January 16, 2026

The SEND U Blog

Reflections and Resources for Lifelong Learning for Missionaries

Category: Training

Training for missionary retention
Mentoring, Resilience, Lifelong Learning, Spiritual Formation, Training, Pre-field Training

Training for missionary retention

Missio Nexus gathers mission leaders across North America. In September, they hosted a session on training for missionary retention. This topic matters because it touches the core of what sustains us in long-term cross-cultural work. Moreover, the discussion challenged me to think deeply about how we prepare and support workers for the long haul. Three Predictors of Long-Term Sustainability During the session, facilitator Elliot Stephens shared research that highlights three key predictors of sustainability for cross-cultural workers. First, spiritual vitality. Second, relational maturity. Third, ministry effectiveness. 1. Spiritual Vitality This area involves dependence on God, love for Scripture and prayer, healthy humility, a deep grasp of grace, and a theology of suffering. 2. Relational Maturity It includes genuine love in close friendships and marriages, healthy teams with redemptive conflict resolution, and the ability to form local friendships and feel at home in host communities. 3. Ministry Effectiveness This area focuses… Read the whole post
Bethany Reedy4 mins read
Bridging Generations: The Power of Multigenerational Teaming in SEND
Training, Team Formation, Teaming

Bridging Generations: The Power of Multigenerational Teaming in SEND

A couple of weeks ago, I facilitated a panel discussion on multigenerational teaming at the SEND Europe Conference in Spain. As I’ve prepared for this conversation, I was struck again by the richness and complexity that generational diversity brings to our mission teams. Drawing from Tim Elmore’s A New Kind of Diversity: Making the Different Generations on Your Team a Competitive Advantage, I want to share a few reflections that I hope will resonate with SEND missionaries serving across generations—from Boomers to Gen Z. Not Just Cultural—But Generational Diversity As global workers, we’re trained to observe and adapt to cultural differences. But how often do we apply that same curiosity and intentionality to generational differences within our teams? SEND teams today often include four generations: Boomers (1946–1964): Loyal, experienced, and deeply committed to the mission. Gen X (1965–1980): Independent, pragmatic, and often the bridge between generations. Millennials (1981–1996): Collaborative, purpose-driven, and… Read the whole post
Ken Guenther3 mins read
When Evangelism is Hard (Even for Missionaries)
Training, Evangelism

When Evangelism is Hard (Even for Missionaries)

This post is taken from the ministry update of Nathan & Brittany Garrett, SEND missionaries in Romania. Nathan serves as the field leader for SEND’s work in Romania. The post is used with permission. Setting Our Sights: A Renewed Focus on Evangelism As our team prepared this year’s Team AMP (annual ministry plan), one of our desired focuses was to seek to cultivate our burden for the lost and to grow in evangelism. This may sound a little basic–like the ABC’s of being a missionary. But it’s not as simple as you might think. Much of our time and energy goes into discipling and building up men and women within our churches. When “It Doesn’t Work Here” Isn’t Enough So, as I (Nathan) approached the end of 2024 and reflected on life and ministry, I saw a major gap in the area of sharing the Gospel with those outside the… Read the whole post
Nathan Garrett6 mins read
The process of journeying towards Christ
Training

The process of journeying towards Christ

This entry is part 13 of 15 in the series Church planting An event or a process? Is evangelism an event or is it a process… or both? And why does that matter? When I was in Bible College, I was introduced to the Engel Scale. This was a chart that showed how coming to faith in Christ and growing in Christ is a process that takes time. Accepting Christ and being born again is an event. At one moment we were lost and the next moment we had eternal life. But coming toward Christ is always a journey, and growing in Christ as a disciple is a journey. See a previous blog post on “Connecting with the lost.” Saddleback Church’s adaptation Saddleback Church in California used the Engel Scale in their evangelism training and adapted it to include their purpose-driven discipleship process. They showed that many people move through the following stages, though it might be at… Read the whole post
David North8 mins read
The 3 Thirds Process: building in multiplication
Church Planting, Disciple-making, Training

The 3 Thirds Process: building in multiplication

This entry is part 12 of 15 in the series Church planting In our post on “Building Your Multiplication Process”, we mentioned that we intentionally built processes into our various group gatherings so that the believers will be constantly reminded and enabled to “pass it on” to others. Multiplication will be built into all our environments. One of the tools we mentioned was the “3 Thirds Process” developed by Ying Kai during his time in China. (See his book, T4T: A Discipleship Re-Revolution). Kai sought to build a church culture that would expect multiplication to happen. He also wanted to develop a system that would make it simple to pass on. To build this culture and this system, Ying Kay developed what he called the 3 Thirds process.  Notice that this model is not a specific curriculum for the Bible portion of a Bible study. Rather, it is a well-rounded process used in… Read the whole post
David North10 mins read
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