Who is Your Mentor?

Mentoring is defined as the concept of an individual sharing their knowledge, skills, and experience to help another to develop and grow.

In a publication on 15 great mentors, I read about the list of people who mentor some of the famous successful people in our world today (read some).

Jesus invited us to allow him as our mentor in Matthew 1:28-29 MSG

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me, and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

Admitting this invite, we will be looking at some attributes that we can see in Jesus as we look unto Him.

Character- Jesus’ character is unique and dominates all his teachings in the gospel. These characters were demonstrated by Jesus and presented to us as a model of godliness.

In Acts 11, the believers’ lives reflect the life of Jesus, and people have to call them Christian in vs 26 meaning – people like christ.

The Meriam-Webster English dictionary defined a Christian as a person who believes in Jesus Christ and follows his teachings. Let us take a look at some of the characters of Jesus

Philippians 2:5-8: Easy to Read Version

5In your life together, think the way Christ Jesus thought.

6 He was like God in every way,

but he did not think that his being equal with God was something to use for his own benefit.

7 Instead, he gave up everything, even his place with God.

He accepted the role of a servant, appearing in human form.

During his life as a man,

8     he humbled himself by being fully obedient to God,

even when that caused his death—death on a cross.

We see from this scripture how Jesus refused to use his position of power as the creator for his personal gain. How do you handle the power or position given to you? What do you do when you are the decision-maker? When God gives you some privileges, do you use such for your personal benefit? Think about Jesus and embrace thinking like Jesus as your new way of life.

Let us take a keen look at two distinct characters of Jesus,

Humility– the Bible says he humbled himself.

How humble are you? Humility is defined as;

• freedom from pride or arrogance: the quality or state of being humble. (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/humility)
• the feeling or attitude that you have no special importance that makes you better than others; lack of pride (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/humility)
• the quality of not being proud because you are aware of your bad qualities: e.g. He doesn’t have the humility to admit when he’s wrong (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/humility)

Obedience

Jesus demonstrated much courage amid challenges. In the early ministry of Jesus, it took a courageous man like him to continue with the ministry.

He mentioned that he was a veteran missionary without a home-  Luke 9:57-58

It took courage to endure disappointment from his closest friends-Matthew 26:31;

He endured the cross Hebrew 12:2

It was courage that made Jesus endure all he suffered.

Are you experiencing discouragement, disappointment, embarrassment, betrayal, pain, suffering, loss, bitterness, agony, and all forms of life challenges?

Do not lose your courage! Hebrews 10:35-37 says

35 So don’t lose the courage that you had in the past. Your courage will be rewarded richly. 36 You must be patient. After you have done what God wants, you will get what he promised you. 37 He says,

“Very soon now, the One who is coming will come and will not be late.

Confidence

Jesus had a challenging situation that could throw away his confidence in God, but he held unto his confidence. John 19 shows Jesus’ encounter with Pilate, but he spoke confidently about his relationship with God.

Let us not forget that Jesus’ confidence was solely in God. John 5:30

Do not put your confidence in humans but in God- Proverbs 25:19

Hebrews 11: 1 NLT says

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

How confident are you in what you hope for? Several factors can challenge our confidence.

Delays may challenge your confidence

Disappointments may challenge your confidence

Your confidence may be challenged by the news and negative report (Numbers 13)

People with antagonistic opinions may challenge your confidence

Your doubts can challenge your confidence

We must hold on to our confidence because if we lose our confidence, we lose the race.

We must wear our confidence as our helmet- 1Thess 5:8

I know that this God who has started good work in me will finish it.

Hold unto your confidence in God’s word. Confess His word daily and regularly. Titus 1:2, 3:7.Hebrew 7:19 His word is the truth, and it gives us great confidence.

Let us with all confidence declare our faith- Hebrews 13:6

Jeremiah 17:7 Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.

In conclusion, let us read 2Cor 3:18 18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.