I am so excited to share this post with you all! It is written by one of my dearest friends, former roommate, and one of the most passionate people I know. I asked her to write on mentorship, because it's something she does often and does well. I'm excited for you to read her wisdom and get to hear her heart on such an important topic. When I first sat down to write this, I thought about every time I’ve worked with students. I thought about the last 8 years of working youth camps (with the 9th coming up in a few days!). I thought about my first internship where I helped organize and run VBS. I thought about this last semester when I got to mentor an incredible group of middle school girls. I thought about leading drama at my home church for 4 years. I’ve worked with more kids than I could count, spending years teaching, mentoring, praying for, and struggling with each of them. I’d love to say it was easy, but it wasn’t. It’s not easy to work with a kid who is trying to punch and bite you because she can’t have another juice box. It’s not easy to try to keep the attention of kids who like to scream when they’re bored. I’d love to say that, even though it wasn’t easy, at least seeing the fruit of the work was worth it. I’ve hugged kids after VBS only to never see them come back. I’ve had students that aged out of their programs never step back in church. I’ve prayed and wept for kids, never to see the fruition of the prayers. This sure doesn’t sound like I’m trying to explain to you why investing in the next generation is worth it, does it? It’s not easy, and you don’t always get the satisfaction of seeing the fruit. So why? Why are we supposed to add another thing to our list that is time consuming, difficult, and exhausting? If you’re looking for the easy response, I can give you verse after verse. Scripture tells us to raise our children up to love the Lord, and some kids have parents that can’t or won’t do that, so that responsibility falls on the church to guide them. That’s a really nice concept. It sounds beautiful, helping bring kids to God. The Church chooses to use this conceptually, and it’s clear that it isn’t working. It’s painful when the Church does the bare minimum to round up a few leaders who are willing to pour into these kids. They are working because of a concept that they aren’t personally invested in. Concepts are great until you’re preparing a lesson and you’re trying to teach it while one kid is yelling and another is under the table, and the rest are poking each other or begging for snack time. Suddenly it’s not beautiful - it’s just scary. Concepts don’t cover when a student brings up suicidal thoughts, or is experimenting with drugs, or is being abused. Concepts won’t work when you’re scared to sit down and have that difficult conversation. This is why so many leaders get “volun-told” into working with students, and then get so burnt out. That’s when our “why” needs to be less conceptual, and more personal. I believe that the scriptural backing for pouring into the younger generation is much more than a “Jesus told me to.” Instead it’s an, “I desire the best for these young Image-bearers.” It’s a “someone did this for me and it changed my life,” or an “I recognize the hope, beauty, and strength in this generation. They can bring heaven to earth if they have people to raise them up.” For each student I’ve seen walk out the door, I’ve seen so many more fall on their knees at the altar. For every student that has been disinterested, or a distraction, I’ve had so many more show a passion and hunger to learn about God. I’ve even seen some go from one side to the other, from totally not caring to being completely in love with the Lord. They just needed direction and encouragement. Now I need to be clear. I’m not some superhero mentor. I’ve gotten frustrated to tears when my students just refuse to listen, or a lesson doesn’t go as planned. I’ve had to cancel because of homework, and occasionally just because of life. I’ve wanted to give up on my calling and all of it, but it’s in those moments that God stirs in me. He most often points me back to myself, back to when I needed someone and they stepped up. I think back to heart to hearts with my youth leader about guys. She took the time to pour into me and it not only saved me a lot of heartache, but also was foundational in how I looked at godly relationships. I think about the youth pastor that saw leadership potential in the painfully shy 15-year-old girl that felt too alone to reach out. Without that push, I wouldn’t have understood my calling or be at all where I am now. They were there for me because they believed God had a plan for my generation. You don’t need to go find an open youth pastor position to be able to step into this calling. You just need people. See if your church needs a Children’s Church volunteer. Ask the youth pastor if there are any students that could use a spiritual mentor. Pray over the young people you know, and if you see a need then do your best to meet it. Focus on your “why.” Written by: Ashtyn Owen Ashtyn is Maine native. She's a junior in college, pursuing a degree in discipleship ministries with an emphasis on youth ministry. She is passionate about encouraging the next generation, speaking life into brokenness, and helping people struggling through life's storms. She mentors middle school girls, has worked on campus as a small group leader. When she's home for the summers, she works with the youth in her area through church and camps. She's a pineapple connoisseur and loves dogs more than you do. When she's not reading, watching vines, or photographing stuff, she is creating for her business. She custom paints Bibles and journals (they're gorgeous). Connect with Ashtyn: Instagram: ashtynowennn itscoveredwithlove Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ItsCoveredWithLove
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AuthorI'm a college student with a passion to empower women, spread the love of Christ, and speak truth into the darkness. I also really like cats and Taylor Swift. Archives
October 2018
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