When you’re asked to name a person who has made a lasting impact in your life (for the better), who comes to mind?

For me, it’s Sheri. And the funny thing is, it wasn’t until after she moved to a province far away I realized what I had lost—a mentor.

Mentors are people who shape your life, and they’re not always the people you expect. A mentor is someone you look up to, someone who teaches you, keeps you accountable, and advocates for you.

Sheri worked at my church and over the years we became good friends. She would do crazy things like meet me after work (in the middle of the night in many cases) for an adventure, or randomly drive halfway across the country with me on a whim. In all the fun she taught me to lighten up, which was no easy task for I was a driven kid—a competitive athlete, on student council, worked part-time, and joined an after-school travelling vocal jazz club for kicks.

Looking back I see Sheri taught me a lot more than how to have fun. Somehow she also taught me stuff about honouring my parents, making wise choices, and taking God seriously. Even though we’ve lost touch now I often find myself reflecting on our crazy adventures and am thankful I had someone who cared enough about me to invest time, energy, and a lot of mileage.

If you don’t have someone you consider a mentor here are three reasons why you should have one.

1. You need a mentor because they don’t get personal.

   Your mentor shouldn’t be someone who is involved in your day-to-day life, so he or she can offer objective advice, wisdom, and support. This is not to say mentors do not care about you, but they are far enough removed from the stuff of life that it doesn’t act as a distraction to growth and learning.

2. You need a mentor because of what mentors are not.

   Mentors are not:

   • Teachers
   • Parents
   • Doctors/Counsellors
   • Social Workers

   A mentor teaches, listens, counsels, and keeps you accountable but in far less formal ways. Teaching often comes through sharing experience and passing on knowledge, counselling usually takes place in the form of a two-way conversation, and accountability is not enforced, only encouraged. To have an impartial, independent viewpoint in your life is invaluable.

3. You need a mentor because they know more than you.

   Not only that, but they want to share it with you. It would be a pity to not take full advantage of someone else’s wisdom because you’re too proud to admit you don’t know everything. Think of Proverbs 9:9, “Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning” (NIV).

Of course, mentors don’t always readily present themselves as easily as my story makes it sound. Chuck Swindoll in his message A Tribute to my Teachers offers this advice:

If you’re looking for a mentor to follow, [Jesus] is the place to start. He alone came to give life and to give it more abundantly. There is one God and one mediator between God and human beings. And that’s the Man Christ Jesus. The most significant One who has invested Himself in me is the person of Jesus Christ who died and paid the penalty for my sins and wrote in His Word truth that I can gauge and guide and guard my life by. And because He’s lived and died and now lives on eternally, I am able to live with purpose and meaning and forgiveness and hope and joy. And I commend Him to you, for without Him all you have are human teachers and mentors. But with Him you have the promise of eternal life and the forgiveness of sins and the only One who can heal diseases no human being can heal.

Having a mentor takes the pressure off of you. If you’re thinking about finding one, do it. And if you don’t know where to start, follow Chuck’s advice and look to Christ.