As a Mother and as a Father
All Christians need spiritual mentors. We need to see the gospel lived out by others, and we need for them to give us the guidance and encouragement we need to become more like Jesus all of the time. We can't just surround ourselves with friends who will always agree with us. We need those who will be honest and care enough to tell us the truth even when it hurts. Also, we need to be that kind of friend to our Christian brothers and sisters. When Paul wrote his first letter to the Christians in Thessalonica, he laid out how he had ministered to them. It gives us a great picture of what we need and what others need from us. (I Thessalonians 2:7,11) He was gentle with them as a nursing mother cherishes her own children, and he was exhorting, comforting, and charging all of them, as a father does his own children. We need both sides to grow into mature believers. There is nothing like the love and gentleness of a mother with her children. When a child gets hurt, he usually doesn'...