Mentor - A trusted counsellor or guide / A wise and trusted friend
Titus 2 contains the instruction that the older women should be teaching the younger women. Now when I first read that, I saw old women - not older. I think the older women in our Church community are awesome, but I really didn't want to wear the label "old". So I was glad to hear a Talk recently that pointed out we're all older women to a younger woman - even the 30 year old is an "older woman" to the 20 year old, who is an "older woman" to the teenage girl.
I see mentoring playing a big part in the outworking of this teaching.When I first thought about being a mentor in Inspire, I initially felt fearful- I was anxious that someone who walked alongside me would see the real me (and then what would they think?!); feeling inadequate and totally sure I wouldn't know what to say ; I was worried that I didn't know the Bible "enough" or pray "enough" or was good "enough"!
All the insecurities that maybe you share - I've definitely heard them repeated by those we've subsequently invited to be mentors (to be honest, I'd rather hear that than the opposite - at least feeling inadequate means you'll be asking for God's help, wisdom and intervention, and not relying on your own strength)
However, once I got started, all my fears disappeared. My mentee didn't expect me to be perfect; to have it "all together"; to quote the Bible or to be any other type of "super spiritual". She just needed me to be the real me, and to be honest and open. She needed me to care for her and pray for her. She needed me to sometimes say the tough things, the last 10% - to say the things she wasn't reading in magazine advice, or getting from chatting with her girlfriends.
Being a mentor has stretched me, grown me, expanded my faith. I'm grateful to God for my precious relationship with my mentee - grateful too for His wisdom and help. And you know what? In times where I face a conflict or a difficult situation, my words of advice come winging right back to me!
Are you feeling the Holy Spirit nudging you now? Perhaps it's time for you to step up and "teach the younger women". If you do, then come and speak to me or Caroline. We may feel you'd benefit most from first getting involved in Inspire as a mentee before you become a mentor. Whether as a mentor or a mentee, we'd love to talk with you about how you might become involved, blessed and challenged through the mentoring programme.
Titus 2 contains the instruction that the older women should be teaching the younger women. Now when I first read that, I saw old women - not older. I think the older women in our Church community are awesome, but I really didn't want to wear the label "old". So I was glad to hear a Talk recently that pointed out we're all older women to a younger woman - even the 30 year old is an "older woman" to the 20 year old, who is an "older woman" to the teenage girl.
I see mentoring playing a big part in the outworking of this teaching.When I first thought about being a mentor in Inspire, I initially felt fearful- I was anxious that someone who walked alongside me would see the real me (and then what would they think?!); feeling inadequate and totally sure I wouldn't know what to say ; I was worried that I didn't know the Bible "enough" or pray "enough" or was good "enough"!
All the insecurities that maybe you share - I've definitely heard them repeated by those we've subsequently invited to be mentors (to be honest, I'd rather hear that than the opposite - at least feeling inadequate means you'll be asking for God's help, wisdom and intervention, and not relying on your own strength)
However, once I got started, all my fears disappeared. My mentee didn't expect me to be perfect; to have it "all together"; to quote the Bible or to be any other type of "super spiritual". She just needed me to be the real me, and to be honest and open. She needed me to care for her and pray for her. She needed me to sometimes say the tough things, the last 10% - to say the things she wasn't reading in magazine advice, or getting from chatting with her girlfriends.
Being a mentor has stretched me, grown me, expanded my faith. I'm grateful to God for my precious relationship with my mentee - grateful too for His wisdom and help. And you know what? In times where I face a conflict or a difficult situation, my words of advice come winging right back to me!
Are you feeling the Holy Spirit nudging you now? Perhaps it's time for you to step up and "teach the younger women". If you do, then come and speak to me or Caroline. We may feel you'd benefit most from first getting involved in Inspire as a mentee before you become a mentor. Whether as a mentor or a mentee, we'd love to talk with you about how you might become involved, blessed and challenged through the mentoring programme.