neither of the women who mentored me expected that I would be little mini-meas of them.

You know, they were always pointing me to something greater, which is Christ. They weren't saying

be a follower of me. They were saying be a follower of Christ and they were showing me that way,

but by no means did they expect that I would be like them. That wasn't the goal. They were just pointing me. It's kind of like

John the Baptist. You know, he must become greater. I must become less. I think that's the goal of

every spiritual mentor in our lives. Welcome to the Crossway podcast, a show where we sit down with

authors each week for thoughtful interviews about the Bible,

theology, church history, and the Christian life.

I'm Matt Tully, and today I'm talking with Melissa Krueger.

Melissa currently serves as Director of Women's Initiatives for the Gospel Coalition.

She's also an author, and her latest book is Growing Together,

Taking Mentoring Beyond Small

Talk and Prayer Requests from Crossway. Today, Melissa and I discuss the importance

of mentoring relationships for all Christians. She reflects on her own experiences,

learning life-changing lessons from older women, highlight some of the core aspects that should be in place

in every mentoring relationship, and shares advice for overcoming the imposter syndrome that so many

of us feel when it comes to helping others follow Christ.

Let's get started.

Well, Melissa, thank you so much for joining me today on the Crossway podcast.

Thanks so much for having me. It's good to be here.

As you think about your own life and think back into the past, is there a mentor who stands out in your mind when you think about your journey towards understanding the importance of mentoring relationships for your life as a

Christian? Yeah, there are actually two. And I'm so thankful because they were two very

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