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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!
How to Hit the Ground Running in Language Learning, Part 2
In part 1, we went through some mistakes missionaries often make with language learning. Now let’s look at the missionaries who succeed...
Andrea W.
Feb 7, 20225 min read
How to Hit the Ground Running in Language Learning, Part 1
Many missionaries start out motivated to learn and engage in the new language and culture around them. Unfortunately, those aspirations...
Andrea W.
Feb 3, 20224 min read
Caring for Your Sent Ones in Year One
Jose Luis, his wife, Wendy, and their three small children are preparing to move to Africa next year to work with a mission organization...
Larry McCrary
Feb 1, 20227 min read
Discouraging DIY Missions
A growing awareness of gospel needs around the world has produced a sense of urgency in the Church for reaching those far from Christ and...
David McWhite
Jan 24, 20225 min read
Questions to Ask a Sending Organization
What a Former Missions Pastor (Who Now Serves an Agency) Wishes He Had Known to Ask In scripture, we learn that the Church is being...
David Wilson
Jan 20, 20225 min read
Partnerships are Foundational to Missionary Care
The best way to do missionary care is to put people on great teams. There are a multitude of reasons why missionaries leave the field:...
Mike Easton
Jan 6, 20227 min read
Posturing Oneself as a Cross-Cultural Worker
Your palms are a bit clammy. Your heart is racing. Your eyes dart to and fro, searching the area for something or someone familiar. You...
Susan McCrary
Nov 15, 20213 min read
Forming Outwardly Focused Followers
One of the most exciting moments for church missions leaders is when someone in the body expresses a call from God to serve...
Jonah Fox
Nov 11, 20215 min read
Sharing the Gospel Cross-Culturally: You Don't Have to Be an Expert
You don’t have to be an expert to share the hope of the gospel with someone who is much different than you.
Meredith Cook
Nov 1, 20215 min read
The Sign Says Closed: Communicating With Our Sent Ones
While closed countries and security can make communication daunting, do not let it stop you from staying in contact with sent ones.
Greg Mathias
Aug 4, 20215 min read
The Sign Says Closed: Four Key Questions about Missions in "Closed" Countries
What is a closed country and what does it mean for missions and sending?
Greg Mathias
Aug 2, 20215 min read
Ways a Sending Church Can Financially Support Marketplace Workers
There are several areas for which a sending church can provide financial resources for their marketplace worker.
Larry McCrary
Jul 26, 20214 min read
Overview of Sending Church Element 11: Getting Sent Ones Established
Beyond flourishing personally, it is also important to help Sent-Ones live out the right rhythms for ministry from the start.
Mike Easton
Mar 29, 20212 min read
The Keys to Conducting Ethnographic Research: Part 2
Ethnographic research is a tremendous way to better understand how God is at work in the life of a person or a community.
Lisa Hoff
May 21, 20206 min read
The Keys to Conducting Ethnographic Research: Part 1
Ethnographic research can be done by anyone and can lead to a more effective and efficient ministry.
Lisa Hoff
May 18, 20204 min read
Taking the Attitude of a Learner as You Prepare to Move Overseas
Those who plan to work overseas need to have a learner’s attitude and make changes in how they live in preparation for life abroad.
Larry McCrary
May 11, 20205 min read
Guts and Glory in the Service of God
When we are a part of Christ’s legacy, our lives are intertwined with his glory because we are in him.
Andy Jansen
Apr 20, 20204 min read
When We Leave, He Will Stay
By Rebecca Ramirez Miguel and Anna live in a small village tucked away in the mountains of southern Mexico. They are a couple in their...
Rebecca Ramirez
Oct 28, 20194 min read
The Incomplete Pass: A Call for Missionary Teams to Receive Well, Part Four
BY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, LARRY MCCRARY Receiving new workers on the mission field (whether they be short-, mid-, or long-term) is one of...
debbie4034
Sep 23, 20193 min read
Theology Without Love Equals Nothing in Missions
BY CONTENT & OPERATIONS MANAGER, DAN BUSH Early on at Bible college, I met a passionate underclassman. At the time, I was struggling with...
Dan Bush
Aug 19, 20193 min read
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