By A.C. Williams by @acw_author

Who is the wisest person you know? It was probably a mentor or a teacher or a parent or grandparent. I’d be willing to bet that if you went to that person and thanked them for their wisdom, they would be embarrassed.

The wisest people I know understand that wisdom is a gift from God. Wisdom comes from lessons learned. It’s the flower that blossoms from life’s failures and losses. You can’t buy wisdom; you have to fight for it.

It’s tempting to look down on those who are younger and less experienced because of their immaturity or silliness. But let’s face it, many of us made similar silly, immature decisions as young people.

You’ve got to start somewhere, right? For us, we were fortunate to be able to learn from our missteps, and I hope that each one of you had a mentor who came alongside you and helped you stand up again after you faceplanted. Someone who walked with you through life’s trials and helped you see the fingerprints of God all over your life.

I did. And to this day, that person doesn’t think he’s wise at all, but he taught me more about following Jesus (and storytelling, believe it or not) than nearly anyone else in my life.

Who was that person for you? How would your life have been different if that person hadn’t been part of your story?

We are living in a scary world, and it’s getting darker and more confusing every day. For those of us in the older generations, at least we were raised with a basic understanding of right and wrong. Imagine how it is for the young generation that’s trying to follow Jesus in a world of conflicting ideals and weak-willed leaders and broken homes.

My church launched a college ministry last year, and I felt led to volunteer. But I was terrified. I’ve always been able to connect with people, but this new generation is different. GenZ, they’re called. I don’t get them. I don’t speak their lingo. I don’t understand their fashions. I was so scared I wouldn’t be able to talk to them, that they would meet me and see how bizarre and wacky and random I am, that they would discover my horrible secret: I am totally uncool.

So I did everything in my power to prepare. I read books. I talked to college-age ministry leaders. I utilized every resource at my disposal. And I went into my first semester as a college-age small group leader completely ready for anything.

It was so awkward. God was gracious, and we had good conversations in spite of me, but it didn’t feel authentic. And at the end of the semester, I was ready to step out. I felt like a failure, that they really needed someone else who could be cool enough to connect with them in a language they understood.

That’s when the Lord reminded me of the mentor who had meant so much to me when I was in high school and college. He wasn’t cool either. He didn’t know anything about the popular culture of my generation. But I didn’t care about that. I just knew he cared about me.

He loved Jesus. He was learning how to be a better Christian every day, and he shared his walk with me. I didn’t need him to be cool. I needed him to point me to Jesus, and that’s what he did.

So that’s what I did. I forgot everything I thought I was supposed to know. I forgot everything I thought they needed from me. I just pointed them to Jesus in all the randomness of my weird, wacky, uncoolness.

We had the best time last semester. God did things in our little small group last semester that I thought would be impossible. And in fact, all of the girls in my group asked to be in my group again this semester.

Why have I bored you with this long, rambling conversation about being wacky and awkward with college students? This, and I’ll be done:

Would you consider mentoring a young writer?

The world is full of young people who are desperate for someone with a little bit of wisdom to invest in them. I know it’s scary, and I know it’s tempting to feel like you need to be cooler or hipper or funnier or better in some way in order to mentor someone. But you don’t. All you need is Jesus and the wisdom He gives you.

If you’ve lived some life, if God has brought you through some trials and storms, you may have more wisdom in your soul than you realize.

You might know the world’s next bestselling author. They might live next door to you or sit in the pew across from you at your church. Share what you’ve learned about life and writing with someone on the road of life behind you and see what God does with it.

Award-winning author A.C. Williams is a coffee-drinking, sushi-eating, story-telling nerd who loves cats, country living, and all things Japanese. She’d rather be barefoot, and if she isn’t, her socks won’t match. She has authored eight novels, three novellas, three devotional books, and more flash fiction than you can shake a stick at. A senior partner at Uncommon Universes Press, she is passionate about stories and the authors who write them. Learn more about her book coaching and follow her adventures online at www.amycwilliams.com.