ial "hur"h leaders
"annot personally meet all the mentoring needs of everyone. While it may not be possible for shepherds
to personally- intentionally- hands4on mentor ea"h sheep that needs mentoring- they are to help these
needy sheep find godly mentors. !o provide for the mentoring needs of their lo"al "ommunity of faith-
the leaders must be intentional- "ontinually e3panding the "ir"le of mentors by /eDuipping others0 to
mentor.
Interview Comparison and Contrast
Mentoring to At Risk Youth
Minister )oshua 2usby is the Dire"tor of Annual Civing at Langston niversity in whi"h he is
responsible for soli"iting gifts and donations. He wor8 long hours at his main pla"e of employment and
often times he does not always off in time to wor8 within his side business. !he opportunity to have a
third and fourth hand is always wel"omed. When the parents of Minister 2usby mentee approa"hed him-
they were gravely "on"erned about their son1s behavior and the fa"t that he had gotten in trouble at a
lo"al store for stealing. 2e"ause it was a first offense- the young man was senten"ed to "ompleting a
"ertain number of hours of "ommunity servi"e. !he parent1s however felt that this was "ertainly not
enough to ensure that their son understood the severity of his a"tions. *o they as8ed Minister 2usby to
step in be"ause he seemed to have a great rapport with other young people within their "ongregation. In
addition- Minister 2usby serves as the praise and worship leader- for whi"h the young man sometimes
plays the drums.
#or Minister 2usby believes in a strong wor8 ethi". Having served in the offi"e of finan"ial aid and
"urrently being employed with Langston niversity he see8s to instill the message of . !hessalonians
>+&' to young men. Minister 2usby de"ided to ta8e the young man under his wing and tea"h him the
value of hard wor8. 2usby states- /2eing that it was the summer- I felt li8e this was a great way to help
the young man earn some money- but more importantly tea"h him about Christ and how to develop a
strong wor8 ethi". Eids are loo8ing for something to do and feel that they need a way to stay out of
trouble. Many of them get into trouble be"ause there is nothing better for them to do.0
Minister 2usby states that he "ame from a single parent home and growing up he be"ame enti"ed with
the fast money- women- and drugs. He attributes his "hange to a praying mother and those within his
lo"al "hur"h who mentored him. 2usby states- /*omeone did it for me when I was younger and I felt
that I needed to do this to grab hold of this young man1s attention.0
Mrs. Cynthia 2u"8ley is not only a youth minister but also a gospel artist. In addition to Mrs. 2u"8ley1s
ministry- she has served as the $3e"utive Assistant to the President of Langston niversity. Ms. 2u"8ley
is on a Duest to draw all young people to Christ- despite their age or nationality. *he has a "onvi"tion to
serve young people- espe"ially those who have less than stellar pasts. #or her- there is no "ompromise to
Cod1s word and that we all should be "onvi"ted to study- follow- and live by that word- no matter the
"ost.
nfortunately- Ms. 2u"8ley believes that many people profess a Christ- but does not 8now who He
really is. Ms. 2u"8ley truly believes in Fomans &.+. that states- /Do not "onform any longer to the
pattern of this world- but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. !hen you will be able to test and
approve what CodGs will is44his good- pleasing and perfe"t will.0 *he professes that she within the world-
but does not live of this world 5)ohn &?+ &&4.'7. Ms. 2u"8ley states that she- as the mentor- initiates the
relationship with the mentee as she is "ommanded to do so by the Creat Commission 5Matthew .6+&;4
.'7. *he will minster to anyone.
Ms. 2u"8ley1s approa"h to the mentorship pro"ess is a little different from that of Minister 2usby. Ms.
2usby mentions that- /Bn"e that relationship has been birth- I then began HpouringH into the mentee the
understanding gained over the years as a result of wal8ing with the Lord. !his pouring into in"ludes life
e3perien"es- do"trinal truths as well as HLife on LifeH intera"tion. !heologi"ally- this is "alled
dis"ipline.0 Dis"ipline is the most li8ely "andidate as an eDuivalent to /Christian Mentoring0 if it is
properly understood as potentially holisti" 5training in 8nowledge- s8ills- "hara"ter and relating7-
integrated and as a lifelong pro"ess. Dis"ipleship- rightly understood as a lifelong- holisti" pro"ess of
Itea"hing them to obey everything I have "ommanded you1 5Matt .6..'7 in essen"e- is Christian
mentorship.
