Mentoring 101

Mentoring 101: This section deals with my reading on the topic of mentoring.

  1. Mentoring 101
  2. What Mentoring is, and is Not
  3. Portrait of a Mentor
  4. Effective Models of Mentoring
  5. Steps to Effective Mentoring
  6. The Ten Commandments of Mentoring
  7. Accountability in Mentoring

Differences Between Coaching, Mentoring, and Discipling 1

Coaching carries familiarity and power because the world of sports is ubiquitous. In athletics, a coach typically has played the sport in view, and therefore possesses a databank and history that qualifies him to teach. There is clearly an implied transfer of knowledge or technique from coach to player.

Mentoring takes place when one person desires to emulate the life of another, usually including the mentor’s personal patterns and habits. This often includes several specific skills, especially pertaining to leadership or business acumen. Mentoring is commonplace in the world of business and in the professions of law, medicine and religion.

Discipleship, conversely, occurs strictly in a religious context; it’s training someone as it relates to their faith in Christ. If done correctly, discipleship encompasses all aspects of life, including how one operates in the worlds of business, family, and church. Today, the concept and use of the term “mentoring” has largely replaced the term “discipleship”, even in the church.

Rick Leineweber defines a disciples as a follower (apprentice) of Christ that is developing the convictions (head), character (heart), competencies (hands), and compassion (heels) of Christ while leading others to do the same. 2

  1. “Come and see” is an open invitation.
  2. “Come and follow” is an open invitation.
  3. “Come and be with me” is a closed invitation, hand selected after a night in prayer (Mark 3:13-14, Luke 6:12-13).

Discipleship takes place in a variety of places, like on the job training (show and tell), at home, the boardwalk, Starbucks, or a classroom. Acts 19:8-10 relates sort of a work-study situation, “persuading them about the kingdom of God,” eventually withdrawing to the school of Tyrannus (for two years) so that all who lived in Asia heard God’s Word.

The disciples never went to seminary to study theology, so how did they reach all who lived in Asia? Likely they understood the importance of spending time in the marketplace; meeting people, having lunch, and engaging people in spiritual conversations.

Rick suggests spending time in these various areas: all centering around the commands of Christ and the headship of Jesus Christ in all these areas:

  1. Finances/budget
  2. Employment/school
  3. Family/children/discipline
  4. Social activities
  5. Marriage/sexuality
  6. Church/Bible study/prayer/evangelism
  7. Health/exercise/diet

Struggles and Results in a Discipleship Relationship:

  1. Difficulties Encountered:
    • How to multiply disciplemakers
    • Reorientation from feelings of culture to commands of Christ
    • The expectation of being best friends
    • The production of friendship and leadership: (John 15:15) “No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.”
    • Cutting the cord and moving on
  2. Significant Results:
    • Christ increasing and me decreasing (John 3:30)
    • Obedience to Christ when we are not together: (Philippians 2:12) “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;
    • Seeing Christ being formed in the disciple: (Galatians 4:19) “My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you

1 Michael McLaughlin, The Christian Community Health Fellowship [ Go ]
2 Richard D. Leineweber, Jr., the Commands of Christ, c. 2000

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