Spiritual Mentoring: An Extraordinary Gift from Experienced Believers
Have you ever considered spiritually mentoring someone? It may sound challenging but—spoiler alert—you’re probably doing it already! Exploring this topic is the Project Connect booklet Spiritual Mentoring: Sharing God’s Gifts with the Next Generation by Ron Merritt. You might think a special skill set or professional training is required before you mentor, but that’s not the case. Mentoring is about sharing your life, connecting with others in honest conversation. It’s about being a friend and cultivating meaningful relationships in Christ-centered, life-on-life ways.
“A booklet on spiritual mentoring is needed in the church today because too much wisdom is going unshared between generations,” says Chris Macky, LHM’s content development manager. “Living faithfully in this world is difficult, and we all need people who are further along the path—in life and in faith—to pass on what they have learned. This is how faith travels from one generation to the next: through friendships and relationships of trust.”
It’s mistaken to think that your age or lack of experience exclude you from mentoring. “Nothing could be further from the truth! Younger people are hungry for older adults to include them in their lives and faith. They welcome building relationships with seasoned believers who will listen to their ideas and incorporate both generations’ visions for life and ministry,” says Merritt, who understands relationship building. He’s a retired LCMS principal, a former Nigerian missionary, and has benefited from mentors himself.
“Spiritual mentoring is not weird or abnormal; it happens all around us,” says Merritt. Still, mental roadblocks can divert us from mentoring. We may feel our life’s struggles disqualify us from helping others: “Who am I to give you advice?” Or maybe it’s a time thing: “Life’s just too busy already.” And then there’s the Bible: “I’m just not well versed enough.” This booklet addresses these questions, and more.
In all these hesitations, we lean on God who gives us strength to be a friend and mentor to others. Jesus said, “Come, follow Me” (Matthew 4:19a). “Follow Me” as you see how your life’s struggles mirror those that others have and how your responses can be a blessing to them. “Follow Me” as you mentor during life’s everyday rhythms, in time spent doing things you’d do anyway like getting coffee or running errands. “Follow Me,” as you seek truth together in God’s Word, learning side by side with them.
You can find this and dozens of other Project Connect booklets at lhm.org/projectconnect.