Valley Church's Mentoring Ministry
Jul 21, 2021MORE Mentoring loves to partner with churches to launch mentoring ministries. We recently heard from Leslie Bake, a blogger from Valley Church, one of our partner churches in Iowa. We think you’ll enjoy her gracious thoughts about the fruits of Valley’s mentoring ministry. This is an abridged version; see below for Leslie’s blog post site to read in full!
By Leslie Bake
Vulnerability and authenticity can be terrifying. We don’t want to risk judgement and rejection. Our culture values independence. Keep troubles to yourself. Don’t be depressing.
But the Lord also commands us to bear one another’s burdens in Galatians 6:2. “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” When it comes to mentoring, it means we listen, encourage, and pray together. Valley Church sets a wonderful example.
It all started with a conversation at Jason’s Deli in West Des Moines, Iowa in the fall of 2015 when several women from Valley Church who had already been praying together began dreaming of ministering to younger women. Valerie Bantz, the mentoring coordinator, recalls the experience. “We got connected to MORE Mentoring and Nancy Lindgren, who was creating mentoring resources and training and started a ministry at her church. She mentored us as we launched our ministry and we’re still using MORE Mentoring’s training materials today.”
Why an intentional mentoring relationship? Nancy Lindgren firmly believes mentoring is a Biblical command. She cites “Go forth and make disciples of all nations,” Matthew 28:19. Mentorship is a form of discipleship. The goal is to help mentees grow closer to Christ. Lindgren says the mentoring program builds community, provides encouragement and spiritual development.
Meet Marina McCollom, Valerie’s mentee. Originally from Bulgaria, she makes her life here in Des Moines now. “I was struggling before meeting Valerie. At first it was hard to meet people and I didn’t have anybody in my life. Then I heard about the mentoring program through someone involved in the women’s ministry and it sounded amazing!” McCollom said.
McCollom is studying to become a counselor. “I am not a planner. So when I hear from God to study for a master’s degree, I just act. I sense God using me in other’s lives. If it wasn’t for the encouragement from being with Val, I wouldn’t try to do anything.”
Bantz is so proud of McCollom. “What I love about mentoring is that it’s a front row seat to what God is doing in the life of my mentee, and it’s changing my life because I’m seeing what God is doing in Marina.”
I was once a mentee within the Valley program and cannot stress enough how much it helped me. Someone from the children’s ministry reached out to all the moms who have kids in that program, and something within me leapt at the opportunity of meeting someone new. I responded and a few weeks later, I was face to face with my mentor. I learned much about prayer, and how she used prayer to guide her life. Our one on one time was filled with encouragement and connection because she did indeed listen, love, encourage and pray with me and for me.
Thank you, Valley Church, for choosing MORE Mentoring.
Leslie Bake grew up in suburban Des Moines, Iowa. She learned the Gospel message at a young age, and most of her faith blossomed at Bible Camps and then later at Campus Crusade for Christ movements at the University of Northern Iowa and Iowa State University. She started writing publicly about her faith experiences as a columnist at the Iowa State Daily. The Lord then led her to pursue an MFA in creative nonfiction at Chatham University in Pittsburgh. She has always felt led to put into words what the Lord is teaching her about the role of community, family and mentors in spiritual development. Currently she and her husband live in West Des Moines, and are the parents of a second grader and a preschooler. She is a stay-at-mom, loves Jesus, studying the Bible so that she can help make it meaningful and relevant to others, and seeks out every opportunity she can to further the Gospel through writing for her blog and other publications. She eventually plans to publish a memoir where she describes her faith journey.
To read this blog in full and for more from Leslie, see…
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