** This week I continue my missions Top 10 of how to set yourself up for success while on the field. Obviously this is not comprehensive, but should serve as a good guideline to help every missionary thrive both personally and with their ministry.
Number 6 – Mentorship/Accountability
The long lasting fruit that comes from Godly mentorship and accountability is unquantifiable. I know this first hand. He who walks the journey of faith alone will not walk very far. For everyone of us it takes a team of people around us. And not just any team, but a team made up of the right players. If your going to have the best team, you better make sure that a few of those players represent, Mentorship and Accountability!
I was 19 years old when I truly embraced and submitted myself to God. It was then that I made him the Lord of my life. It was a wonderful salvation experience. I can with certainty say, it was the goodness of the Lord that drew me to repentance (Romans 2:4). For the first time I understood that God loved me unconditionally through the work of his son, Jesus Christ. I was overwhelmed (in a good way) and beyond happy! Towards the end of this salvation experience, I told the Lord two things:
1. I will be committed to Him until the very end, no matter what.
2. I’m not sure of all the things I need to do, but I sure know the things in life I don’t need to do. So… I commit to putting myself around people who I respect and admire their walk with Jesus.
Looking back, it was definitely God speaking through me. I could have never of come up with two things more significant to the walk of faith. As the years unfolded, I found myself staying committed and trying to glean any and everything I could form those I admired. This approach lead me to meeting a lot of quality people and forming friendships with people that would be instrumental in giving wise council for small and large decisions in my life.
I don’t want us to overlook something very important though. Mentorship and accountability was a priority of mine. I was not waiting for a “Paul” in my life to find me or for something magical to happen out of nowhere. I was intentional and I pursued the relationships with consistency and purpose. We have to “WANT TO” have mentorship in our lives. We have to “WANT TO” be accountable. It might not happen over night and you might not be buddies with the Head Pastor of your church, but that is not the point. Believe me, If you want the wise council of a mentor in your life, if you want to be accountable with your life with a peer, YOU HAVE TO PERSUE IT! God wants you to have it and He has it for you, but we have to step out and lay hold of it.
Here are a few key verses when it comes to these two areas of mentorship and accountability:
Proverbs 12:15 – The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But a wise man is he who listens to counsel.
James 5:16 – Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.
1 Thessalonians 5:11 – Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.
Proverbs 27:17 – Iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens another.
Romans 14:12 – So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.
I write this 15 years after I gave my life to the Lord. I can honestly say that all of the major decisions and most of the minor decisions in my life were submitted to a council of people who I consider to be my mentors and people I’m accountable to. Even beyond the “decisions of life”, I have submitted the weaknesses/sins/vices of my life to a small group of trusted people who can walk with me through the good, the bad and the ugly. This is a daily to weekly thing. I can say with great conviction that the fullness and freedom of my life is in direct connection to these two words. Mentorship & Accountability!
Marvin Slaton – Modern Day Director
