Mentoring: discipleship with a kick!
Explores process of making disciples
Contains personal journey of the mentor
Encourages those involved in mentoring
Mentoring has been a big thing in Christian circles in recent years – but how many of us actually know what it involves and how we could play a part? Does this ignorance mean we are neglecting a major means by which we can both disciple and be discipled? For many, spiritual growth has become a very private affair, no longer being worked out in the context of meaningful relationships and community. Mentoring could be a way to change this.
Author Paul Wilcox says, ‘Asking good questions and taking the time to listen well to the answers is so important in an instant, drive-through society. It is important to invest in one another in an unhindered way, to encourage and affirm when comparison traps and competitiveness can deliver debilitating blows to self-esteem.’
As a mentor with more than twenty years’ experience, Paul is well placed to explore the discipleship process and the personal journey of the mentor. Packed with dos and don’ts, top tips and pointed questions to aid reflection, Intentional Mentoring shines a light on the precious relationships between mentor and mentee and gives confidence to those who just don’t know where to start.
Paul says, ‘As I mentor and coach existing and emerging leaders up and down the country and beyond, I often get scared at the lack of intentional approach to their own spiritual growth.’ But before we jump in to advise others on how they can grow, we have to recognise that mentoring is a two-way process. As Paul says, ‘If we are going to walk around in other people’s lives, we need to give permission for people to walk around in ours; there is integrity in that. So, with inevitable autobiographical detail, considerable coal-face experience and lashings of grace, this book seeks to affirm those who are already doing it and to apply the proverbial spur to the backside of those who think they might like to have a go!’
Through a story-telling style that is earthy, authentic, challenging and biblical, this little volume is a useful resource to refer to time and again for helping to increasingly usher God’s Kingdom into the lives of leaders and followers alike.
‘I’m thankful to Paul for his contribution to this field, so clearly lived out in his own intentional journey.’
Simon Guillebaud, Author, Speaker, Social Entrepreneur, Family Man, Cyclist and Charity Founder, Burundi
‘Paul Wilcox is a highly skilled mentor, which makes him an excellent person to write this clear and fascinating book. At the centre of Paul’s mentoring is his commitment to listen and to really care about everyone he mentors. This is a timely book for anyone wanting a deeper look at the importance of mentoring. I thoroughly recommend it to you.’
Wendy Beech-Ward, Events and Ambassadors Director at Compassion UK
‘Paul writes with honesty, vulnerability and integrity, out of the wealth of his experience. It is packed full of practical wisdom born from years of walking the talk.’
Jo Frost, Director of Communications and Marketing, Evangelical Alliance, London, UK
‘If you want to lead in a way that will inspire the millennial generation, this is the book to read.’
Andy Smith, Creative Arts Team Leader, Ivy Church, Manchester
‘In these pages you won’t find ivory tower perspectives but principles that have been tested and lived in the cut and thrust of real time mentoring situations.’
Matt Wild, Director, CROPS, Peterborough UK