I haven't been a follower of your writing for too long, but I'd have to say that this is one of THE best of your pieces that I have read. I love your deep thinking and wry sense of humor. These mentors you chose for illustration are certainly positively illustrative of your points. I have read Boice's theology book, and he is so dependable to exegete the Bible with fidelity, not his own "opinions." I would put him on the same level as J.I. Packer in Knowing God. On Saturday, I was in a Colson Fellows Program meeting, and someone called Tim Keller's theology into question. Of course, I should put no man up on a pedestal, but I have always admired Tim Keller for his humility and openness to challenges from others who disagreed with him. No man is beyond error. Unfortunately, some Christian "celebrities" too numerous for me to name here get "full of themselves" and their celebrity, and their arrogance too often moves them in unorthodox (if not heretical) doctrinal directions. As always, of course, Jesus is our best example. He is the PERFECT Mentor. We follow Him. We think like Him. We speak like Him. We act like Him. We abide in Him. We are led by and sanctified by the Holy Spirit to be more like Him. Thanks for blessing me (and us) with this post, Randy!
Thanks, Randy. I know that I personally have failed to consider someone a mentor because our relationship didn't look like what I expected mentorship to look like, i.e. one-on-one coaching relationships. Though those sorts of formal mentoring opportunities are great, they are by far less common than informal, small group, or educational relationships. Your post reminded me that I have been blessed by hundreds of mentors over my brief 28 years on planet earth.
I haven't been a follower of your writing for too long, but I'd have to say that this is one of THE best of your pieces that I have read. I love your deep thinking and wry sense of humor. These mentors you chose for illustration are certainly positively illustrative of your points. I have read Boice's theology book, and he is so dependable to exegete the Bible with fidelity, not his own "opinions." I would put him on the same level as J.I. Packer in Knowing God. On Saturday, I was in a Colson Fellows Program meeting, and someone called Tim Keller's theology into question. Of course, I should put no man up on a pedestal, but I have always admired Tim Keller for his humility and openness to challenges from others who disagreed with him. No man is beyond error. Unfortunately, some Christian "celebrities" too numerous for me to name here get "full of themselves" and their celebrity, and their arrogance too often moves them in unorthodox (if not heretical) doctrinal directions. As always, of course, Jesus is our best example. He is the PERFECT Mentor. We follow Him. We think like Him. We speak like Him. We act like Him. We abide in Him. We are led by and sanctified by the Holy Spirit to be more like Him. Thanks for blessing me (and us) with this post, Randy!
Thanks, Randy. I know that I personally have failed to consider someone a mentor because our relationship didn't look like what I expected mentorship to look like, i.e. one-on-one coaching relationships. Though those sorts of formal mentoring opportunities are great, they are by far less common than informal, small group, or educational relationships. Your post reminded me that I have been blessed by hundreds of mentors over my brief 28 years on planet earth.
And you, in turn, have blessed numerous others!