August 15, 2026

The SEND U Blog

Reflections and Resources for Lifelong Learning for Missionaries

Author: Ken Guenther

Director of SEND U
Spiritual Formation

The Wilderness As a Classroom

In Hosea 2:14-15, God says to the Israelites, “Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will respond as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.” Haleakala Sliding Sands Trail on Maui. Yes, even Maui has places that seem hostile to life.… Read the whole post
Ken Guenther1 min read
Training, Pre-field Training

How Do We Measure the Impact of Training?

How do you evaluate the effectiveness of our training?  This has been a question that we are still seeking to answer in SEND U. One realization that I have come to in the past few years is that asking the participants how well they liked the training is not enough of a measure. We regularly receive positive comments about the various training initiatives we do for our mission members, either on evaluation sheets hurriedly filled out in the last 5 minutes of the training event, or in conversations with people walking out the door. But while it is gratifying to hear that they enjoyed the workshop, what we want to see happen is for the participants to change their behaviors as result of what they have learned.… Read the whole post
Ken Guenther1 min read
Success in ministry, Training

But Will It Last After I Leave?

In my Bible this morning, I found this depressing reflection on the meaning of life: For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune.  What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun?  All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless.  Ecclesiastes 2:21-23… Read the whole post
Ken Guenther1 min read
Learning Attitude, Growth Plans

Sharpening the Saw or the Axe

One of my key responsibilities as the head of SEND U (SEND International’s training department) is to champion lifelong learning within our organization. One of the things we have been promoting, first of all with our team leaders, and now with the entire membership is the importance of every missionary drawing up their own personal growth plan.  This growth plan (sometimes called an Individual Development Plan or IDP) would be put together every year (maybe in January after or as part of a day of prayer).   To help our members with writing this plan, a few of us have been working on a short road map or guide, including a self-assessment tool and a template for creating an individual growth plan.  This road map is still a work in progress but you can download the latest version here.   But I think that before we can expect our members to work… Read the whole post
Ken Guenther1 min read
Leadership, Leadership Training

Empowering New Leaders

In my personal Bible reading and journalling over the last few weeks, I have been working my way through the books of Acts.   In God’s providence, I am also reading a fascinating book about church planting movements in South East Asia —T4T: A Discipleship Re-Revolution: The Story Behind the World’s Fastest Growing Church Planting Movement and How it Can Happen in Your Community!  The authors of the book and developers of the T4T process (Training for Trainers) have based many of their principles of rapid church multiplication on what happened in the book of Acts.… Read the whole post
Ken Guenther1 min read
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