MentorNet #34 General
Guidelines for Mentoring Christian Leaders Copyright
© 2005 by Galen Currah and George Patterson On-the-job
leader training has been found in most church-planting movements*.
The way that Jesus and his apostles did it still works well. We choose to
call their method mentoring. There
are many kinds of mentoring; one person with more knowledge and experience
helps others to become successful. Jesus mentored his apostles by listening
to them and instructing them on-the-job (Mark Mentoring Basics Conscientious
Christian educators try to maintain a balance between teaching and training.
They teach big groups in classrooms and workshops, while they do face-to-face
training of individuals, a few at a time. Novice leaders and their new
churches or cells have urgent needs that are best met by a mentor who will
first listen to them to learn their needs, and then provide instruction that
helps to meet those needs. Wherever
the apostles mentored new leaders, churches multiplied, even as they do today
on most newly-opened fields (Acts The
main task in making disciples is to teach baptized believers to obey Jesus’
commands (Matt. 28.20), motivated by their love for him (John 14.15). Thus,
new congregations, from their start, begin doing all the activities that the
first believers did in the early To
facilitate reproduction of novice leaders and new churches, where folks are
becoming believers, good mentors pass on a ‘light baton’. That is, they strip
their training of non-essentials such as educational prerequisites,
systematic theology, fluency in a second language, and Bible school diplomas.
The training baton is light enough that new leaders are able to pass it on to
other, newer leaders (Col. 1:7-8). Mentoring Disciplines To
keep churches reproducing, mature leaders require of novice leaders only what
the New Testament requires to be appointed as an elder and to train other
novice leaders, in turn. This is different from education that requires a
high level of literacy and previous schooling. When
mentoring novice leaders, a trainer limits the number of trainees in a
training group to a size that allows him to listen to each trainee and to
plan with each one what they will do with their flock immediately. This is
different from education that prepares for a far future career. Trainees
in a small mentoring group should be as similar as possible in their economic
level, social status, culture, and educational background, as well as in the
maturity of the congregations or cell groups that they lead. In many places,
trainees’ similar economic level is the strongest factor in good
communication between mentors and trainees. Where mentors are obviously
different from their trainees in their amount of income or the way the get
paid, the mentoring process often breaks down; trainees of a lower level
become passive and slow to act. Mentoring particulars While
a church is being birthed, mentoring sessions may be held daily. Soon, once a
week or every two weeks will suffice, allowing trainees time to study and to
apply their learning while tending to their daily shepherding activities. Mentoring
novice leaders in a new church, who are fast, experienced, learners, may last
from a few weeks, whereas others may require up to a year or two. Keep on
mentoring as long as learners keep obeying and seeking your help, as long as
they need it. Where
practical, meet for mentoring where a trainees’ new work is going on; always
meet at a location accessible by both you and your trainees. Avoid imposing
hardship on the poor for your own convenience. New
mentors often do better by referring to a ‘menu’ of activities and ministries
that the New Testament requires of all congregations. You can then choose
lessons from your menu that match your trainees’ flocks’ current needs. (Such
menus can be obtained from www.paul-timothy.net.) Often
the best mentor of a novice leader is another novice leader who has a little
more experience, for both share similar personal and church needs. If the
more experienced one has a menu and some simple materials, he can help others
to use those tools, especially if another trainer is mentoring him at the
same time. At
every mentoring session, trainers must add something new and positive, such
as a new ministry, gathering a new flock, enrolling another leader for
mentoring, or winning folks to Christ. Avoid spending the majority of the
time dealing with negative, chronic problems. Some problems cannot be solved,
so you must move on by simply doing what Jesus or His apostles said to do, in
spite of those problems. Mentoring Activities When
meeting with novice leaders, a good mentor will employ methods that enable
those leaders to take initiative. These seven mentoring activities have
proven helpful in many countries. They can be done in any order during a
mentoring session. 1. Pray that the Holy Spirit will give
wisdom to your trainees. (James 1:5) 2. Listen to your trainees report on what
they have been doing and saying and their congregations’ current
opportunities and needs. (Mark 3. Plan with your trainees what each one
will do with their congregations. Write specific plans with names and places,
both trainer and trainee keeping a copy. (Titus 1:5) 4. Assign Bible readings and short studies
that trainees will do at home. Most of these studies should support their
immediate plans. (2 Tim. 3:16-17) 5. Review together what the trainees
learned from their previously assigned studies. (2 Peter 3:1-2) 6. Model new skills for trainees either in
the session or by going together to do ministry among the people. (Phil.
3:17) 7. Intercede for the trainees’
congregations, mentioning folks by name. (Col. 4:12) When
the mentoring process breaks down, it is usually due to a mentor’s failure to
listen or a learner’s failure to make specific plans. For example, instead of
instructing leaders “to do evangelism”, help them to specify persons, methods
and places where they will tell the Good News. Plans should be written down,
however briefly, and followed up at a later mentoring session. To find mentoring tools and sites, visit <http://www.MentorAndMultiply.com>. To obtain information on how to use Train & Multiply® (pastoral
training combined with church planting) write to
Galen Currah <[email protected]>. To obtain information on how to obtain T&M®, visit <http://www.TrainAndMultiply.com>. To obtain free, reproducible training materials for new leaders &
missionaries, visit <http://www.Paul-Timothy.net>. To download or purchase “Come, Let Us Disciple the Nations” (CD-ROM),
visit <http://www.AcquireWisdom.com/products.html>. To order the Church Multiplication Guide in English visit <http://www.WCLbooks.com>
or a book shop. To download the CMG free in Portuguese or French, visit <http://currah.info/www/cmg/>. To subscribe to MentorNet or download earlier MentorNet messages,
visit <http://www.MentorNet.ws>. To obtain counsel on severe church planting obstacles and training
challenges, write to George Patterson at <[email protected]>.
*
Garrison, David, Church Planting Movements: How God is redeeming a lost
world, ( |