Mentor Graham was so absorbed in evaluating the assignments he had given his students that he failed to notice the youthful giant who slouched into his Illinois classroom one day after school. After his eyes had adjusted to the brightness of the late afternoon sunshine, causing the husky young man to be in silhouette before him, he recognised the youth as a newcomer to the community. The lad already had a reputation for ‘whipping the living daylights’ out of all the local toughs. Graham would have been justified in thinking, ‘What does he want here? Am I in danger?’ Rather, he looked up and down the six foot, four inches of muscle and ignorance before him and offered to help the lad with his reading and studies. When the young man left the classroom an hour later, he had several books under his arm – on loan from Mentor Graham with a promise of more in the future. There is a good chance that you have never heard of Mentor Graham, right? He was a quiet man, simply willing to do his best for any student who came his way. His pupil, however, became more famous. His name? Abraham Lincoln! Graham recognised in Lincoln a hunger for knowledge and a desire to learn, and took the time to invest in him. And as a result, Lincoln helped change history. The greatest investment you can make is in people. Solomon wrote, ‘Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.’ And when you get it, don’t keep it to yourself – pass it on.

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.