Member Care Updates Expanding the global impact of member care
Working together for wellbeing and effectiveness
Special News—June 2025Global Pearl: 6Serving People as Jesus Christ  Image from cover of GMC 2Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold everything that he had and bought it.
Matthew 13:45-46-------------------- OverviewGreetings! In this issue (#194) we continue our 12 part series called Global Pearl to help shape and support good member care practice around the world. Throughout the series we emphasize Jesus Christ—the Global Pearl of Great Price (MT 13:45) as we collaborate to engage in mission among all peoples—the global treasure of great price (MT 13:44).Featured ResourcesCore Book--We'll Never Let Go of the Rope! A Member Care Training Manual for Churches and Agencies in Newer Sending Countries (2024 second edition) by Traugott and Hanni Boeker with Member Care Indonesia. The Boekers have done "a masterful job blending years of member care experience, cross-cultural competencies, and collaborative skills...We are honored and excited to whole-heartedly endorse this member care training manual...[and] treasure!" (our endorsement on page one 1) Translations are in route!Podcast--We feature two short videos about two special Member Care Events (Episode 11 on our Staying the Course podcast). The first video is about the Asia Member Care Network Conferences. The 8th Conference was in April 2025 with its theme "Ministry and Sacrifice-Sustainable Services". More information is below including a summary of this year's conference. The second video is about the annual two-week Member Care and Counseling Seminars organized by the Narramore Christian Foundation. The next seminar in October 5-17, 2025 in Greece. More information is below.Multi-Sectoral Tools--The Pope Who Knelt--How Francis Made the Church Feel Like Home Again (April 2025). A Tribute to Pope Francis by Greg Monteclaro. This is a brief and beautiful reflection on the positive and enduring character qualities of Pope Francis. We feature it in this Update as reminder of the importance of member character and this month's theme of Serving Others as Jesus Christ. "He reminded us: Faith is not a fortress. It’s a field hospital. And the Church? It’s not for the flawless. It’s for the bleeding, the doubting, the searching, and the tired."Blog Post-- Upgrading Relational Resiliency by Kelly O'Donnell. "A loyal friend is a powerful defense: whoever finds one has indeed found a treasure. A loyal friend is something beyond price, there is no measuring his worth. A loyal friend is the elixir of life, and those who fear the Lord will find one." (excerpt from Sirach chapter 6 and quoted in chapter six of Global Member Care Volume 1) See these Member Care Updates Developing Our Character–Being the People Our World Needs (March 2023)Unreached Peoples: Reviewing and Renewing Our Roots (April 2019)Jesus Christ—The Lord of Member Care (September 2015)
News and Notes
International Day for the Unreached--8 June 2025, now in its ninth year and held on Pentecost Sunday. For more information see the Alliance for the Unreached including their "A Third of Us" initiative.Global Integrity Day--9 June 2025 (GID). This year's theme is Empowering People to Defeat Corruption--Developing Resilience, Virtues, and Skills. This is a special day "to reflect, teach, and collaborate on ways to integrate integrity in all we do throughout the entire year..." We coordinate GID, now in its sixth year. See the GID website for more information and many resources.Olive Tree Counseling Center in Budapest provides resources which focus on encouraging, restoring, and equipping mission workers. The April 2025 featured blog-article for example is Self Care Means Limits by Nick Steffen, LMHC. "To help guide our thinking on this, consider this admittedly simple framework: self-care means making decisions today that make tomorrow a little easier...Self-care does not imply self-indulgence...the essence of self-care is far more practical. Set yourself up for success...self-care properly understood reorients us so that we can be a little more honest with ourselves and each other about what we need each and every day."The International Society of Frontier Missiology (ISFM) focuses on people groups with no progress and/or no engagement. It is shifting into an interactive discussion forum, including online consultations and with their International Journal of Frontier Missiology becoming an online journal (all free). Sign up HERE to be members of the ISFM.See also: Following Jesus Globally: Engaging the World through Global Integration, Lausanne Global Analysis (2020) and the expanded version (chapter 2) in Global Member Care Volume 3: Stories and Strategies for Staying the Course (2024). ----------------- Warm greetings, Kelly and Michèle   --See more resources on our MCA website and MCA Facebook page --Send us your ideas and resources for future MC Updates
--Forward to your colleagues and networksMCAresources@gmail.com
Featured Resources
Global Pearl: 6
Serving People as Jesus Christ
 Image from cover of GMC 3 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet,
you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example
that you should do as I have done for you.
John 13:14-15
Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,
and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man
did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
Matthew 20:26-28
--------------- Resource One--Special Book
We'll Never Let Go of the Rope! A Member Care Training Manual for Churches and Agencies in Newer Sending Countries (2024 second edition) by Traugott and Hanni Boeker with Member Care Indonesia  "Cross-cultural gospel messengers (Goers) from newer sending countries are the central hope for the remaining unreached people groups of the world. Many churches in these countries are eager to send Goers to the unreached. Unfortunately, frequently member care has not yet become an integral part of their sending strategy. This can result in premature departure from the field, leaving individuals and families emotionally scarred, churches disillusioned, and unreached people groups without the Good News.
