Seven Reasons You Need a Mentor

Learning From the Experienced

When you begin a journey, you want to know where you’re headed. You probably want a map, or a trustworthy guide. As you begin your journey in missions, we are ready to offer help and guidance, to pray with you and to walk this path alongside you.

The word mentor can mean different things to different people. Originally the word comes from Homer’s Odyssey, in which Mentor is a trusted friend of King Odysseus. When the king leaves for war, Mentor remains behind to guide Odysseus’s son during his father’s absence. Today, mentors continue to serve as resources, advisors and guides to those open to learning.

So, why do you need a mentor?

1. You were made for this.

Even though the Bible doesn’t use the word “mentor,” God clearly designed us to learn in and through the context of relationships. Believers need each other for this life’s journey.

2. You’re on a journey.

One type of mentoring involves the consultant or coach mentor, people you can turn to for help in a particular situation because of their expertise. It meets a specific need at a specific time, and it’s the type of mentorship we offer to those seeking direction or questioning how they can be involved in bringing the good news to the least-reached. These relationships last a few months to a few years as we walk beside people pursuing God’s next steps for their lives.

3. You shouldn’t go alone.

Life doesn’t come with a GPS, and having someone who will spend time listening and asking good questions can help you see the scope of the journey ahead of you. A mentor is someone with whom you can share your dreams, a cheerleader who will rally others around your cause and an accountability partner who will encourage you to complete the tasks remaining to get you to the field. They can help you brainstorm next steps and set goals, and will keep pointing you to Christ and His call to you.

4. Experience is exponentially valuable.

With a mentor, you have the opportunity to borrow perspective from those who have already invested in life and have earned the wages of experience. Our mentors have been there. They’ve passed through the application process, prepared themselves for cross-cultural service, raised support, learned foreign languages, experienced culture shock and even mastered how to buy groceries and do laundry in the face of the unfamiliar. They’ve discipled new believers and seen God bring transformation to hearts in need of change. They’ve lived the life you are pursuing.

5. Questions > answers.

Are mentors the ones who have all the answers? No, good mentors are those who can ask the right questions to help you think through things from many different angles. The mentor serves as a guide to point out various options and offer a different perspective. We don’t presume to know God’s specific plan for your life, whether or not God wants you to serve in a specific location or which avenue or agency you should chose. However, we have walked down the path ourselves and love joining others in their journey.

6. Bringing the spiritually dead to life is impossible, humanly speaking.

The good news of God’s transformative love is about life displacing death. It’s about His powerful grace and not about our human limitations. And sometimes you need someone to remind you of that truth. You need someone who will pray for you and with you for those you aspire to reach with the gospel. You need someone to encourage you to keep your eyes looking at Jesus and what He is already doing!

7. We are all part of this vision!

You are part of a story that is far bigger than you are. It’s been unfolding from the beginning of time, and you were created with a specific role and purpose. Everyone has a part to play, but not everyone will do the same thing. We’re here to help you learn how your story is a part of what God is doing to draw the nations to Himself.

The vision of Christar is to cultivate Christ-honoring transformation in communities where He is yet to be worshiped. For that to happen, the gospel has to go where it isn’t known, yet. That vision depends on people responding to God’s call on their lives to go! As you pursue your part in the Great Commission, we are here to help you.