youth
L1FE1mpact STUDENT MINISTRY
one l1fe.... one 1mpact
Hey Parents,
If you are like me, you are concerned about things in the news concerning adults and kids. Needless to say, that is a valid concern. You may have questions before you allow your student to be a part of the Mentor Me program, I don't blame you! I have listed out some questions that you may have below and hopefully it will give you a little better understanding of what our goal is as well as our desire to protect your student as if they were our own.
If you have any questions that are not listed below, please use the form at the bottom of the page to contact me and I will make every effort to list it as well as give you an immediate response.
God Bless
Rob
WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE MENTOR ME PROGRAM?
The purpose of the Mentor Me Program is for Christ following adults to share thir lives with students in the 6th-12th grade levels. A Mentor is someone who has "been there" before and leads a student through the experiences of life, providing the guidance and expertise to help them navigate though the very difficult years of being a teenager. We at L1FE 1mpact Student Ministries desire to raise Christ grounded leaders who will take their faith into the world and use it for God's glory. We believe that 1-2 hours a week in a church related atmosphere will not accomplish that goal. We desire for adults to help students outside of the "church" relationship.
There are two critical elements to any mentoring relationship.
The Mentor acts as a guide - God has given you the unique responsibility of being your child's parent. There is no desire on our part to take that role. Many of our Mentors have children of their own and do their best to raise their children as God would have them. The Mentor is a source of knowledge, listens, provides direction, helps identify dreams, is an advocate, encourage pursuits of dreams, provides correction, gives instruction and is a wise and trusted friend. We know that being a parent is difficult, wouldn't it be great to know that there are other, adults who desire to help your child grow into the spiritually grounded Christian you want them to be?
The Mentor has a intimate relationship with the student - A close, personal relationship provides the atmosphere in which a young person can watch the Mentor's attitude and actions, listens to what the Mentor talks about, and learn skills for life. Within the context of relationships, people can influence, impact and change the attitudes and behaviours of others. Two factors make a close, personal relationship critical: modeling and imitation. Through words, attitudes and actions, the Mentor models Christ-like values for the young person.
Students will model bahaviors of someone, the question is will it be their friends or an adult who is grounded in their faith in Christ?
And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. 2 Timothy 2:2
WHAT ARE THE QUALIFICATIONS TO BE A MENTOR?
Mentors must have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and exemplify Him in their lives - A personal relationship with Jesus Christ is an understanding that their was a poitn and place in their lives where they understood they were a sinner and understood that Jesus died on the cross for those sins. There had to have been a time of repentance and turning to Jesus for salvation from their sins. We understand that people make mistakes and none of us are an exception. The key is how we respond when we make mistakes that shows who we are in Christ.
They must demonstate signs of patience - There are circumstances that students can test our patience. Adults must rise above this to help wuide a student in their growth in Christ. Just as He is patient with us, so He calls us to be the same with others.
Mentors MUST love students - This is an understatement due to the fact that Jesus calls us to love others. There is so much false love out there that true genuine, Christ like love is what every person needs, especially today's teenager. We are not looking for people to fill their calendars because they are bored, we need adults who truly love working with students and desire to see them develop into socially responsible adults.
Mentors must have a positive attitude - Teens today are surrounded by negativity. We need adults who give a positive message and reflect that in every area of their life.
Mentors must be transparent and genuine - Students do not need more actors in their lives, they need genuine caring adults who are open to admitting mistakes and willing to share every area of their life. A teen can see right through a person when they are attempting to be "fake". They need adults who know they are adults and willing to be an adult in their life.
All Mentors must go through Mentor training. This consists of ongoing meetings throughout the year and helps the Mentor stay up to date and get ideas from other Mentors.
HOW ARE MENTORS SCREENED?
Mentors must fill out an application for mentoring - References are checked and a background check is done on a federal and state level to check for anything that would prevent them from working with students. We strive to make sure that every student is protected on every level as best we can. Any red flags raised will be brought up to potential Mentor and questioned about. If it is something that we fell would be a detrement to the Youth Ministry, Life Community Church or the welfare of the student, the candidate will be informed that they cannot be a part of the program.
