Post Event Reflection
On 4th April, cross-cultural workers, mentors and sending churches gathered for a significant conversation around resilience, care, and the practice of direct sending. Hosted by the Unreached Network, this was a unique opportunity to learn from lived experiences, share wisdom across contexts, and grow together as a movement.
Laura Webb shared key insights from her master’s thesis, exploring how Newfrontiers churches can support and strengthen cross-cultural workers before, during, and after their time overseas. The session also included rich input from a variety of voices and there was space for connection and prayer in reflective breakout spaces.
Introduction from Andy Mccullough
Andy began by thanking the community for their love, support, and friendship over the past few months following the tragic loss, before reflecting on the vital role of the Church in the sending and care of cross-cultural workers. He reminded us that sending—with the necessary care, resources, and support—is a major theme throughout Scripture, drawing on the examples of Abraham, Moses, the prophets (like Isaiah and Jonah), Jesus, and His disciples. Within the Newfrontiers family, this has been done well in some contexts and less well in others—something Laura’s research highlights. The reality is that local church pastors can’t be expected to excel in every area, which is why the Unreached Network has increasingly become a valued space for facilitating conversations around good practice. It is not a hub of expertise, but a space of exchange. Andy encouraged us to lean into the decades of hard-won cross-cultural experience represented on the call, recognising the richness and wisdom present among us.
Key Takeaways from Laura Webb
Laura began by sharing a biblical basis for sending – the call to go – in which we are all invited to participate, by sending, supporting, and caring for those who go. Effective and sustainable mission requires strong, holistic care—known as member care—which builds the resilience cross-cultural workers need to thrive amid significant challenges. Resilience, shaped by love, purpose, community, and the presence of God, isn’t fixed—it can be developed, and the church plays a vital role in cultivating it. You can read more here.
Later on, Laura presented some of her masters research findings on how UK churches withing Newfrontiers can provide effective care to independent workers they send. She discusses the SPARE-O framework for categories of care: Spiritual, Physical, Actualization, Relational, Emotional, and Organizational. Key findings include that spiritual and physical care were generally strong, while actualization and organizational care were weaker. Laura recommends filling gaps in care with professional support, keeping mission central in church life, accepting care as the church’s responsibility, and releasing the whole church to be involved in missionary care. She offers some practical suggestions. You can read more here or Watch Laura Webb’s presentation on YouTube
Stories and Contributions from Sending Churches
Our first contributor was a sending pastor at Mosaic Church in Leeds, who shared six key lessons they’ve learned about supporting cross-cultural workers and building resilience. Drawing from over a decade of experience preparing and supporting people sent from Mosaic to various nations, the session focused on creating a strong sending culture, fostering clear callings, and ensuring intentional preparation before going. Using the metaphor of international travel, he highlighted the importance of whole-church ownership, creating “I will go” moments, and forming solid home support teams to “hold the rope” for those sent. Emphasising both practical and pastoral care, he encouraged us to help sent ones stay rooted in what God has spoken and to grow our own hearts for mission through shared experiences, learning, and tangible support. These insights offered a rich foundation for anyone involved in the sending journey—whether as leaders, supporters, or those being sent. Read the full notes here. Slide highlights here.
Our second contributor shared from a wealth of personal experience, having served on home support teams and lived cross-culturally as a single, a spouse, a parent, and even navigating emergency evacuation. Speaking into both the sending and going experience, she encouraged cross-cultural workers to prioritise their relationship with God, stay rooted in their calling, nurture their support networks, and openly share answered prayers. She urged senders to show intentional interest—praying specifically, sharing what God is saying, and keeping communication two-way with regular updates from the life of the sending church. She also highlighted the importance of wisely timed visits, the value in both singleness and family life overseas, the need to balance cultural adaptation with home traditions, and the role of humour and light-heartedness in thriving. Her advice was to resist comparison, avoid rigid formulas, and seek God’s unique direction, all while keeping up meaningful friendships back home with intentional effort.
Stories and Contributions from the Field
In this section, two families shared their experiences of moving cross-culturally, offering insights into preparing, settling, and staying connected. They emphasised the importance of a strong home church network for prayer and personal check-ins, along with practical preparation like visiting the location beforehand and helping children transition by bringing familiar items to create a sense of home. Churches played a vital role in maintaining connection with the children, through regular mentions in church, sending handmade cards, small gifts, and interactive Zoom activities. Allowing children to share with their peers before leaving and including them in church life during home visits helped them feel seen and valued. The families also encouraged adapting to the new culture by living in the present—possibly leaving old social media networks—and found that staying at least two years before visiting home helped with deeper adjustment. Hosting visitors was also a significant support both for the families and the visitors themselves. Unreached Network online youth groups and home-schooling connections offered further relational support for those living across cultures. Here are some more notes.
Following that, we heard from a single cross-cultural worker who shared that life as a single person involves navigating a unique set of challenges—such as loss of familiarity, routines, and support networks, transitioning alone, and feeling misunderstood. These common struggles can feel more intense without the emotional buffer of a close companion. Key to building resilience is being deeply anchored in God, finding peace through rhythms with Him, and remaining open to His voice and encouragement. Regular reflection and self-insight are vital in the absence of a consistent support community, with practices like journaling and intentional conversations helping to process experiences. Resourcefulness is essential—singles must actively seek out joy, spiritual nourishment, and diverse relationships across age groups and cultural lines. Rediscovering purpose and identity in a new context helps manage emotional highs and lows, while relationships with those who truly understand—both old friends and others on similar journeys—offer crucial emotional closeness. Support from the sending base plays a vital role; it must be proactive, empathetic, and tailored to the reality of rebuilding life from scratch. Singles need advocates, realistic expectations from their home communities, and sensitive engagement from church leaders—especially when returning home or navigating gender and cultural dynamics. You can read more here or look at the Slides.
Recommended Resources
If you’d like to connect with any of the contributors, or if your church or team would benefit from the support of a mentor, please get in touch at info@unreached.network. Whether it’s one-off input or ongoing coaching, we’d love to help you move forward!
The Unreached Network website is full of resources that are regularly updated. This includes training and events from our Newfrontiers family as well as signposting and recommendations to reading, training and help from more experienced organisations.
Referenced during this seminar:
- www.unreached.network/pipeline
- www.unreached.network/events
- www.unreached.network/training
- www.unreached.network/resources
- Assessing Pastoral Care Needs
- Finance Strategy
- Biblical Basis of Sending and Commissioning
- Trauma and Resilience (2012)
- Our richest resources are our people! Our aim is to know someone who knows someone who can help. www.unreached.network/contact-us. Ask us to speak at your church or gathering, or walk with your team.
Watch & Share
Laura Webb’s presentation on YouTube
Resources from this rich session are available to share widely with your teams, churches, and networks, so please do pass them on!
We’re so grateful to everyone who joined us—and especially to those who contributed so thoughtfully. Events like this are a reminder of the depth and strength of our shared calling and the power of learning together.
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Let’s keep pressing in—together—for the sake of the nations.
