by Jen Powell

The clock doesn’t need to tell me it’s after midnight.  My droopy eye lids and incomplete thoughts make that very clear, but my heart is heavy.  I have a familiar feeling inside… lingering ache, tears just below the surface, a churning stomach & mind.

• It is the burden for the betrayed, hurting wife I corresponded with this week
• It is empathy for the single mom parenting teenage boys with an absent dad
• It is the compassion my husband feels for the desperate father trying to keep it all together in this economy

God continues to give us a burden for marriages and families all around us.  eMentoring ministry is a passion for us. Yet, sometimes I find it challenging to mentor.  Do you? 

It can be overwhelming to read the gravity and depth of some of the mentees’ circumstances.  We may have several dialogs going with multiple people: a marriage situation with anger and alcohol in one email and maybe an adult daughter and mother situation with mental health issues in the next.  I cannot forget about the prodigal child situation waiting two emails below.  Where do we start?  I don’t know what they look like and we obviously don’t have a deep personal relationship. 

I’m comforted by the fact that God knows them intimately and He has brought them to us.  He knows every detail of their lives and He is their answer.  He is their comforter, their strength, their peace and their life.  I pray they will recognize that truth and embrace His great love for them.

Back to the question… where do we start?  On our knees acknowledging that God is the One who can touch their hearts and their lives.  We pray to reach every one of them with the hope of Jesus Christ.  We follow our training.  We listen, ask questions, consider, and encourage.  These are valuable tools and critical steps.  In the quiet of the night and my heavy heart, I start with a prayer.

Lord, meet them in their every need.  Open their eyes to see that You are the answer.  You are their comfort, their refuge and their strength.  Lord, give them courage to let go of all the things that keep them from living in a passionate, personal relationship with You.  Heal their hearts and homes.  Give them incredible testimonies of Your power and Your great love.  Equip us as mentors, Lord… give us words and wisdom.  Help us to see with Your eyes, respond with Your love, and live in Your power one email at a time.  May You be glorified.  Amen.

As mentors, we all have different situations.  These days I mentor in between home-school lessons, swim practice, and dinner preparation.  I am grateful to God for allowing me to be part of something much bigger than my small life.  What an honor to serve in this way and be on my knees for these precious lives.