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UPSTREAM BLOG
The Upstream Blog is published two times a week and contains content from missions leaders, pastors, missiologists, and the Upstream team on a wide variety of topics pertaining to being a sending church. Leave us some comments or questions!
Brian McClure
Mar 25, 20244 min read
Field Perspective on Advocacy Team Care
Human beings all have needs, and those who live cross-culturally are no exception. We can meet each other’s needs in many ways. I have...
Bradley Bell
Mar 18, 20243 min read
Leading the Advocates
I once had a turtle named Fred. Fred liked to eat watermelon. But I went on vacation and forgot to leave Fred any watermelon. When I came...
Mike Easton
Mar 12, 20243 min read
Microskills for Advocates
When you have a struggle in life, who do you go to? Is it a friend? A pastor? An older man or woman? A counselor? When someone in your...
Christian Townson
Mar 4, 20244 min read
The What and Why of Advocacy Teams: Nurturing and Supporting Sent Ones
The role of advocacy teams has become increasingly vital to global missions and church planting as a means of caring for missionaries as...
Mike Easton
Feb 26, 20244 min read
Beyond Reverse Culture Shock Introduction
I’m a World War II history nerd. I have watched almost every documentary out there on this time period. As the largest conflict in...
Megan Norton
Feb 19, 20245 min read
Helping Older TCKs Transition to College
Many third-culture kids (TCKs) return to their passport country to pursue higher education. Some do so due to language, some due to...
Mark Zwemer
Jan 29, 20244 min read
Confessions of a “Fix-It Father”
What would you do if one of your children decided to become a cross-cultural missionary? The kind that wants to move to dangerous places...
Jared Burwell
Jul 10, 20235 min read
Staying Connected While Far Away
I have the privilege of knowing and working with people around the world. Many of these people are expats serving in humanitarian,...
Larry McCrary
Jun 29, 20231 min read
Long-Term Missionary Care
I just ran into one of your missionaries and asked them to describe in one word the kind of care they have received from your church that...
Larry McCrary
Jun 26, 20234 min read
How Can the Sending Church and Organization Work Together in Missionary Care?
A sending church provides ongoing care in partnership with a missions organization by building a relational structure that nurtures the...
Bradley Bell
Jun 22, 20234 min read
A Practical Way to Structure Your Church’s Missionary Care
When I was six years old, my parents accidentally forgot me at church. Both of them had driven that day, and they simply pulled away...
Matthew Hirt
Jun 19, 20235 min read
Serving Sent Ones in Hard Places
Sending missionaries from your church is exciting, but caring for your sent ones long term is often very difficult. Caring for them when...
Caleb Alford
Jun 15, 20233 min read
Sending Does Not Mean Letting Go
Sending someone does not mean letting them go. It means holding on tight to the relationship so that the nations may know the glory of God.
Ryan Martin
Jun 12, 20236 min read
Post-Field Care: Plan, Presence, and Pathways to Reengagement
Post-field care can be the most challenging care for churches to provide. Missionaries come home for numerous reasons—scheduled visits,...
Ryan Martin
Jun 8, 20234 min read
On-Field Care: Prayer Is Not Just the Means to Do the Work—It Is the Work
“Prayer does not equip us for greater works—prayer is the greater work. Yet we think of prayer as some commonsense exercise of our higher...
Ryan Martin
Jun 5, 20237 min read
Pre-Field Care: The Oft-Forgotten Element of Missionary Care
Church leaders should recruit like coaches. Successful coaches know what type of players they want, and instead of waiting for them to...
Natalie Ford
May 1, 20234 min read
Connecting with Kids on the Field
Rarely do children wake up and say, “I want to move across the world and leave my home and friends so my family can tell people about...
Steve Allison
Apr 17, 20234 min read
Why Missions Organizations Utilize Psych Evaluations
Mental health has become a major focus in our post-COVID world, as rates of depression, suicide, and anxiety are climbing at alarming...
Ashlyn Portero
Feb 13, 20235 min read
Caring for Sent Ones in the First Year
When I served as an advocate for sent ones in my home church, there was a story I recalled often (and still do) that captured who I hoped...
Ellen Livingood
Dec 15, 20225 min read
Annual Evaluations With Sent Ones: What They Should and Shouldn’t Be
I can do real damage with something as simple as a screwdriver. Just a couple of weeks ago, I managed to get a screw jammed halfway into...
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