This urgent need is addressed in We'll Never Let Go of the Rope!, a comprehensive, practical member care training manual covering the three stages of a cross-cultural worker's life and ministry: preparation, on-field ministry, and re-entry. Originally developed and refined over ten years in cooperation with a team of Indonesian practitioners, the manual was first produced in Indonesian before the current, expanded English edition was created.
Meanwhile, the manual--rich with non-Western case studies--has been used to train over 3,000 non-Western leaders, pastors, elders, and active church members in understanding and providing preventive member care for those they send out on cross-cultural missions, whether abroad or within their own country.
The manual is organised into five parts:
1) Compelling reasons for member care: biblical mandate; risks and stressors commonly experienced, based on research.
2) The goal of member care: nurturing Goers' growth in the five areas of resilience.
3) The types of member care needed during preparation, on-field ministry, and home
leave.
4) The five sources of member care: God, self, community, senders, specialists and
networks.
5) Appendices (downloadable) plus alphabetical index."
Greetings from Traugott and Hanni!
Highly recommended!
The Boekers have done "a masterful job blending years of member care experience, cross-cultural competencies, and collaborative skills...We are honored and excited to whole-heartedly endorse this member care training manual...[and] treasure!" (our endorsement on page one 1 of the book). Translations are in route in addition to the English and Bahasa Indonesia versions.
See also: Staff Wellbeing and Effectiveness: Managing Well, Supporting Well, and Working Well, Member Care Update (June 2021) and Sender Care for Our Workers Around the World, Member Care Update (December 2019). Note also the Boekers' chapter in Global Member Care Volume 3, Developing Member Care in Indonesia (chapter nine), and their podcast for Staying Course in Member Care and Mission about this chapter and their work (episode three).
Resource Two--Special Podcast
Asia Member Care Network Conferences
Member Care and Counseling Seminars
 The Staying the Course in Mission and Member Care podcast (STC) featured for June 2025 (Episode 11) includes two short videos about a) the Asia https://youtu.be/muCJRiX3KLAMember Care Network (AMCN) Conferences and b) the Member Care and Counseling Seminars by Narramore Christian Foundation.
The first video is introduced by Dr. David Tan, and shared with us now by his wife, Florence, who helped to coordinate the 8th Conference in April 2025 with its theme Ministry and Sacrifice-Sustainable Services (summary below). David passed last year (see the Tributes section on the MCA website). He was the co-founder and coordinator of the Conference and also a consulting editor for Global Member Care Volume 3 (GMC 3).
The second video features staff from the annual Member Care and Counseling Seminars, organized by Narramore Christian Foundation. (the next seminar is October 5-17, 2025 in Eretria, Greece). This intensive seminar is designed for member care providers, team leaders, administrators, counselors, those who want to be better equipped for their ministry or plan to design or improve care. It offers practical member care and basic counseling training with psychological insights that are strongly integrated with biblical and theological truth. There is daily worship, networking, small groups to apply and practice what you learn, and the opportunity to have private conversations with the counseling staff. More information HERE. Questions? Contact Cindy at ncf.seminars@gmail.com.
Brief report about this year's AMCN Conference by Florence Tan
1. There were 200+ participants from 20 countries, as far as from Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Nagaland (NE India), Papua New Guinea, and Australia, to name a few. The Pre-conference Spiritual Retreat had 29 participants.
2. The theme "Ministry and Sacrifice: Sustainable Service" was received with much appreciation and with strong personal applications. Scott Shaum, the plenary speaker, was especially appreciated as he shared from his heart about the conference theme. Some of the words that described his sessions were: exactly what I needed, exploded in my soul, and very, very practical. Beth, his wife, participated in all the sessions and added much depth and breadth to the theme.
3. The Daily 45-minute Retreats (led by Ken Van Vliet, the senior pastor of Florence's church) stirred up a sense of being on sacred grounds. Some people even took their shoes off! Ken and Scott's input harmonized so well and helped all to converge at the feet of Jesus and to experience "Rest Is A Person."
4. The 13 workshops and the breakout rooms were packed. One of he workshops was the Roundtable Discussion on the future of AMCN. We sensed God's sovereign hand guiding us in the resounding affirmation that AMCN 2027 will go forward and include a new administration structure that Florence will help develop. 5. Another highlight was the simultaneous translation from English to Chinese for the 75 Chinese-speaking participants. The five amazing translators used "live" Zoom to facilitate a very smooth Chinese translation received on the participants computers, tablets, and cell phones.