Ms. 2u"8ley admits that her approa"h is a bit more /in your fa"e0 than many other ministers. *he states-
that she holds /no pun"hes0 when it "omes to the word. *he does not feel the need to be apologeti" of
the word of Cod. $ither you re"eive it as it is given- or you don1t. 2ut the bottom line is there is
absolutely no "ompromise.
2oth individuals seemed to be driven by the spirit- whom leads them to worship and wor8 within their
ministries. 2oth Ms. 2u"8ley and Minister 2usby also use musi" as a platform to minister to others. Ms.
2u"8ley uses gospel musi"- while Minister 2usby uses his voi"e through praise and worship. #or both
individuals- musi" is an avenue that "an rea"h anyone. !here is no Duestion about the importan"e of
musi" throughout the bible. !hin8 about how David used his harp to sooth Eing *aul- Eing *olomon
and his song writing ability- or how the walls of )eri"ho tumbled down after )oshua sent the people out
with horns and symbols to mar"h around them.
Bne of the things that I noti"ed with both interviewers is that mentorship "an be anywhere. While
Minister 2usby uses his life e3perien"es as a platform to mentor- Ms. 2u"8ley also uses various avenues
and atmospheres to minister. Bne of the biggest differen"es between Minister 2usby and Ms. 2u"8ley is
how the time is spent with ea"h of their mentors. Ms. 2u"8ley1s approa"h to mentorship appears to be
more stru"tured and bibli"ally based while Minister 2usby1s approa"h is more about establishing a
relationship first then approa"hing the situation as an opportunity to empower and build on self4esteem
and self4worth. Ms. 2u"8ley uses her session more as an opportunity to "ounsel and minister- rather than
to relationship build or Just be"ome the mentees friend. I also believe that another reason for this
differen"e is the fa"t that Ms. 2u"8ley mentors a different age group 5&,4.%7 than that of Minister 2usby
5&>4&67.
What Can Be Learned From the Interviews
Being a mentor!minister means pra"ti"ing what #ou prea"h
Mentoring is not a way to meet your needs for signifi"an"e- but to wal8 with others as they grow and
be"ome li8e Christ. Aour goal as a mentor should never be to shape your mentees into your image- but to
en"ourage them to bear Cod1s image more fully. !he pi"ture of the Christian life being a /Journey0 or
/pathway0 is an often4used metaphor. !he phrase- /Wal8 the wal8- don1t Just tal8 the tal8-0 while good
advi"e- is Duoted so widely it has almost be"ome "li"hKd. However- )esus1 earliest dis"iples were 8nown
as followers of /!he Way0 5A"ts ..+:7 and the Apostle Paul en"ouraged the Corinthian "hur"h to
/imitate0 his /way of life in Christ0 5& Corinthians :+&:4&,7. !he idea of Christians being fellow
travellers is not un8nown in the mentoring "onte3t.
$od %rings a%out "hange
Mentoring is not your opportunity to implement your agenda in the life of another person. It is your
opportunity to wal8 with another person as Cod shapes him into His image. #rom a bibli"al standpoint-
in the opening "hapters of Mar8 the dis"iples are "alled to /follow0 )esus 5&+&?- .'@ .+&:7. )ust as the
/"all0 implied intention so the idea of /following0 implies asso"iation- in"luding asso"iation in )esus1
ministry 5v.&?7. !his early signal that being a dis"iple of )esus would involve physi"al pro3imity and
asso"iation is made e3pli"it in the "alling of twelve to /be with him0 5>+&:7. Mentoring generally
involves meeting fa"e4to fa"e- one4on4one- and often the mentee may /shadow0 a mentor learning
through observation. When the mentee observe how Christ has "hanged the mentor1s life- the mentee
"an hopefully start to transition hisLher own life.
Leaders take responsi%ilit#
2oth the mentor and mentee should ta8e responsibility to meet on time- be prepared- and "ommit to
growth. As8 your mentee to ta8e responsibility for "onta"ting you- "hanging meeting times- and setting
goals for the relationship.
Put simply- a Christian mentor is a brain to pi"8- an ear to listen- a heart to "are and a life to wat"h. I "an
thin8 of many people who invested- and "ontinue to invest- their lives in mine in order to see me grow as
a Christian and as a servant of Christ. !he "hallenge for those who have been on the Christian Journey
for a while is begin to share their life lessons with the ne3t generation. $3perien"e has shown that its
rewards are greater than its "ostsM Fea"h out to others- both saved and unsaved and share your life as a
living e3ample- Just as Christ did for ea"h of us.
