Who's your Moses?
Lately, I've been reading the story of Moses and the many amazing miracles that happened when God brought him and the Israelites out of Egypt through the long journey towards their Promised Land. One of the powerful themes that was impressed on my heart during this reading is that God never wants us to face battles or blessings alone. Battles and blessings are both meant to impact more than just one person because they show people the power of God's intervention, love and faithfulness.
This was evident when God told Moses' brother Aaron to help him go to Egypt to ask Pharaoh to let their people go, and it was also evident when Moses' father-in-law Jethro instructed him to select righteous judges from among the people to help with the great responsibility of leading the people and keeping peace in a camp of 2 million people. What a crazy, big job.
After Moses led the Israelites for 40 years in the desert, God told him he would only get a glimpse of the Promised Land before he would pass away. Was this harsh? Yes, but Moses had deliberately disobeyed God's instructions when he acted out in anger in front of the people of Israel during the last few years in the desert (see Numbers 20). So, God chose a new leader who had already been mentored by Moses to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. His name was Joshua.
Joshua was probably not the most talented, best-looking or smartest guy among the 2 million Israelites, but he was a man of faith and courage. He believed that if God wanted the Israelites to possess the land He had promised them, then God would make it possible. Joshua would face his own great challenges and battles ahead, but if it had not been for the mentorship he had experienced with Moses he would not have been ready to handle the great battles and blessings that lay ahead.
So, what can we learn from the great relationship that Moses and Joshua had and what defines a great mentor?
1. Mentors have experienced their own hardships and challenges and have practical and both spiritual wisdom to speak from in their own lives.
Great mentors don't just speak from their knowledge of books and years of study, they speak from experience. This gives them credibility and, more importantly, it gives them empathy for those they mentor and for people in general.
For example, I would not be able to encourage and empathize with divorcees, anorexics or depression if I had not experienced those difficulties myself. God takes our greatest heartaches and trials, and turns them into powerful tools that can be used to encourage and advise others through their own battles.
2. Mentors don't weigh their advice or knowledge on popular opinion or cultural norms.
This characteristic of a great mentor is becoming more and more difficult to find because we live in a world where popular opinion and statistics of social media profiles heavily influence what great leaders say. Find a mentor or be the mentor who doesn't always go along with culture just because it's easy or will get more likes on Facebook. Great mentors are those who look to the Bible for truth and build the foundation of their wisdom on the words of God.
Some of the greatest mentors in my life have been those who gave me the advice that I didn't want to hear and was not the cultural norm.
3. Mentors have the maturity, confidence and self-reassurance to promote others, even those younger and more inexperienced than them, to places of leadership and empowerment.
Have you ever met someone who is always surrounded by "yes men"--people who don't ask questions or want to confront their leader with another viewpoint or piece of advice? I've met leaders like this both in the corporate world and in the church, and it's dangerous. They are grasping so tightly to their position of leadership that anyone who questions their behavior or decisions is wrong and banned from their life. Insecure leaders surround themselves with "yes men", but truly great, confident leaders surround themselves with people who will sharpen them, ask them the toughest questions and keep them on their toes. Great leaders will also surround themselves with several younger, more inexperienced people in whom they see future potential. A great leader knows their time is limited on this earth and that their legacy does not rest on how great they perform today, but on how great they train the next generation to lead their endeavors tomorrow.
So, who is your Moses---the mentor that's sharpening you to be a greater leader and more dynamic in your life purpose? And who's your Joshua---the younger leader that you are training up to take your role or lead the next generation? The more clearly this becomes for you the more focused you will be in your own purpose on this earth.
Moses said to the Israelites and specifically to Joshua: "So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them (your enemies). For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you" (Deuteronomy 31:6 NLT).
