Becoming a missionary: Pulling together with your A Team
SEND International pairs missionaries with a coach who helps them navigate the path to the field. One of our coaches writes about the importance of having a close-knit group to support future missionaries in this process.
By A.B. on SEND’s missionary care team — When my husband and I were aiming to move to the mission field, we were feeling stuck, frustrated, and discouraged. We called together a group of missions leaders and pastors from our home church. They prayed for us, encouraged us, and gave us some names of people who might help us. We left feeling like a load had been lifted.
The disciples were sent out two by two because Jesus knows that we need one another. He knows that we need the perspective, the support, and the gifts of others.
By A.B. on SEND’s missionary care team — When my husband and I were aiming to move to the mission field, we were feeling stuck, frustrated, and discouraged. We called together a group of missions leaders and pastors from our home church. They prayed for us, encouraged us, and gave us some names of people who might help us. We left feeling like a load had been lifted.
The disciples were sent out two by two because Jesus knows that we need one another. He knows that we need the perspective, the support, and the gifts of others.
Imagine all that could be accomplished at your job if you had a team in charge of different aspects instead of you doing it all! By developing an A Team, short for Advocate Team, you will have a group of supportive people using their gifts and strengths to help you get to the mission field. This frees you up to focus on discerning God’s will and on preparing for your future ministry.
Who should join?
Your A Team should not include just anyone who expresses interest in missions. Limit it to people that you pray about and hand pick because you have a relationship with them and believe that they will be an asset to your particular ministry. An ideal size would be five to seven people, but even a team of two other people or couples can be helpful. As you approach potential A Team members, give them time to pray about joining your team.
When to meet?
Gathering monthly is a good goal. This gives the members of your team an opportunity to stay in the loop with what is happening in your life and ministry. Missionaries can easily get discouraged and succumb to the attacks of the enemy when they are trying to go it alone. Regular communication with a group that is committed to you and is invested in your future ministry can give you the strength and encouragement that you need when times are tough. Even if your A Team is spread out, or if you happen to be in the middle of a pandemic, you can meet up via Skype or Zoom and have a productive time together.
What to do?
Take time to pray at each meeting. You might have experiences, doubts, fears, or relationship struggles that are not appropriate to publish in a newsletter, and having a trusted A Team where you can share those things is a great blessing!
After you’ve taken a few steps along the path toward becoming a missionary and are ready to start raising support, share your partner development strategy with your team and invite input. Tell them your goals for the next month so that they can hold you accountable. Practice your presentations on the group and listen to their feedback—if your presentation doesn’t make sense to them, it won’t make sense to others! Ask them to serve as a focus group before you print hundreds of copies of your prayer card or your ministry brochure.
Please don’t see developing an A Team as another task to pile on to the growing stack of things that have to be done in order for you to go reach the unreached. The goal is to keep you from doing everything on your own. You are actually not even the chairperson of your own A Team. It is best to have someone else take the lead. That person can initiate meetings and make sure that everyone is doing his or her job (prayer, communication, media, snacks—just to name a few).
If you take the time to invest in an A Team, you will likely reap the benefits many times over. Hopefully, this group will continue to be invested in you and in your ministry while you are on the field.
After you’ve taken a few steps along the path toward becoming a missionary and are ready to start raising support, share your partner development strategy with your team and invite input. Tell them your goals for the next month so that they can hold you accountable. Practice your presentations on the group and listen to their feedback—if your presentation doesn’t make sense to them, it won’t make sense to others! Ask them to serve as a focus group before you print hundreds of copies of your prayer card or your ministry brochure.
Please don’t see developing an A Team as another task to pile on to the growing stack of things that have to be done in order for you to go reach the unreached. The goal is to keep you from doing everything on your own. You are actually not even the chairperson of your own A Team. It is best to have someone else take the lead. That person can initiate meetings and make sure that everyone is doing his or her job (prayer, communication, media, snacks—just to name a few).
If you take the time to invest in an A Team, you will likely reap the benefits many times over. Hopefully, this group will continue to be invested in you and in your ministry while you are on the field.
The path to missions can feel overwhelming! Our experienced mission coaches will walk alongside you every step of the way.
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Additional Posts
Choosing a Missions Organization: Why SEND International Stands Out “Why should I be a missionary through SEND International?” Jenna, a new missionary in Eastern Europe, shared with us what she appreciates about working with SEND. The highlights for her are: - Devotion to prayer - Diligence in communication - Commitment to development - Intentionality in accountability Prayer “Back in September of 2022, the Lord reconnected me with SEND after I had met them a year prior at the Moody Bible Institute. However, before he would sign me up for anything, my Missions Coach encouraged me to pray. He said something to the effect of, "I know that you've been praying on your own for a long time. But as the Church, we are not called to walk alone. So, you and I won't talk for about a month unless you have questions. I want you to go pray with 5 or 6 others from your church about where God is calling you." That October, more than 10 friends prayed with me and we saw God answer as He directed me to Romania. From February 2024 to November 2025, I had the pleasure of being a part of team meetings in Romania with my SEND colleagues. Our meetings were four hours long, two for prayer and two for business. This has been the minimum for our team. There are also prayer meetings with the local churches we partner with, among smaller groups within our team, of course prayer with many of you across the pond, including those at our US office. The organization was built, has been sustained, and continues to run on prayer. This is my favorite thing about SEND. Communication As I mentioned above, we have a two hour block for business / ministry details in each of our meetings. This provides consistency across our team which works alongside three different churches and in a variety of ministries. It also helps us to communicate about the need for change or growth, alongside what is working well. In addition, my team director also meets with each of us, allowing us to communicate needs, considerations, and prayer requests. I've also enjoyed getting to work with SEND workers outside of my immediate region . We receive emails with the minutes from the Europe leadership team, Friday communications from our international director, and information regarding projects that affect our work among the unreached. In December of 2024, our international director at the time wrote a note to my parents for the first Christmas that I was gone. If nothing else had convinced my mom yet, this did. He took the time to care for me, but also to care well for the parents that were sending me (What it meant to my dad and mom for him to do this well has been one of the greatest ways I've been supported.). I also have some pretty wonderful regional directors. These people have prayed alongside us (while also serving in their own countries of service), they have taken time to come visit and encourage our team, and they have also taken the time to encourage the people in our churches. Development SEND has provided much in the area of development and care (spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally). At our regional conference (every three years), there have been medical check ups available, counseling options, and time for connecting with others on the field with similar experience. At our conference last October, I connected with a missionary who served overseas for many years, and is now serving on the administrative side of SEND. She has met with me since then for mentorship and has also invested much of her time recently in preparing a retreat for the singles across Europe. Accountability Over the years I have read and heard amazing stories of how God has worked through missionaries. God has done great things and great things He is still doing! However, people who have committed their lives to the Lord in this way are not “super Christians”. We are still humans with the same struggle against flesh that others have . A major challenge is in being isolated -- living in areas with little to no presence of other believers to sharpen them can cause many difficulties. SEND has been a great resource in this area too. Through my team, I have an accountability partner that I meet with monthly. When my regional director came to visit, he and his wife spent a day with me and asked intentional questions about how I lead, handle conflict, and how I am growing in general as a Christian. In addition, my teammates share their wisdom with me on a regular basis. These things and more have assured me that SEND International is a highly valuable organization and I'm excited to partner with them in service to, for, and with our great God! Interested in being sent by SEND?
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