Mentor Training

 Thank you for participating in the Ministry Leadership Formation program here at Western Seminary. Below you will see a few videos that will walk you through the mentoring process.

Introduction to Mentoring

Documents

• Introduction to mentoring
• Paul and Timothy and Mentoring
• Spiritual Companionship Roles

The Process of Mentoring

Documents

• The Expectations of a Ministry Mentor: Ministry Formation Lab
• Mentoring Skills
• The Mentoring Session
• Candidacy Portfolio Master of Divinity
• Creating a Personal Development Plan MF531 532

The Expectations of a Ministry Mentor

The Ministry Formation strategy at Western Seminary is a formal apprenticeship designed to supplement classroom education by providing "hands-on" learning experiences under the supervision of skilled practitioners. Since the quality of a student's experience will, in large part, be determined by the quality of the ministry mentor selected, we ask our students to seek out a mature individual who is an experienced and effective practitioner of the type of ministry he/she is anticipating.

To enable you to respond thoughtfully to a student's request for ministry mentoring, the following is a brief list of the responsibilities you would assume:

1. Help the student design a structured learning experience that integrates his/her developmental needs with the needs/circumstances of your ministry site (Personal Development Plan). (We want our students to be an enhancement to your ministry, not an impediment!) Together with the student (under the oversight of the faculty mentor) you will establish ministry goals related to professional competency and personal character.
2. Once these goals are determined and approved, meet with the student at least twice a month for approximately one hour over the course of the entire semester. The agenda for these meetings is flexible. They should include, but not be confined to monitoring his/her goals and ministry, offering your wisdom about various aspects of the pastoral task, debriefing after the student has observed an expression of your ministry (e.g., conducting a wedding, leading an elder meeting), and fielding questions about life as a Christian leader. This is where most of the actual mentoring take place. If a one-hour meeting twice a month proves insufficient, we would encourage you to redeem other opportunities (e.g., meals, travel to and from ministry occasions such as hospital visits, funerals, etc.)
3. At the beginning of the semester, read this document and complete the commitment form below and return it to the student.
4. At the end of the semester fill out the Degree Assessment: Ministry Mentor. Discuss this assessment with the student who will, in turn, submit it to the faculty mentor. If necessary, he/she will get in touch with you for any follow-up questions.
5. Submit the Ministry Mentor Commitment Form at the end of this document.
6. Complete the Mentor Orientation found at the following link (cut and paste it into your browser). You only need to do this once.

Gift for our Ministry Mentors

At the conclusion of each semester as a ministry mentor, you will be entitled to a tuition waiver to be redeemed in one of two ways:

1. You may enroll in a two-hour non-credit course ($306 value).
2. You may request that this waiver be applied in the amount of $306 toward a class you are taking for credit.

The tuition waiver will expire 2 years from the date issued and is non-transferable. Those mentoring multiple students are eligible to receive up to three waivers per year. We hope this is a helpful contribution to your life-long learning. To take advantage of this tuition waiver, please contact Jeshua De Jongh (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
(Please note: Coaching classes are not included in this offer).

The Ministry Mentoring Commitment

Western Seminary requests each mentor to affirm his/her commitment to the mentoring expectations outlined above, and that, in addition, each Mentor acknowledges his/her commitment to basic Christian orthodoxy as outlined by the National Association Of Evangelicals.

1. We believe the Bible to be the inspired, only infallible, authoritative Word of God.
2. We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
3. We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and in His personal return in power and glory.
4. We believe that for the salvation of lost and sinful man, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential.
5. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life.
6. We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost; that they are saved unto the resurrection of life and that they are lost unto the resurrection of damnation.
7. We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Verification:

Please fill out the following form indicating...

• I've watched the videos.
• I've read all the documents.
• I affirm the NAE Statement of Faith and also my commitment to all of the mentoring expectations.