Mentoring & .MOM
Sophie - July 19, 2011
Over the last year or so I feel like I've heard the word "mentor" in conversations more than ever before. Just last Sunday night at church, in fact, I listened to a couple of friends brainstorm about better ways to connect the women our church to ladies who are a step or two ahead: ways to connect 20-somethings with 30-somethings, ways to connect young moms with moms of elementary-aged kids, ways to connect moms of high school- or college-aged kids with women who have embarked on the adventure of grandparenting. I can't wait until they announce the specifics of it all this fall.
Because the whole connection thing? It's difficult. Mentoring relationships don't always develop organically, and it's easy to assume that we'll be bugging someone or pressuring them if we ask if they'd be willing to meet with us once a week or once a month or whatever our mentoring need happens to be. Sometimes we assume that the mentoring relationship should occur within our families - that our mom or an aunt will take us under their wing - but we don't realize that they might not think that they have anything to offer us. And so we sit back, and we don't say anything, and we wonder if there's a way to find a mentor without the whole situation just reeking of awkward.
(Granted, your church or Bible study may have a connection method that works beautifully for everyone.)
(And I'm pretty sure that if that's the case, there are lots of us who would love to read more about it.)
I'm so grateful that the women who have been planning the .MOM event for over a year now are well-aware of the need for mentoring. There are going to be lots of opportunities at. MOM to connect with a mom who's a little older and wiser - as well as opportunities to connect with women who are on the other side of a particularly difficult situation (infertility, divorce, illness, family struggles, etc.). The whole idea is that the mentor moms - or the Mighty Mom Squad as Paige Greene calls them - will be on hand to listen, to speak into and to pray over whatever needs the moms at .MOM might have.
Who knows? It just might be the beginning of a beautiful, long-lasting friendship.
There's strength in numbers, after all.
Melanie
Melanie
Sophie
Sophie
Paige
Paige
Kris
Kris
Comments (1)
I’ve recently found myself in a mentoring/discipling relationship with a younger woman which has been amazing! Sometimes I wonder if I grow more or if she does out of our relationship. But I would seriously give my right arm for a mentor of my own. I’ve flat out asked women whom I spiritually admire for a mentor type of meeting or relationship and been turned down. It’s very frustrating, but I feel that God has been giving me extra revelation to help make up for it! :D
Posted on July 19, 2011 3:06 PM