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 has been most important to them.
Are you curious about what they said?
Last week at our Sending Church Online Training, Matt Clark asked our participants to make a descriptive list of what they hoped each of their missionaries experienced from their Sending Churches.
Here’s what they came up with:
Consistent
Involved
Personal, practical
Understood
Seen
Warm, cared for, real
Prayerful in their support
That the church knew well what we were doing
Loved
Connected
Consistent and timely in responding to their needs
Blessed
Encouraged
Loved
For many of our churches, this list might be more aspirational than actual. But what if we could work together to build a system of care that encompassed this list? What if our missionaries stayed longer and thrived better as a direct result of exceptional, long-term care from their sending church?
This is absolutely possible!
Want to dig deeper?
You can download the paid resource here on our site. (Upstream members receive this for free.)
Or even deeper?
Attend our Missionary Care Cohort led by Matt Clark.
Larry is the co-founder and Executive Director of The Upstream Collective. He and his family have lived in Europe for nearly twenty years, where he has served in a variety of strategy and leadership roles. Prior to moving to Europe, he was a church planter and pastor in the US. He is a co-author of Tradecraft: For the Church on Mission, The First 30 Daze: Practical Encouragement for Living Abroad Intentionally, and The MarketSpace: Essential Relationships Between the Sending Church, Marketplace Worker, and Missionary Team.