A number of the SEND U staff met in the SEND Farmington Hills office last week to plan for the upcoming MOP training in July. Over the past number of months, we have been looking at each of the MOP sessions and determining how they contribute to the overall MOP outcomes. We finished this evaluative process in our 2-day retreat. Then we decided which sessions need to be eliminated and what needs to be added to MOP. We ended up making a number of changes to the MOP 202 program.

Another significant change coming for MOP is that the leadership of the Member Orientation Program will be transferring to Bethany Reedy. Bethany will become the “Dean” of MOP after this next MOP 202 training in July. Ken will continue to teach in MOP, but will be glad to turn over the overall oversight of the MOP pre-field training to Bethany.

A number of SEND members have commented on how much MOP has changed since they went through pre-field training. SEND U is working on creating a MOP refresher for senior missionaries. This will be an online course made up of a several 30-minute videos, highlighting new content in MOP from the last decade. By taking this refresher, senior missionaries will understand what new missionaries are learning - and better understand their expectations. We already have much of this content in an online course called SEND Core, which is currently being used as onboarding for new employees in our sending offices. Contact Alfie Mosse (amosse@send.org) if you are interested in a MOP refresher or SEND Core.

This year, SEND U has asked the graphic design team of CAST (Collab Asia Solutions & Technologies) to refresh the “brand” of SEND U. We want to make our training materials more graphically appealing and also more recognizable as coming from SEND U. As part of this process of refreshing our brand, we are asking SEND members to complete this short (5-minute) survey about how you use (or don't use) SEND U training resources. We want to hear from you! Please submit your response by April 26.

Click here to fill out a short survey about how you use SEND U

Although we all recognize the value of trained counsellors and full-time member care people, we also realize that much of the member care in SEND is provided by our team leaders. The team leader is often the first person to hear about a problem or need of someone on their team. A SEND U task force (led by Jon Winter) is working on developing a webinar for team leaders to better train them to provide this foundational level of member care. We would love to hear what topics or resources you would recommend for team leaders on the topic of member care. What have you found helpful? What do you wish team leaders would be trained to do in member care? Email your thoughts to Jon (jwinter@send.org) or just reply to this email.

I was stuck. Really stuck. The more I tried to move, the further I sank! Now if any of you have found yourself in the clay muck of a spring riverbank, you know what I mean. One arm was full of fishing equipment and a young toddler occupied the other. Walking along the edge of what I had been promised was the best arctic grayling fishing spot in the area, my rubber boots had sunk so deeply that I couldn’t move. There was someone further down the riverbank who was out of earshot, and there were others further behind out of sight. They had nothing to offer me as far as a listening ear, encouragement to stay calm or advice for how to move forward. I felt alone. What I really needed was someone who had more experience than I did who was walking alongside me.

Although this is a literal story about a fisherperson stuck in the mud, I have felt this figuratively many times in my life. There is nothing fun about feeling isolated and overwhelmed in ministry and life.

I have benefited from entering into mentoring relationships with people who had been down the road a little further than I had journeyed, but intentionally came to walk alongside me where I was on the path. SEND has trained mentors who are willing to meet virtually with those who are interested in such a relationship. Here are some benefits of the SEND mentoring program

• Participants will grow in their faith, character, resilience, and understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.
• Mentees will receive ongoing guidance and encouragement in facing challenges in cross-cultural life and ministry.
• Mentors will have opportunity to share their wisdom and experience with younger and less experienced members.
• Those who are mentored will learn to mentor others.

If you would like to have a mentor in SEND, click below for more information.

I want to know more about getting a mentor

• May 10 - June 11 - Evangelism: Abundantly Sowing the Seed - A 4-week online course. A resource that helps participants develop the necessary attitudes, skills and knowledge to be effective in evangelism within the context of establishing healthy, relevant, multiplying churches.
• May 15 - June 25 - MOP 201 - A 6-week online course that is required of all mid-term and long-term members of SEND. It looks at worldview, cultural values, cultural stress, incarnational ministry, and safety and security. It is facilitated by Bethany Reedy and Jenny Baker. About 5-6 hours of work per week.
• May 17 - June 18 - Discipleship: Growing Mature Followers of Jesus - A 4-week online course. This Discipleship course is designed to assist SEND missionaries in developing the necessary attitudes, skills and knowledge to be effective in disciple-making as the key to establishing healthy, relevant, reproducing churches.
• May 17 - June 18 - Church: Nurturing Communities of Faith - A 4-week online course. This resource will help participants to develop the necessary attitudes, skills, and knowledge to be effective in gathering disciples into healthy, relevant, reproducing churches. Newer and veteran workers learn together, bringing fresh ideas and the wisdom of years of experience.
• May 22 - 29 - Learning Culture Through Purposeful Observation (EC1) - A one-week Grow2Serve online course designed to help you as a new missionary or cross-cultural worker to begin to put into practice your culture-learning skills. First, you’ll review some basic concepts of culture and participant observation. Next, you’ll get to practice observation and assessment through a fiction-based activity. And the final task is a guided observation project on-site at a venue of your choice. About 4-6 hours of learning time.
• May 23 - 25 - Northern Ministry Training - A unique program designed to equip those ministering in the North. We dig into God's Word, explore ministry topics that are relevant and applicable, and connect deeply. The training will be held at Tanalian Bible Camp, Port Alsworth, Alaska. Registration link.
• June 6, 2023 - GiANT 5 Voices Workshop | Discovering Your Voice from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM Eastern Time - “Know yourself to lead yourself” is the mantra of the GiANT 5 Voices System. You'll gain common language with 200+ TEAM global workers, leaders and staff who have used the 5 Voices to explore how they fit within their teams, how to make their best contributions, and how to understand others. If you’re a supervisor, the 5 Voices is a great follow-up to the Coaching Skills workshop. Our sister mission, TEAM, is offering this workshop and allowing us to participate. Register by clicking the link.
• June 13 - July 14 - TESOL Certificate Course at Novaliches, Philippines. Contact djovellanos@send.org or djovellanos@actesol.org for more information.
• June 21-24, 2023 - Helping Muslim Neighbors to Understand and Know Jesus - Wooddale Church in Minneapolis MN. Common Ground is excited to announce that registration is open for the next several conferences on “Helping Muslim Neighbours to Understand and Know Jesus”. The attachment linked has expanded details and an invitation for the conferences.
• June 27, 2023 - GiANT 5 Voices Workshop | The Power of Your Voice from 9:00 – 11:00 AM Eastern & 3:00 – 5:00 PM Eastern - Deepen your knowledge of the 5 Voices System during the next workshop, “The Power of Your Voice.” This workshop is designed to celebrate the strengths of each “Voice” and explore the potential negative impact of each Voice under pressure. Our sister mission, TEAM, is offering this workshop and allowing us to participate. Register by clicking the link.
• July 9 - 21 - MOP 202 - A 2-week onsite Member Orientation Program for appointees going long-term with SEND, have been cleared by their coach, and have completed MOP 201. This training will be hosted at Ward Church in Michigan. Mid-term members are welcome to attend, but not required.

All these can be found on the SEND U Training Events page on the SEND U wiki.

Keep learning,

Ken Guenther
based in Saskatchewan, Canada

Jenny Baker
based in Yukon, Canada