Mentors meet with Youth Pastor for interview - We check to ensure that the person signing up for mentoring truly desires to work with students to help them grow in Christ and develop them into leaders. We need to know that they are willing to make a commitement to students for at least a year and that they have no problem adhering to the policies of the church and the Mentor Me program.
HOW DO I KNOW MY CHILD WILL BE WITH THE RIGHT MENTOR?
After candidates for the Mentor role are background checked and interviewed, the Youth Pastor reviews potential student candidates to make sure that they fit with a certain student. Once one is selected, the Youth Pastor will approach the parent and find out what they think. This process protects the students identity and makes sure that the parent is "OK" with the selection. While we cannot show background checks performed, we will be as honest and up front as we can to protect the integrity of the Mentor candidate.
If all these steps check out, a meeting will be set up with the student and the Mentor to make sure that there is a connection. Not every student will fit with every Mentor, this is why it is so important to make sure that the two can work together.
If a person is willing to commit to a year with a student then it is extremely vital that the right student is matched with the right adult.
CAN I EVER SPEAK TO THE MENTOR CONCERNING MY CHILD?
Absolutely! As a matter of fact, it is highly encouraged to stay up to date with what is going on. You do have to understand though that there is a level of trust between the student and the Mentor that must be maintained to help them in their relationship. If the Mentor was to continually go to the parent concernign everythign that the student shared, it would fractire the trust in that has been built and the student would completely shut out the Mentor altogether. This in turn would most likely prevent anything from being shared that would detrminetal or hazardous to the students well being.
We instruct the Mentors to help the students find a way for them to let parents know of anything that is harmful and it is vital a parent knows about. We give students a certain amount of time for them to share with their parents this information and thus at the end of that time the mentor will approach the parent concerning the issue and make sure that the parent knows. This keeps the trust up in the relationship because it was the student that shared the information and not the Mentor.
Please understand that these Mentor / Student relationships are built on confidence. We desire to help you in parenting, not work against you.
WHAT ARE SOME THINGS THAT THE MENTOR DOES WITH MY CHILD?
A lot of what the mentor and student relate around both a formal and informal setting. By this I mean that they have times where they discuss things like the weather and at other times they focus in on a subject your student may be dealing with. Either way these moments happen at different intervals. We ask that mentor stay in touch with the student no less than once a week outside of the church environment. We truly believe that the local church is neccesary for the spiritual growth of any follower of Jesus Christ, but we do not believe that we can make a deep, lasting impact in your students within the 1-2 hour time range that they are there.
Some of the things that the mentor does with students could be anything from having lunch with the student, ball games, movies, talking in a park, etc. Some times the best discussions are simply text messages over the phone. Whatever the case may be, we want to be involved and participating in various areas of your students life. The mentor should let you know where he is taking or meeting your son / daughter at all times and what time you can expect them back. If for any reason you are uncomfortable with the location of the time and location, please do not hesitate to let the mentor know and then please let Pastor Rob know so this can not happen again.
CAN I GET AN UPDATE OCCASIONALLY CONCERNING THE MEETINGS WITH MY CHILD?
Absolutely, there should never be a time when you feel "out of the loop" concerning your son or daughter. As stated above, you are the one that God has designated as the "steward" of your child's life and we have no desire to take over that role. Please ask for an update from the mentor to please keep you informed and up to date on issues and if you need to please contact Pastor Rob for any further information.
WHO DO I GO TO IF I FEEL SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE BROUGHT UP ABOUT THE MENTOR / STUDENT RELATIONSHIP?
Our first and foremost priority is with you and your child. If for any reason you feel there is something that is amiss in your child and mentor's relationship, please under no circumstances should you wait to bring it up with either Pastor Rob or any other Pastor on staff. We are fully responsible to God and you for the safety and well being of your child. Any questions or concerns should not be left to questions. We need to know of any issues pertaining to the relationship immediately. Please use the form below if you need to let us know of anything with the student / mentor relationship.
I HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION / COMMENT THAT IS NOT LISTED.
We want to know of anything that we can do to make the Mentor Me program better and more focused on students needs as well as answering anything you may have come up. Please use the form below to shoot an e-mail to Pastor Rob and he will respond as quickly as possible.
Your Name
Your E-mail
Student's Name
How can we help?
