Meeting My Mentor
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 09:02AM 
Bret Allen with my GrandpaWhen I met Bret Allen, I was not interested in knowing him. I was 16 years old and just another kid in the church youth group. At least that's what I thought. Since my jr. high years, I had been a part of the group and had deeply admired my youth pastor. He was fun, friendly, engaging and quite honestly a genius. So when he moved in the summer of my sophomore year, I didn't have any desire to meet his replacement, let alone be a part of his new leadership. I felt like "my" youth pastor had just left and I would now just ignore the new guy and float through the rest of high school in the back row of the youth service. That is if I even decided to attend.
Enter my parents. Going to church was not an option in my home. It was akin to eating every day, sleeping every night and showering every morning...although I can't say that I always did that in high school. We went to church as a family and that was not a choice that I made- it was made for me. When I told my parents that I was no longer interested in youth group with the new leader, they said something along the lines of, "Tough noogies- you're going." Ok, I guess that answered that question. Well if I had to go, at least I could have a bad attitude. That's how we think when we're young and dumb, I guess.
The first Sunday Bret was there, I was walking through the hallway and I saw him coming. I had never had any interaction with him and he didn't now know me either. In my head, I thought, "Agh, I wish he was the other guy." I didn't say that out loud, because Bret was a former world-class power lifter and he could've squashed me with his thumb. As I walked toward him, he walked directly up to me with a warm smile on his face and his arm extended for a handshake. "Mr. Jackson," he said. "I am so glad to meet you!" I didn't know what to do except for feel like a fool. I had dismissed this guy already as a jerk and he was in the process of proving that I was really the knucklehead here. After shaking hands, we walked together to the youth building and chatted. All the while, my under-formed 16-year-old brain kept saying, "How did he know my name- I already like this guy." He took the initiative to slice directly through my bad attitude and make me feel like a million bucks.
Over the next 7 years, Bret Allen changed my life. I eventually joined his staff full-time and was mentored by him in leadership, public speaking and spiritual growth. Bret gave me opportunities that formed who I am today. With him, I traveled on missions to 11 countries and spoke publicly to thousands of children and adults. I worked hard and long learning what it takes to reach the hearts of students. I spent hours with Bret discovering the God-given gifts that had been placed in me from the moment I was created. I learned real-life lessons that help me each day in my family life and career.
I owe so very much to Bret. I also owe a ton to my parents for adopting the following philosophy: expose your children to high-impact events and high-impact people. I now understand that a main reason why my parents had me in church each week was because they knew I would be exposed to people and events that would build me up. As a part of their consistent and Godly parenting, they knew that it was important for me to meet people like Bret and be a part of events that would shape me spiritually, socially and morally.
Sometimes, it seems easier to keep my kids in our little family bubble. I imagine it was a burden for my parents to help me raise money to travel on missions. I'm also certain it was a pain in the rear for them to kick me into gear when I didn't want to go to church. However, they saw the big picture for my life- exposing me to high-impact events and high-impact people. As a result, I learned and grew under my own parents and people like Bret. Now, I am committed to doing the same thing for my children so that they can fulfill the purpose and plan God has in store for their lives!
Reader Comments (1)
John,
I loved reading your post. It brought me back to those days, the formidable years, and walking the halls at Calvary Temple. Thank God men like Brett Allen and Steve Wilson heard and responded to the call of the Lord to love on us "knuckle heads!"