Sending Church Elements Cohort Resources
Phase 1: Establishing
Introduction to the Sending Church
Sending Church Element #1: Cultivating Missions Awareness
Sending Church Element #2: Establishing Missions Convictions
Sending Church Element #3: Developing a Vision
Sending Church Element #4: Building a Strategy
How to Prioritize and Distribute Your Church’s Missions Giving
How to Create a Vision and Strategy Document (Needs Branding)
Sending Church Element #5: Involving the Entire Church
Phase 2: Developing
Sending Church Element #6: Evaluating Sending Models and Partners
Sending Church Element #7: Identifying Missionaries
Sending Church Element #8: Assessing Missionaries
Sending Church Element #9: Developing Missionaries
Phase 3: Engaging
Sending Church Element #10: Commissioning Missionaries
Sending Church Element #11: Getting Missionaries Established
Sending Church Element #12: Providing Ongoing Care
Sending Church Element #13: Maintaining Strategic Focus
Phase 4: Multiplying
Sending Church Element #14: Inviting Missionaries’ Influence
Sending Church Element #15: Receiving Missionaries During Reentry
Sending Church Element #16: Innovating as Sending Churches
Sending Church Element #17: Influencing Other Churches
The Sending Church Applied
Bradley Bell, Mike Easton, Larry McCrary, and Nathan Sloan
The Sending Church Applied is a practical, field-tested guide for local churches seeking to deepen their engagement in global missions. As a follow-up to The Sending Church Defined, this resource shifts from theological foundations to actionable practices, offering a comprehensive framework for becoming a truly missional church. Drawing an apt comparison to the periodic table, the book introduces 17 essential “elements” that collectively form the identity and function of a sending church.
Authored by missions practitioners Bradley Bell, Mike Easton, Larry McCrary, and Nathan Sloan, the book distills years of hands-on experience in equipping churches to send well. Topics include strategic planning, missionary development, care throughout the missionary lifecycle, and reentry support. Each chapter serves as a standalone resource, allowing readers to explore the material linearly or selectively based on their church’s needs.
Published by The Upstream Collective, The Sending Church Applied equips churches of any size or context to move from passive support to intentional sending—offering practical steps to mobilize their people and participate more fully in God’s global mission.
Reviews
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Great Book!
“A must read for anyone seeking to be a part of sending!” —Chaney Hanken
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Strengthen Your Sending as the Local Church
“Acts 13 gives us the example that local churches should seek to emulate - intentional sending of their members, as missionaries, to the nations, for the glory of God and the advance of the gospel. But how do we do it? The Sending Church Applied lays out the building blocks for developing a DNA of sending within your church. Through the 17 Sending Elements, this book is a biblical and practical guide for how to discover sent ones, develop them, deploy them, and then receive them back from the field. Pastors, mission leaders, and mission committees need to take up this book and apply it … whether you find you need to start at square one, or develop out certain elements, this book will strengthen your sending.” —Ryan Martin
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Should Be Required Reading
“Every church that sends or hopes to send needs to read this book. Based on our time in the field in Member Care, so many issues we came across would not have occurred if churches followed the guidance in this book.” —David H.