Mother’s Day is upon us. It’s not a great day for some of us. I pray that God will heal your heart from the pain you feel. When the time is right, you might consider becoming a mentor to a young girl or woman that can benefit from your experience. Here’s a post from my sister, Kandy Chimento on her experience.
When we were pastoring at a church in Kansas City, one of the tasks given to us by our leadership team was to write a personal Purpose Statement. I had never thought about it before, but as I wrote, thinking about how God had directed my path through the years to that point, I saw a consistent theme. Discipleship. Not just simply as an obvious directive from Jesus, but also as a pattern in my life. This, of course, is a major component of raising Godly children, training them up in the way they should go. But I believe Jesus is calling us to more than “just” raising our children.
Matthew 28:19-20 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
A disciple is one who accepts and assists in spreading the doctrines of another.
A mentor is a trusted counselor or guide.
Throughout most of our marriage, we have been in ministry and have discipled hundreds of teens in our years of youth ministry, and then others as senior leadership in several churches. I developed a mentoring program for young women in our churches which involved many of the other women in our church body. I approached these women and asked them to share their wisdom and knowledge with the younger women. Some of them felt inadequate in “teaching”, but they all had wisdom and experience to share. You don’t have to be a pastor or minister to invest and sow seeds in others. In fact, Paul tells the women of the church that this is how we should live:
“Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.” Titus 2:3-5
That sounds like discipleship and mentoring to me!
Besides teaching spiritual disciplines, such as prayer and devotional life, fasting, and scripture memory, we covered many other subjects. These topics we included in my specific program were homemaking, hospitality, etiquette and manners, health, marriage and family, and ministry within and community involvement outside the church. We familiarized them with the political, cultural, and business realms.
How Can We Mentor Others?
If you read Proverbs 31, you see many facets of a virtuous or Godly woman. Many of us feel inadequate when reading through the list of traits she possesses, but I feel it is more of a comprehensive list of all the giftings given to us as women.
- We can be great homemakers; working hard, gardening, and providing food from different sources to feed our families.
- We can be businesswomen, who buy and sell, make a profit, and provide for our family’s future.
- We can support and honor our husbands so that they can do their work well and be promoted and become leaders, bringing them good and not harm.
- We can be a more public influence in government or direct other companies or ministries.
- We can speak with wisdom and faithful instruction (Proverbs 31:26). Yes, we can mentor and disciple others who can benefit from our wisdom and instruction.
As the Proverbs 31 woman shows us, it doesn’t necessarily have to be “spiritual” teaching, but others can learn from our experience in all walks of life.
Example of My Own Mother
My own mother has been such a vital mentor to me in my life.
- She taught me how to be a Godly wife, who honors and supports her husband.
- She modeled homemaking skills; gardening, sewing, cooking, etc.
- She demonstrated how to be kind to the needy by dropping off baskets of food,
- being a foster mom,
- and opening our home in so many ways with her hospitality.
- And she directed a Crisis Pregnancy center to help those who needed hope and compassion.
She truly “watched over the affairs of our household and did not eat the bread of idleness”. (Prov. 31:27)
What is your gifting? What can you share?
I challenge you to read Proverbs 31 again. See what area God has gifted you, or where you have gained experience. And then consider,
- “How can I pass this on?
- Who needs some direction in their life?
- How can I spread the gospel through relationships with those in my pathway?
I guarantee that God has given you strength and wisdom in some areas that you can share with others.
Talk to Him, consider your life purpose, and just see who He brings into your life. You will find meaning in your struggles and joy from sweet connections that will extend into eternity.
She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instructions are on her tongue. Proverbs 31:25-26
-Kandy Chimento
More Info on How to be a Mentor
How To Mentor Christian Women (whatchristianswanttoknow.com)
Other Posts by Kandy
How to Train Yourself to Be Godly
Effective Discipleship for Teens
Other Posts About Mothers
Legacy of Motherhood: The Life of Susanna Wesley
A Mother’s Journey Through Grief
An Experienced Mom & Stepmom Shares Parenting Encouragement
Adoption Changed My Legacy & the Legacy LinkUp
Kandy Chimento and her husband, Tony, live in Liberty Hill, Texas. They have spent many years in ministry together. Their greatest joys are their two amazing kids; Christa, and Tyler (and his lovely wife, Rebekah), and their two grandsons, Gideon & Jude. Kandy is the Director of Operations at a local Food Pantry & Resource Center, where she enjoys working with the hundreds of volunteers she manages, and the neighbors they assist.
