Biblical Mentorship: The Vision, Practice & Testimony
The Vision | Jeff Grasher
Biblical mentorship is essentially synonymous with biblical discipleship. Throughout scripture, we see men and women pouring their lives and the word of God into others intimately and sacrificially. People have been called to invest what God gives them into others since the very beginning of humanity and when done biblically, there is unmistakable fruit and life. This is biblical discipleship.
Many of us have probably even been privileged enough to see an example of a healthy discipleship ministry in our church or a church we have visited, and that is so exciting to be a part of. However, across the world, this investment doesn’t always strategically and purposefully include the youth. In the minds of many churchgoers, “youth group” is not much more than a good, exciting time of games and entertainment for students with a short devotion time and a killer snack. I think those things are very strategic themselves, but without an intentional, structured pursuit of investing the word of God into the souls of these young people, these fun and valuable things fall shamefully short of accomplishing the Great Commission. We would be wise to aspire for students to be established in the word of God, not just sitting and listening patiently during our preaching or Bible studies. We would be wise to ensure that students are being established in the worship of God, not just giving lip service, singing along during praise and worship. This establishment happens when we go beyond just holding services with our youth, by taking on the great task of actually leading and investing in the personal lives of our young people. We must prioritize investing truth into teens and pre-teens using our time, energy, testimony, and experience. This is biblical mentorship.
Mentorship emphasizes a discovery method of studying and learning scripture alongside the student rather than the instructor teaching through the material. Not only is this a proven method of effective teaching, it essentially creates a different tone to the relationship. Adult discipleship has a relational focus, no doubt about it, but the teacher-student dynamic can sometimes be strange and unclear, whereas for student mentorship, that dynamic is typically pre-set because of a natural age divide. Students, whether they admit it or not, do naturally look to adults as authority figures. Thus, mentors typically have to work at being more than a teacher or instructor. Effective mentors are also a friend, older sibling or even a father or mother figure. This is why mentorship is a conversation, not a lecture.
Young people are working through a lot of life’s questions and genuinely want to process answers. But they want to process them with someone, not just be told the answers. Students actually are just as apt to learn and grow as adults are these days, but they are unique in that they want to learn and grow with other people. Many times, adults are content to learn and grow on their own, which can have its dysfunctions, but this generation of students craves interaction and meaningful friendship in ways that many don’t expect. We see social media addictions and video game obsessions, but actually, this makes students wide open for real human investment, which should be a loud and obvious call for the church to wake up and make a way for teens to connect. There is a great need for biblical mentorship in the world and in our churches.
Mentorship is absolutely not only for teens who seem to be struggling through life and maybe don’t have parents who know how to invest in them well. For biblically raised teens, they have been told truths their entire lives, but sometimes it takes processing those truths with a mentor to land in the application of those truths. Biblical mentorship can be done in many ways, shapes, and sizes for all students of different backgrounds, nations, cultures, and churches. But the fundamental structure of successful mentorship is a mature adult meeting regularly with a young person to explore scripture together and pursue a genuine conversation that guides the student to clear solutions from God’s word. And when this is done with wisdom, gentleness, and authentic care, the student not only knows how to move forward through their situations in life and that they have someone in their corner, they also see that they too can make a meaningful biblical investment in someone else’s life.
The Implementation | Brooke Sidebottom
Mentorship is one of the sweetest ministries I’ve been blessed to be a part of. Thinking back to when I was in middle school and high school, I remember specific women that poured their life and godly wisdom into me. They took time to meet me where I was and to encourage me in the faith, even when I was consumed with social anxiety or when I was a homesick mess at summer church camp. I will never be able to repay their investment, but one thing I gleaned from those women was that I knew when I was older, I wanted to do the same for other middle and high school girls.
