Mentored for Good:
My Life Changing Lessons from Life Changing Leaders
Dan Spencer (foreword)
Kenyon Brady (illustrator)
ISBN 9798882893674
ASIN B0D5MCGPGY
I admit I struggled with this volume at first. Reading the eBook there seemed to be pages and pages about how great a guy Keith was at the beginning of the book. Now it should be noted the format of the book is 8.5 inches square. So maybe it was just 2 or 3 pages in the print edition. I could not find a preview online to check, having checked Amazon, Google Play and even a general search. And when I first say the cover I thought maybe Bruxy Cavey was making a comeback. I also saw Father Dwight Longenecker when looking at the cover. But I was asked by a friend to give it a read and see what I think, a friend who is an author and publisher I trust. After reading the 17 promo’s for the man and the book I almost put it on my ‘did not finish’ pile. That would have been my loss. Once I got going on the actual text I could hardly put the book down.
The description of this volume is:
“Are you happy with who you have become? I am. But I didn't get here by myself. I am the beneficiary of many God-inspired mentors placed throughout my life. Do you remember who lifted you up at various times in your life? Who inspired you to actively change your course? Do you remember what they taught you? I do. I remember. I remember them all.
Mentored for Good is the story of how a willing mentee was shaped and molded by the mentoring he received all throughout his life and how his character was shaped to the benefit of all those he came in contact with. Life's struggles. Life's uncertainties. How can we succeed? How can we be better at anything we want to try? All too often we don't take advantage of those creative people all around us who are willing to share their stories, their actions, and their solutions. It's hard to go through this life alone. But there are many people we come in contact with that can and do inspire us to live more fruitful lives if we are open to it. In Mentored for Good, the author revisits the lessons taught to him in sonnet form that captures the impact each lesson has had on him, his friends and family, and hopefully his readers.”
The chapters and sections in the book are:
What People are Saying About the Author
Dedication
About the Author
Foreword
Introduction
Chapter 1: A Willing Mentee (Be Open-Minded)
Enlightened Self-Interest
Mentor Dad
Confess to a Friend
I Listen, Yes, I Hear the Call
My Vow to My Lord and You
Knock on Wood at Life’s Un-Flammable Tree
Chapter 2: Finding Purpose (First Lessons)
Living Life’s Priorities
Baby Jesus, I Believe
I Am Your Earthly Father
We Laid Hands on Him Today
My Lord’s Eyes
Street-Corner Strays
You Saved Me With Your Eyes
Chapter 3: Walking It Out (Living Lessons)
Lileks Are Leaders
Save Money for Your Children’s Children
Chastity Ring
I Life You
A Dad Makes All the Difference
Fall on Your Sword
I Promise
It’s How You Say It
It’s Time to Attend
Chapter 4: Living in Joy (Observing Life)
Finding the Right Wife
My Puppy Sets Me Free
Charlie the Calico Cat
Beard or No Beard?
More Than You’ll Ever Know
Virus Cameo
Chapter 5: Reflecting Light (Praising Others)
Your Grace
Ellen, Get Right Back Up
Character Sets the Bar High
My Son’s Father-in-Law is a Doctor!
Sullivan’s Bizarre
Epilogue: Coming Full Circle
Acknowledgments
I highlighted a few passages while reading this book, some of them are:
“Keith’s mentoring philosophy created an environment where all employees would circle up and start every day in prayer, even video conferencing in those who were out of town. Keith claimed that any business run by him was doomed to fail, so he invoked Christ into his daily work life to garner success.”
“I crossed paths with many mentors, friends, and influencers of all types as I grew up. I was a sponge throughout my life. I learned that there is really no separation between your home and work life. They are a continuation of the same behaviors.”
“Do you have fond memories of your father? How does his mentoring style compare to yours? And how does his legacy live on in your next generation?”
“O my God, I am sorry for my sins because I have offended you. I know I should love you above all things. Help me to do penance, to do better, and to avoid anything that might lead me to sin. Amen.”
“Getting married completed me, and I knew it. She helped me make decisions and was much more intuitive than I could ever be. She was wiser, more caring, more loving. I knew she was the one when I made the decision to marry her. It took me years to realize it but when I did, I couldn’t wait!”
“Street-Corner Strays
Picking up the strays in life
applies to more than dogs;
It’s for anyone who needs your help,
you’re called to be the light within the fog.
It’s Jesus saying, “Do you see me?
This is my loving test.
When you look at them, you’ll see me,
and know that they are blessed.”
At one time or another, I needed a lift,
and you were there to raise me up.”
“Was it because you knew me well
that you freely lent your cup?
If you don’t know them, I understand;
you may not wish to give.
Try this trick: find out their name,
for it will help them learn to live.
Jesus asks us to plant the seeds,
then he’ll help them with their growth.
The strays in life can be anyone;
it could be you, or me, or both.
So, see the face of Jesus
in the strays you come to know.
You’ll be better off for helping them;
you’ll be their Holy Joe!”
“One of my other mentors stood up and told all of us not to forget that as fathers, we are called to support our families, and that alone comes with its challenges. But he pointed out that we need to be there for one another because it is in that support that we save ourselves from failure.”
“It’s difficult to navigate life on our own. Make the effort to put good people in your path to help you along your way. Then do the same for others. Pay it forward. A reminder like a nice handwritten note goes a long way in this “electronic” world of ours.”
I hope those few samples and that one sonnet give you a feel for this volume.
This wisdom in this volume feels like it could be a book by John Maxwell, Matthew Kelly, or Patrick Lencioni, but with a few sonnets to convey the message or highlight it in a different way it feels a little more like Dan Millman or Robin Sharma. And all of that is to say it is wisdom earned by experience and wisdom shared with the best of the other at heart. And for a book about being a mentee or mentor that is the highest praise I can give it.
The book has the wisdom and information of a business leaderships volume or a Christian spiritual development book, but packaged as a coffee table book. The large square size is not one I would have picked up as a physical book. And the eBook keeps the same square cover. There is a lot of great material in this book. And it is one you could easily return to again and again, either reading it from cover to cover or skipping around as the needs may.
The sonnets are a different way to communicate a message, and because of the format they stick with you more and hit a little different. I really enjoyed this book and would be interested in giving some of his other works a try, especially the announced Mentored by Prayer! My only recommendation would be to skip the accolades until after you have read the book.
An intriguing way to convey such an important message. I remember in campus ministry about 20 years ago there was a recall emphasis on the fact that men need a Paul, a Timothy, and a Barnabas in their lives. In this volume Keith shows examples where he has been all three, in his own growth and in helping develop others. Keith is pretty open and transparent about some of his failures and his opportunities for growth and that vulnerability adds a lot of strength and power to the message shared.
For anyone who leads others, or who is being led, at home, at work, in the community or church this volume offers some great lessons. It is a book almost any ready would benefit from. I can easily recommend it.
Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2024 Catholic Reading Plan!
Books by Keith Lilek:
The Sonnets of Laina's Life
Champion Mentors
My Grieving Hand
Getting Back to God
Mentored by Prayer
…
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