Lent Day 36: Mentor

     So I was thinking about what to write today and a youth asked me where I got the cross around my neck.  I answered by saying it was a gift from a friend, a mentor, and someone I truly love and respect more than I could explain.  In typical youth fashion she responded by asking: "I meant what store did it come from."  I just laughed.
     I have had this cross for almost 11 years now.  I don't think I have kept up with any material possesion for a longer period of time.  Incidentally it did get me to thinking about who gave it to me and what a mentor is and what they mean to us.  I have had a few mentors now but Boyd sticks out more than the rest.  I guess living with someone and their family for three summers kind of sticks with you.  All those nights where Julie would just leave Boyd and I in the living room asleep on the couches with dr peppers in hand not knowing when either one of us would get up and actually go to sleep in a bed like a normal person.  Sorry, I'm rambling.
     Boyd is responsible for me being in youth ministry today...with a help from Julie who first invited me to help with small groups with her even though I was not so reliable at the time.  Boyd saw something in me that I did not see in myself.  He believed in me.  He asked me to come work for him in Houston as a summer intern in 2000 and I was hooked.  He asked me to come work for him again in 2001 (I declined and went to summer school) then I worked for him again in 2002 and 2005.  (I'm glad I skipped summer school that year and took him up on his offer otherwise I wouldn't have met Kathy) 
     We had our differences, mainly because he think alike and always want to be in control.  We have our similarities, such as our penchant for having to have a very specific type of pen.  Of which his original and my original have been discontinued so we have had to move on to a backup plan.  But most importantly I had him and his family in my life when I needed them most.  I do not know where I would be without them and I cannot thank them enough.  But thank you for believing in me, Boyd.

Happy birthday dude
kevin