Share our donation page with your friends, and join us as we rewrite the story of the fatherless generation!
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Also, use the comment section below to thank a mentor in your life. We are collecting stories for our site. And if you are a mentor, thanks. You are making a greater difference than you could possibly know.
I have had innumerable mentors, from David Gentiles, who Blue Like Jazz was dedicated to, to John MacMurray who cowrote To Own a Dragon with me, and about fifteen more between. I strongly believe, without these men, I would probably be in prison. I was already breaking into houses when I was in junior high. David Gentiles gave me a guest writing gig in the youth-group newsletter, and from there I chose a life working with words. I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to the mentors in my life. Thanks.
This is one of the more exciting things I’ve seen in a while! Thanks Don for all your work on this!
I have been blessed with numerous mentors in my life. I wish that I could list them all and shout from the mountain-top the awesomeness that each of them possess. One that comes to mind is a woman by the name of Eileen Wereskla. She held my hand during a challenging moment in my life. I related to Eileen because we both had gone through a “hippie” phase. Eileen was a flower child, and one day she realized that the very things that were important to her in the 70s (love, peace, tranquility) were the same things that are important to Jesus. That realization led her to Christ. And because she shared that realization with me, I was better able to accept myself as a woman who is loved by God. I will always be grateful to her for that.
Thank God for mentors…thank God for people like Don who inspire us to be better people.
Come to Louisiana Don, we need you here:) I am not giving up…we have a conference with William P Young ( the shack) in June 09…I’ll cook you some La food…:) and we’ll round you up some support for your cause! ….www.swiftfire.org
4 sho! shar
What’s a practical first step in becoming a mentor?
So sorry to be a nit-pick but i hope millions watch this video and don’t find anything frivolous getting in their way, the video has 3 typos, “Less” has a capital L in middle of sentence on first line of hope, “likely” is spelled “likel” and the word ‘choose’ in your closing quote is spelled “chose.”
This stuff is too imp to let things let that draw people’s attention away from the core message, no need to post this, just trying to help, sorry if i’m the 81st person to tell you this!
Josh from down the road in Salem
Joel,
Here’s few ideas:
1) Show the above video with your church leadership. Get them thinking about joining this movement.
2) Talk to your church’s childrens pastor. Ask if there is a need for a mentor. Also ask to be mentored. Children’s pastors are wise in topics like appropriate discipline and being sensitive to a boy’s developmental needs. The mom is also a source of wisdom that you need to hear.
3) Consider paying for your own volunteer screening. Any good agency will need to have you get national criminal record and sexual offender database screening. Getting your own screening paid for will help the cause.
4) Boyscouts: Seriously. I’m running a den because my middle son wanted to be a scout. I reluctantly volunteered– primarily because I was nervous about the whole deal. Long story short I’m running the den and have a collection of children to mentor. There’s a kid who has a dad in jail. Another boy’s dad is about to be deployed to Iraq. There’s a few other boys with special emotional needs. You know, I don’t have time for this, but I can’t quit– God’s heart is for these kids.
The Mentoring Project WILL grow to your neck of the woods. But in the meantime, this is a good place to make a difference.
I am a guy who grew up without a dad, he left after an affair when I was 5. My mom moved us 400 miles away and I maybe saw my dad twice a year. Growing up without a Dad is hard, i still feel the affects to this day. I was a mess. In junior high, a guy would to come to our apartment complex and pick us up for church. His name is Fritz. He was in his 60’s. His passion is kids without Dads. He took me fishing, his house for fish fries and studying the bible. We still get together to this day. He calls to take other kids fishing. He is now in his 80’s. He was my first introduction to a Jesus follower. My name is Craig, I am a pastor in SE MN. If it wasn’t for this man, I would not be where I am today!
Hey Don thanks for this project. I am 22 years old and fresh out of College. I am in one of the toughest stages in my life. I am a teacher at a private school teaching 7/8th grade boys Bible. I have struggle since the beginning of school, to stay positive and to continue to pour into my students. I would not still be teaching if it was not for my mentor. I have never really had a mentor before. I have looked high and low and it seems like they are all taken. But when I started my job the school gave me a fellow teacher to be my mentor. His name is Hannible Najar. He is a soccer coach and Spanish teacher here at the school and is one of the most respected people I know.
He has come along side of me and has shaped and guided me through this stage in my life and I am thankful for him.
I am looking forward to giving to this project and am excited to see it take off.
I was lucky to grow up in a home with a dad – but I also know that there were great people who helped direct me to how I am today… Guys that were willing to be awesome camp councilors that stired me to be a camps guy. Guys that would let me play my bass with them at church, even if I was awful – they knew I would get better. Probably more that I can’t think of right now.
It is a great thing that you are looking to do Don. I great use of the reach that you now have and a great tribute to the men that spent time.
Any plans to go international with it (I know you’re just launching) I love the idea and would love to support something like it North of the Boarder.
I will try to pass on the information to my sphere of influence.
Great work
Powerful video. I’m glad God has placed in your heart a passion to see the fatherless cared for. Thanks for acting on that passion.
There are a few typos, though. At 0:31 there’s a capital “L” where it should be lowercase. In that same line you have “likel” where it should be “likely.” And at 1:20 you have “chose” when it should be “choose.” Those are the ones that stood out to me, so I just thought I’d let you know.
Powerful stuff. Love what you are doing.
