The Gravity of Acquaintanceship

Chapter Three

The Gravity of Acquaintanceship

Some folks go deeper than others. They make friends easily. Some folks have bricks around their hearts. In our hearts there are many rooms. The living room is a place of entertainment. The bedroom is a place for married folks. The dining room is a place for family gatherings. The basement and the attic are rooms of storage. We allow friends and family to take up a greater residence in our hearts. Someone who is only an acquaintance generally resides on the periphery of our hearts. They reside in a storage facility and are only taken out briefly and sporadically. What value should we place on our acquaintanceships?

AID to MENTOR NAVIGATION Part 5

An acquaintanceship is like a storage vessel. Some folks are not like close friends or family; they take up some space in our hearts but we never get too close to them. Fellow employees, the mailman, a neighbor, people at church, fellow parents on your son's or daughter's soccer team; these are only a few examples of acquaintances in your life. How important are these people in your life? If you are Mentoring a child and they introduce you to their friends, are they acquaintances or new Mentees? What value do you place on the hearts who dwell in the basement or attic of your heart?

The Law of Gravity will provide buoyancy to float your Mentoring Acquaintanceships. Here is the definition of gravity:

grav·i·ty:noun, often attributive \ˈgra-və-tē\

: a very serious quality or condition : the condition of being grave or serious

: the natural force that tends to cause physical things to move towards each other : the force that causes things to fall towards the Earth

plural grav·i·ties

Full Definition of GRAVITY

1a: dignity or sobriety of bearing

b: importance, significance; especially :  seriousness

c: a serious situation or problem

2: weight

3a (1): the gravitational attraction of the mass of the earth, the moon, or a planet for bodies at or near its surface (2) :  a fundamental physical force that is responsible for interactions which occur because of mass between particles, between aggregations of matter (as stars and planets), and between particles (as photons) and aggregations of matter, that is 10-39 times the strength of the strong force, and that extends over infinite distances but is dominant over macroscopic distances especially between aggregations of matter —called also gravitation, gravitational force — compare electromagnetism 2a, strong force, weak force

"gravity." Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2013.

Web. 24 September 2013.

There are 2 parts of gravity that will affect your Mentoring Acquaintanceship:

1. The importance or significance that you place upon your acquaintanceships (giving them value in your heart.)
2. The weight of your value (toward an acquaintance) will cause a gravitational pull in a young person's heart. The value you place on a young person's heart is a seed of virtue that can be spread to other young hearts.

AID to MENTOR NAVIGATION Part 6

As a Mentor, you are a Role Model of the highest order. Not only is your Mentee observing everything that you do, the people around you are soaking up your attitudes and actions. If you tell a child that you don't think it is proper for them to use vulgarity, then it only stands to reason that your vocabulary should be just as pristine. Your presence provides solid ground for shaky young legs to stand on. You represent truth and safety.

Every single young person who walks into our Youth Center receives the same kind of warm reception: "It's good to see ya!" We do our best to give equal value to every child regardless of our relationship. The following is the Mission Statement of Youth With A Purpose Inc:

"We believe that all children are gifted - on both sides of the womb.

 We exist to identify, nurture, protect and empower children

 to use their gifts to be the world changers

that God meant them to be."

It is very possible that you will meet the friends of your Mentee only once. The one impression you make will have the potential to change a life and change the world. Yeah, that's pretty heavy stuff but its reality. Do your best to look at everyone with a gaze that says: "I'm glad you're here and I value you!" I wrote a song quite a few years ago about looking for the best in everyone that you meet. It's called "Runnin."

Runnin' down the street on the soles of my feet,

Smilin' and wavin' at all the souls that I meet.

I'm lookin' for Jesus in all the eyes that I greet.

I run by a building, on top is a steeple, Inside be the people,

Holy in church, but not on the street,

Ought to be holy wherever they find their feet!

I run by a hill, on top is a cross.

Upon it, my friend, his life he done lost.

They took his body down, still attached was a thorny crown.

Put him behind a stone but he wasn't alone and you're not alone.

Through him and you God's glory was shown!

There is something good in everyone that you meet. If you diligently pursue the bright spots in a young person's heart, you will find them. As a Mentor, your task is to explore potential in all of your Mentoring Acquaintanceships. As a Mentor, you are a Potentiator who can unlock doors of opportunity locked away in a child's heart. The most irascible child just might become the most admirable and amiable adult.