Towards the end of high school and the beginning of college, I filled my time with coaching fast pitch softball and looking for ways to invest in the girls on my team. There were a couple in particular that were open to investment outside of the weekly practices and games. One of whom was my star pitcher, Lydia Powers (cue her walk-up song, “I’ve got the magic in me…”). Lydia and I spent time together doing anything from playing catch at the Powers home, going to our favorite coffee shop in Raytown, talking about her dreams of all things related to France, and eventually talking about and studying the Bible together. Several years later, Lydia and I had both been led by the Lord to Midtown Baptist Temple and we were officially paired for “Mentorship”. We kept meeting and talking and sharing life. She would open up to me about struggles and trials she faced and we would look at God’s word and pray and cry together. I have several memories of break-through moments in her life – long conversations in the car outside her house or on the swings in her backyard. I will always cherish those moments. She became like a daughter to me. I felt an overwhelming joy when she had victories in life and when she was in a season of trial, my heart hurt for her. It was amazing to get a front-row seat to watch God working in her life. This reminds me of a couple of verses:
3 John 1:4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.
1 Thessalonians 2:17, 19-20 But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavoured the more abundantly to see your face with great desire… For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? For ye are our glory and joy.
These passages make me think of Lydia. God richly blessed me to be able to pour his word into someone who now has grown up and is serving in ministry. She’s discipling and leading a Bible study and she is my “crown of rejoicing.”
Since mentoring Lydia, I’ve also had the blessing of mentoring Isabel Toti. Little did we know, God would later call both of us to be a part of MBT’s church plant, Living Faith Boston. We have spent hours talking about the Bible and life, praying together, going through the Mentorship material together, and now we’re often evangelizing and doing ministry together in Boston. She is growing in her relationship with God and has just recently been paired for discipleship! I cannot express how excited I am about this!
Paul tells the church in Corinth that he “will very gladly spend and be spent for you…” (2 Cor 12:15). Anyone that has been a part of biblical mentorship or discipleship understands this verse. All of the investment – the time, energy, emotions, prayers, and preparing in the word for each meeting – is worth it. These ladies have both grown in Christ and in his word. God could have done all of that in their lives without me, but yet he allowed me to take some small part in investing his word in them and for that, I am forever grateful.
The Testimony | Lydia Powers
Having a Biblical Mentorship relationship during my high school years transformed my life.
When I came to MBT in 2015, I saw testimonies of others’ lives being transformed by
discipleship, and I was eager to be discipled and grow in my faith. I recognized my need to learn how to cleave to a more mature believer and learn from their life’s example. I had grown up in church, knew the Bible, and had had plenty of spiritual instructors throughout my life. Yet, I needed a spiritual mother.
1 Corinthians 4:15-16 For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. 16 Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.
1 Thessalonians 2:7-8 But we were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children: 8 So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because ye were dear unto us.
When we got paired for mentorship, Brooke’s investment in my life looked like meeting up
every other week and fellowshipping, praying, and reading the Bible together. We did word
studies and book studies in scripture, and she taught me principles on how to study the Bible. During this time, we started little traditions like going to The Corner Cafe for slices of pie whenever we needed time just to hang out and talk.
During this season, Brooke was a faithful listener in my life. I had countless questions about the Bible that she answered by taking me directly to scripture. When I asked an especially wild question, she wasn’t afraid to say “I’ll get back to you on that one” and come back to me after she had studied it out, or take me along with her in that study.
She was also a faithful listener in other areas of life. When I had relationship issues with friends or family, had a romantic interest, or had problems related to work or school. When I needed counsel, she was ready to give it, but oftentimes we would simply stop and pray. It was through this that I learned a crucial lesson: to pray without ceasing.
Over time, my relationship with Brooke grew from a spiritual mother to a friend. She didn’t spend every minute we had together instructing me, though there were plenty of moments when she did just that. She spent hours pursuing my heart, listening to me, and encouraging me in my pursuit of Christ. Through this investment, she became one of my dearest and most trusted friends.
Proverbs 27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.
Brooke encouraged me to keep pursuing Jesus not only in her words but through her life.
It wasn’t her imploring or explicit direction that made me want to follow Jesus as much as it was her own life’s testimony that made me want to have the kind of walk with Christ that I saw she had.
1Co 11:1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.
As a part of Midtown Baptist Temple, C&YA is deeply invested in the mentorship process. Want to learn more about Biblical Mentorship? Check our MBT Youth Ministry page.