Not to be cheese-ball but I think that Josh White gave you a manuscript of mine?
Thanks for all you do man!
God has used many women to fill in the gaps in my life, but I’m especially grateful for Kuni Garrison Cross. Before she went to be with the Lord, she taught she more about what it meant to know Jesus than any one person in my life. I have never known another person who walked as intimately with Him as she did. Even though she’s been gone for more than a decade, I still find myself quoting her on a regular basis. So much of the mentoring I do now, with other women, is based on what she taught me. She touched so many people in her 46 years, and I count it a real gift from the Lord she invested in me.
I am growing up with a father, but it’s a far cry from the relationship that is speacil between a father and daughter. He’s an alcholic and that above everything else has damaged our relationship the most. He has caused me a lot of pain, and a result of the relationship we don’t have….has messed up my view on life and on God. About a year ago God decided to intervine and place a mentor in my life. He was my youth leader, and he was really the first adult outside of my family that actually cared about me and what I’m going through. Talking with him, and being able to see him every week has provided me with a father-like relationship, though it can’t replace the non-existing with my dad, it has given me a relationship very very close to that and having that kind of influnce in my life has greatly increased my hope and understanding of God as my Father. Then for some amazing reason God decided to bless me with another mentor, a woman this time, and she and my first mentor are the ones who lead me to Christ, and who prayed with me that night when I accepted Him. God wasn’t finished….He blessed me with another mentor, and along with my first, these two men have given me the best gift ever…. father-figures in my life. Having mentors or even just a mentor can make a world of difference to a teen…it did to me, just to have someone to talk to and love you like your father never did…it saved my life. And I will be forever grateful, and never stop thanking God for my mentors.
When I was 14 years old I was heading in the wrong direction, I had a loving father who lived far away. My day to day was getting worse and worse. I met a man named Randy Wheeler who was a new youth pastor in town. I had never been to church and didn’t know who Christ was. Randy started to get to know me. He spent time with me, picked me up for school prayer meetings, youth group breakfasts and introduced me to Jesus. Over the next 12 years he let me shadow him in ministry, do life with him and was a friend. My life would not be the same if Randy had not been willing to be a friend.
I’ve had some pretty awful father figures in my life. I’ve never had an official ‘mentor’, but I have had people that have been there, guiding me through so much at different sstages of my life. Friends and leaders who stuck by me while I tried to process so much pain from my past, and encouraged me in my gifts and the ministry God had for me. They held me accountable, and gave so much wise counsel!
To all of them I’m truly grateful. I don’t know where I’d be without any of them.
Now a few years on, I’m a mentor, mentoring some of the young people in my church…and I hope that it will make a difference (a positive one)
[...] The Mentoring Project (and this “official” site too) was started by Donald Miller to partner with and resource churches to do exactly what we had experienced with “mentoring”! Through some blogging connections, I’ve connected with 3 of the board/directors/developers…Larry Shallenberger, Hannah Harrod and Wade Trimmer. We have emailed and chatted and I’m excited to see the vision and be a part of it all! In addition to equipping churches to begin mentoring young men, the vision also includes developing resources for single moms. This part is only just beginning and I can’t wait to see where it all goes! [...]
First off, I think what you guys are doing is phenomenal. I love how God knows exactly what each and every one of us needs…and then provides it!
I am having a book published called, “A Year For Dad: Thoughts & Experiences of Living 1st Century Faith in the 21st Century”. In the Thank you/ Acknowledgment part, I mention your organizationfor two reasons. The first being that I wish I still qualified to be mentored at age 48, and out of deference to Don Miller, a man whose writings have helped clear away alot of stubborn cobwebs in my head, and inspired me to find new joy in my minute-by-minute relationship with Jesus.
When I get the proofs in a few weeks, I would like to re-word your mention. Is there anything specifically that you would like said about The Mentoring Project? A line art elephant perhaps?
You are more than welcome to sample some or all of the manuscript at: http://arberman.bravehost.com/writings.htm. Several essays are posted and there is a link to open the full (partially edited) PDF version.
You can contact me at armermanator@aol.com.
Thanks to you all.
~Adam
correction: that’s arbermanator@aol.com. sorry.
Hey hey Don!
Every word I read from your writings make me want to meet you more. It’s like I’m sitting down with you, just listening to who you are. I like listening.
And thanks so much for taking your idea and sharing it with someone who understands how important mentors are in a young person’s life.
So here’s my mentoring story…
My dad left my Mom, siblings, and I when I was eight. The cool thing was, even though I didn’t have my dad around, God came swooping down and was there for me. He was my Dad. Of course I thought it sucked that my dad pretty much could care less about me and my siblings, but it didn’t matter because God literally took care of us, with finances, food, jobs, and opportunities to grow. He didn’t leave, He just loved. He helped me forgive my dad, and eventually lead my brother, sister, and I to try and restore a relationship with our dad. It hasn’t been a smooth ride, but it’s God’s deal.
I can’t thank Jesus enough for providing me with an awesome mentor, who is now a UIM Missionary. She wasn’t like a youth leader, or another authority, she was a friend; she actually cared about the person God created me to be, even though she had her own kids and busy life. Have you thought about helping churches mentor fatherless girls?
Hey, well have a beautiful Fall,
and Thanks again!
Kryss
If the Mentoring Project isn’t around, try Big Brothers Big Sisters. They have been around for over 100 years!