Interview Response of Minister &oshua Bus%# ' $reater Mount (live Baptist Chur"h
Who initiated the mentoring relationship) Mentor or the Mentee
!he parent approa"hed me and as8ed if I would step in and help their son. !he young a man had been
getting into trouble at s"hool- not listening and following the dire"tions of the parents- and did not want
to wor8 and assist around the home. After the parents as8ed if I would assist the young man- I then
approa"hed the young man personally and as8ed if he would be willing to start wor8ing with me in my
personal lawn "are servi"e. 2eing that it was the summer- I felt li8e this was a great way to help the
young man earn some money- but more importantly tea"h him about Christ and how to develop a strong
wor8 ethi". Eids are loo8ing for something to do and feel that they need a way to stay out of trouble.
Many of them get into trouble be"ause there is nothing better for them to do. *omeone did it for me
when I was younger and I felt that I needed to do this to grab hold of this young man1s attention. I didn1t
want to automati"ally approa"h him bibli"ally be"ause I 8new that I had to establish a relationship first.
!he parents had stated that our pastor had "ounseled young man- but the young man didn1t really re"eive
him. I really wanted to tea"h him about having a wor8 ethi"N a man that don1t wor8- don1t eat- 5.
!hessalonians >+&'7. I believe in the proverb that tal8s about a father1s instru"tion of not Just giving a
boy a fish when he is hungry- but tea"hing him how to fish offers a s8ill to survive a lifetime.
When and where do #ou meet
$very two wee8s- but I also see the young man every *unday at "hur"h and throughout the wee8 during
servi"es.
How is the time spentO 5format- a""ountability "onfidentiality- evaluation- "losure7
Mostly the "onversations are during the wee8ends and some wee8 day evenings. 2efore we get started I
e3plain to him who he is- that he is a 8ing. $n"ouraging him and building him up as a man. !o inform
him that he is above this world and the standards that he is "urrently living by. Feminding him that wor8
is good be"ause he is earning his own and not ta8ing from others. !hat wor8ing has rewards.
Most diffi"ult aspe"t of the relationship
Having and 8eeping his attention. If he doesn1t have your attention- he won1t listen. Also if a young man
responds- spea8 or repeat verbatim what I have said. If he "an do this then I 8now that he has heard and
re"eived what I have spo8en.
Most signifi"ant result of the relationship
*eeing his life "hange in a way that he wants to be in "hur"h. *eeing the "hanges of their a"tions and
attitudes towards life and how they feel about salvation.
Interview Response of Mrs* C#nthia Bu"kle# ' +ol# Restoration
Who initiated the mentoring relationship) Mentor or the Mentee
I- mentor initiates the relationship in a""ordan"e with the "ommand of the HCreat CommissionH given by
the Lord )esus in Matthew .6+&;4.'. Bn"e that relationship has been birth- I then began HpouringH into
the mentee the understanding gained over the years as a result of wal8ing with the Lord. !his pouring
into in"ludes life e3perien"es- do"trinal truths as well as HLife on LifeH intera"tion. !heologi"ally- this is
"alled HDis"iplingH.
When and where do #ou meet
We meet several pla"es depending on what will ta8e pla"e during the meeting. !here is one aspe"t that is
never omitted when we meet and that is dis"ussion around the truths of Cod1s word. We meet in homes-
"hur"h- bas8etball "ourt- et".
+ow is the time spent ,format) a""ounta%ilit# "onfidentialit#) evaluation) "losure-
!he time is spent in bible study. !he mentee is given assignments to resear"h and study and to be able to
dis"uss what they have found. !hey are taught how to HDefend the #aithH that they profess to have
a""ording to )ude > and & Peter >+&%. A""ountability is very important. We dis"uss the struggles that
may be present in their life- and "ertain things are implemented to avoid wal8ing into "ompromising
situations. It is totally "onfidential as long as the Mentor does not feel that further assistan"e is not
needed to minister to the need of the mentee. !he mentee will be informed prior to the additional
involvement of another.
Most diffi"ult aspe"t of the relationship
Bne diffi"ulty is0 !ime0 !he responsibility of Wor8- family- ministry- and the une3pe"ted things in life
see8 to hinder the Duantity of time spent- so there must be a "ons"ious fo"us on the Duality of time spent.
Most signifi"ant result of the relationship
Is to witness a young believer grow and mature in the faith of )esus Christ.