Four Faces of a Mentor

Adventure Guide

Your role is to provide close supervision and individualized discipleship, offering encouragement and correction when needed. It may be critical during this phase to focus on opportunities for change, bringing the mentee to a place where he can relinquish his hard-won will for the will of God through consistent obedience to his new Master, Jesus Christ.

Necessary Elements: Love, relational equity, courage, spiritual discernment.

Climbing Partner

Your role is to bridge the gap between knowledge about things aspired to by the mentee and the choices necessary to reach those goals. You may need to coach the mentee on specific behaviors and skills needed to gain victory in certain areas of life.

Necessary Elements: Love, Scriptural familiarity, hope in Christ alone, timing

Storyteller

Your role is to connect with the mentee by praying for him/her and by looking for opportunities to communicate your personal story. You also want to gain familiarity with the mentee's story so that you can help translate that with healthy perspective. It is a dialog, not a monologue.

Necessary Elements: Love, vulnerability, communication skills.

TrailMate

Your role is to listen, ask questions, and build trust. This is not the place to provide answers or load the mentee down with advice or assignments. Just walk alongside and let the questions and solutions emerge over time in the natural flow of conversation. Don't get in a hurry!

Necessary Elements: Love, patience, time, selflessness