15 Feb One Generation Commends Your Works to Another

One generation commends your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts (Psalm 145:4).

A few weeks ago, my mentor of 14 years, Irene, and I had the opportunity to share with my Wednesday morning mom’s group about the power of mentorship. If you’re interested, you can watch the talk here.

Irene has mentored me since I was 17, and I count her abiding friendship among God’s greatest gifts to me. She has walked with me through every major life event and her counsel has been absolutely invaluable for my spiritual, relational, and emotional growth over the years.

In preparing for our talk, I had a lot of time to think about the biblical model of mentorship, examine a few legendary mentoring relationships in the Bible, and ask the Lord to prepare my heart to become a mentor.

I am a firm believer that every woman should have a mentor and be a mentor. Scripture exhorts older women to mentor younger women (Titus 2). Moreover, Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, modeled mentoring relationships with his disciples, training, encouraging, and instructing them in righteousness, prayer, and faith.

Here are just three reasons (there are many) why we need mentorship:

Prayer Covering to Help You Grow

You can never have too many people praying for you and your family. A strong mentoring relationship provides an opportunity, through consistency and regularity, to cultivate deep and honest communication. Mentors, when invited into what’s really going on in your life and your family, have incredible insight to pray on your behalf.

The thing I cherish most about my mentoring relationship with Irene is her tenacity in prayer. She lifted us up in prayer for months as we asked to Lord to open a door for us to move to California. She joined me in prayer for years as I asked the Lord to change my husband’s heart about moving out west. Often, when I ask her advice on something, she will say, “I have to pray about this first,” committing to ask the Lord before speaking. I know I can ask her to pray about anything at any time, and I feel so loved and covered by her dedication to prayer.

Perspective to See God’s Goodness

Irene has perspective, which I often lack in the chaos and pandemonium of the little years. She’s been married for nearly forty years and has raised three godly children. She’s been around the block and has walked closely with the Lord longer than I’ve been alive. Her stories and encouragement help me rise above the fray and concentrate on God’s grace in the midst of my weakness. She reminds me often that I am the mother God chose for my daughter, and that my fear that I’m not enough for her is a lie from the Enemy, that despicable thief of joy who wants to rob me of enjoying God’s goodness.

Mentors can help us “take a minute” to realize that feeling overwhelmed and tired will not be our story forever. Eventually we will sleep through the night and our kids will grow more self-sufficient. Godly mentors have walked the same road before you and can speak of God’s faithfulness to their own families. Their testimonies become memorial stones, touchstones of God’s abundant provision.

Encouragement to Cheer You on When You Need It

We all need people on our cheering team. We need encouragers who can declare in the midst of struggle, “It’s going to be OK,” who can cheer in the midst of darkness, “God is light” (1 John 1:5), and who can yell from the finish line, “You CAN DO THIS!”

I can’t tell you how many times Irene has come alongside me to whisper encouragement in my ear when my strength has been flagging. When I fretted and worried about passing the bar exam, she reminded me of God’s promises, directed me to his Word, and dedicated herself to prayer on my behalf. She believes in me even when it’s difficult for me to believe in myself.

What about you? Do you have women speaking wisdom into your life? Are you investing in the next generation? If the answer is no, I encourage you to ask the Lord to bring you mentoring relationships with the generations above and below.