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Mentoring: Seeing Potential

In the mentoring program at Youth Horizons, we are often faced with the question, “What does it take to be a good mentor?” For each person who volunteers, we provide training and support to help them to be successful as a mentor. All of the people that come to our training are eager. They want to succeed and to make a difference. As mentoring staff, we are tasked with the job of encouraging and equipping our new mentors and helping the seasoned veterans press on.

One thing that all our successful mentors are able to do is to see the unseen. In 2 Corinthians 4, it says, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” A mentor chooses to not be blinded by the difficulties and differences. They see the possibilities. They see potential. A mentor sees the eternal value and significance in a child.

Eric is one of the mentors who sees the tremendous possibilities in the boy he is mentoring, Mar’kese. Eric and Mar’Kese have been matched up for almost one year. They spend time together doing the usual stuff that mentors do—playing sports, playing some video games, eating dinner together and just hanging out.

Eric has taken his mentoring of Mar’Kese a step further by including his whole family in the mentoring experience. Every Monday after school, Mar’Kese comes to Eric’s home to spend time with Eric and to be tutored by Eric’s wife Joy. Mentoring is a family affair for Eric and Joy because they see the unseen. They see the potential and possibilities in Mar’Kese’s life. They know that their investment in Mar’Kese is not a temporary investment but an eternal investment.

Thank you for “seeing the unseen” by volunteering, faithfully praying, and giving to help support the mentoring ministry at Youth Horizons. Your gift does not go unnoticed. We are grateful.

Snapshots in Mentoring