October 5, 2025 — Episode #90

Content note: brief, non-graphic references to child abuse within church settings and to the assassination of a well-known political commentator.

Jerry and Becky Drace continue their series on the teenage years by asking parents a pointed question: who is really mentoring your teenager? Drawing on their own upbringing and decades of ministry, they make the case that mentors shape a young person’s character and faith as much as, or more than, parents realize.

Becky and Jerry each recall the mentors who marked their own faith growing up — grandmothers who modeled Scripture reading, a pastor’s wife known for her contagious Christian walk, a devoted prayer warrior who taught Becky to fast and pray, a musician friend whose joy in Christ was infectious, a beloved children’s Sunday school teacher, and Sunday school teachers from Jerry’s boyhood churches who left a lasting impression. They also mention mentors from their years in ministry, including respected Bible teachers and a well-known evangelist’s team they corresponded with behind the scenes. The couple stresses that parents must actively vet coaches, teachers, youth leaders, and other adults — including at Christian schools — who influence their kids, and that single moms in particular should carefully screen any man who mentors their sons. They caution that church should be the safest place for children but isn’t always, urging parents never to let their guard down, and they reference the recent assassination of a political commentator as a sobering example of how negative mentors and brainwashing can steer a young person toward a dark path. Scripturally, they point to 1 Kings 18:12 and the mentoring relationship of Samuel and Eli as biblical models. Becky also shares the powerful story of her son Drew’s premature birth, when John 3:16 and John 14:27 became deeply personal to her, and the couple close by noting that Jesus himself poured His life into mentoring twelve disciples.

Topics discussed:

• Why mentors matter as much as parents in shaping teenagers
• Personal stories of the hosts’ own childhood and ministry mentors
• Vetting coaches, teachers, and youth leaders your children look up to
• Single parents and screening male mentors for sons
• Guarding against abuse and complacency within church settings
• Negative mentors, brainwashing, and current events as a cautionary example
• Scripture: 1 Kings 18:12, Samuel and Eli, John 3:16, John 14:27
• Becky’s testimony of Drew’s premature birth and Jesus as the ultimate mentor

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