“She looked like she wanted to fight me right there in front of the church.” He said, describing his first impression of me.
“I was scared of her. I thought if I got too close she would cut me.” A friend joked years later.
She never smiles. She’s so serious. They thought.
Yet, severing myself from this group was the farthest thing from my mind. I wanted desperately to survive; I knew life existed here. I wanted to amount to something, and count for something in my pathetic life. I just didn’t know how to say it. I didnt know how to ask for it. I didnt believe I was worth someone else’s time.
But there I was, standing in the lens of their viewfinder. And they had something to add to God’s process in my life.
Fortunately for me, several brave people overlooked my fight or flight mug. Each person reached a hand into the lion cage of my life, helping to tame the madness I was so accustomed to. As a result, each person became part of my story.
Little Things Add Up
To begin with, I had no place to live, no HS diploma and no job skills. A broken mind and a tortured heart crippled my decision making.
I didnt need just one mentor. I needed several with varying skill sets. (1 Peter 4:10).
For example, some people played a big role, like giving me temporary housing for a few weeks. (One of which led to five years. Im forever grateful to the Adams family)
And others did what they could with the resources in their hands. (1Corinthians 12:5-6)
A single mom encouraged me to take my GED, and drove me to the test site.
A school administrator filed my paperwork for college admission and scholarship.
A pastor mentored a group of us ragamuffins every Friday night in his home for years.
A cleaning lady gave me a job. She taught me way more than scrubbing tubs that year.
A stay at home mom invited me to prayer meetings with her closest friends.
Many people did little things. And it all added up to saving a life.
I was hungry and you fed me,
I was thirsty and you gave me a drink,
I was homeless and you gave me a room,
I was shivering and you gave me clothes,
I was sick and you stopped to visit,
I was in prison and you came to me. Matthew 25:35-36
Next Steps
Mentoring is simply imparting skills and knowledge through relationship.
You may have a high stress job or a school of little ones at home. Mentoring is doing what you can, when you can, with what you have been given. (Mathew 25:15) Mentor within your real life. Let the person see the real you; you don’t have to separate the two.
Mentoring or Life Coaching can be facilitated through trusted organizations like Treasures, DCDC, Prison Fellowship and your local Boys and Girls club.
Or you can impart one small thing.
People orbit our world everyday desperate for someone to see them. Someone brave enough to cross the threshold of her life for a moment. You have the chance to be a part of her story.
Give what you have in your hand no matter how insignificant it seems to you. If you have something another person does not have, you are in a position to mentor. And giving always comes back to you and increases your resources. (Matthew 25:21)
Who is God putting on your heart?
What is one little thing you can do for her today?
Read Matthew 25 for more encouragement on mentoring.
Give what you have in your hand…. Love THIS!