Press the arrow to listen to Downhere sing “Here I Am” while reading today’s devotion on mentoring.

Scripture

Then Andrew brought Simon to meet Jesus. Looking intently at Simon, Jesus said, “Your name is Simon, son of John—but you will be called Cephas” (which means “Peter”). John 1:42

Observation
On that bright, sunny morning sometime in the year AD 27, people were looking up the ladder at leaders like Caiaphas, Herod, or Pilate and they did what was needed to push up another rung closer. If they could not know one of the important people of their day, they would at least be pushing in the direction of power.

But on that bright, sunny day in AD 27, there was one leader who looked the other way. Instead of looking up the ladder, Jesus looked down. Only a handful of people in Israel knew the names of Andrew, John, Peter, Philip, and Nathaniel. But today their names are known the world over.

Search to find the names of Herod, Pilate and Caiaphas in the ruins of history and you will find little. Pilate’s name was only recently discovered on a marble plaque. Caiaphas’s tomb was only uncovered 15 years ago. Herod’s palace of Masada is in ruins. Yet the names of Peter, James and John are not only remembered, but remain popular names for our children. Have you ever met a kid named Pilate, Herod of Caiaphas? Point made.

Application
It is tempting to look up the ladder, but there are so many valuable people down the ladder to develop. The audience of a leader’s life are not those who have already made it up the ladder, but those who are coming from behind. The greatest leaders to be are not the names I know, but the ones I do not. Those must be the centre of my attention.

Prayer
Father, today, help me to value all of the people who surround my life. Amen.