Women Mentoring Women - Leaving a Legacy

Miriam Schoenig, Fort Collins, CO

My husband and I couldn’t have children. That’s okay with us, but it’s strange to think we’re the end of the line. In a sense, when we leave this earth, there will be nothing of us left behind. I believe we all have a desire to leave a legacy whether we pass it on to our children or to others. For that reason, it has been important to me to invest in the lives of young women.

At first, I wondered how to find a young woman to mentor. I thought about asking the ones I knew if they were interested in such a relationship, but was afraid my question would sound like an egotistical statement that I had a lot to share with them. I soon realized that it wasn’t my job to do great things for God, but instead find out where He is working and join Him. I realized the Lord had already placed many young women in my life with whom I worked. In the course of a day as I would hear about their struggles, joys and challenges, we developed relationships. I was asked to begin a Bible study for the women at the company and in doing so, found many opportunities for teaching moments. Since then, the Lord has brought women into my life through various avenues. Sometimes He has a long-term relationship in mind and sometimes it is short-lived. I never have to go looking for “mentees”.

I meet for coffee twice a month with a young lady. Another woman lives in California, so our communication is via email and phone. A young woman at church connects with me on a more irregular basis, sometimes over dinner. The place and time isn’t important, but I’ve found that it is important to share stories from my life. I also share how God is working through current challenges. People love other people’s stories. I believe it’s important to be open and transparent with those we teach.

The hardest lesson a mentor must learn is that the results are God’s responsibility. I felt washed up as a mentor after one young woman abandoned her faith. My mentor, a wiser, older woman reminded me not to take that to heart. We are instruments in God’s hand. The final product is His responsibility.

What about you? Does mentoring happen in your church naturally or do you have a mentoring “program”? If you have a succesful program, to what do you attribute that success? What has worked and what hasn’t?