6. The 75 Chinese-speaking participants were given space and time to meet after scheduled sessions. I noted their high energy and excitement as the interacted in three different groups: mission workers, sending churches/organizations, and member care providers. Th three areas addressed were the needs or mission workers, the resources available, and what Chinese member care looks like. 7. Florence concludes: "Please praise God for His work at the Conference. One participant summed it up in sharing how they 'witnessed the sovereignty of God at the conference'." See also: Supporting Chinese Workers: Member Care for and from All Peoples, Member Care Update (May 2021) and Resources–Asia Member Care Network Conference Member Care Update (May 2019) and Part Two of GMC 3 (Staying the Course in the Regions--consulting editors Sam Girguis and David Tan) with its five chapters on China, Korea, the Filipino diaspora, Indonesia, and India.
Note--STC podcasts (video and audio versions) feature our interviews with and materials from several of the 50+ contributors in Global Member Care Volume 3 (GMH 3). GMC 3 is a collaborative book with 20 chapters full of stories and strategies, and reflections and resources from colleagues around the world. It is inspired by the vision to see member care further develop globally to support mission among all peoples.
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Going Further
STC Podcasts 2024—Featuring GMC 3 Chapter Authors
--Overviewing Global Member Care Volume 3 (August 2024)
--Prioritizing Frontier People Groups (September 2024)
--Developing Member Care in Indonesia (October 2024)
--Mental Health as Mission–Trauma Training and Care (November 2024)
--A Team Model for Pastoral Coaching (December 2024)
STC Podcasts 2025—Featuring GMC 3 Consulting Editors
--Trauma and Tragedy on the Mission Field (January 2025)
--Trauma and Soul Care (February 2025)
--Sharing My Father with the World (March 2025)
--What We Wish Mission Workers Knew—Counselors' Perspectives (April 2025)
--Resilience, Trauma, and Post-Traumatic Growth (May 2025)
--Asia MC Network Conferences and the MC and Counseling Seminars (June 2025)
Resource Three--Multi-Sectoral Tools
The Pope Who Knelt--How Francis Made the Church Feel Like Home Again (April 2025). A Tribute to Pope Francis by Greg Monteclaro  Pope Francis kissing the feet of two previously warring leaders from South Sudan (11 April 2011)
This is a brief and beautiful reflection on the positive and enduring character qualities of Pope Francis. We feature it in this Update as reminder of the importance of "member character" and this month's theme of "Serving Others as Jesus Christ."
"He reminded us:
Faith is not a fortress.
It’s a field hospital.
And the Church? It’s not for the flawless.
It’s for the bleeding, the doubting, the searching, and the tired." See also: Repentance and Reconciliation–The Pope’s Pilgrimage of Penance, Global Integration Update (August 2022) and Character Counts--What Kinds of People and Organizations Do We Want to Be? Member Care Update (August 2014).
Global Member Care--12 Pearls
Twelve special blog posts to explore good practice
I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven
from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband....
The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl.
Revelation 21:21
 Image from cover of GMC 1 This set of blog entries from 2011 explores member care by using brief quotes from the book, Global Member Care Volume 1: The Pearls and Perils of Good Practice ( GMC 1) . There is one excerpt from each of the book's 12 chapters. Each excerpt is like a huge pearl—a pearl gateway—that allows us to enter more fully into the global field of member care. The excerpt below is from chapter six, Upgrading Relational Resiliency (page 102). Challenging and relevant!Pearl Six--Upgrading Relational Resiliency“Over the years I have acquired an immense appreciation for church history, the humanities, and the wealth of instructive materials that have been written over the centuries. One example is Sirach, circa 190 BC, whose fifty chapters in the book of Ecclesiasticus make up a significant portion of the wisdom literature in the Septuagint version of the Scriptures. Chapter 6 on friendship and trust is especially relevant...”Ecclesiasticus 6:6-17, New Jerusalem Bible"Let your acquaintances be many, but for advisers choose one out of a thousand. If you want to make a friend, take him on trial, and do not be in a hurry to trust him; for one kind of friend is so only when it suits him but will not stand by you in your day of trouble. Another kind of friend will fall out with you and to your dismay make your quarrel public, and a third kind of friend will share your table, but not stand by you in your day of trouble: when you are doing well he will be your second self, ordering your servants about; but, if disaster befalls you, he will recoil from you and keep out of your way. Keep well clear of your enemies, and be wary of your friends.
A loyal friend is a powerful defense: whoever finds one has indeed found a treasure. A loyal friend is something beyond price, there is no measuring his worth. A loyal friend is the elixir of life, and those who fear the Lord will find one. Whoever fears the Lord makes true friends, for as a person is, so is his friend too."Reflection and Discussion--Recall one aspect of your life/work that relates to the quote above.--Connect the above quote with a current international area that interests/concerns you.--Discuss the quote with colleagues.See also: Upgrading Relational Resiliency–Bypassing Relational Dead Ends, Member Care Update (October 2022).
--------------------- For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,
neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth,
nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39
Member Care Associates
MCAresources@gmail.com
Member Care Associates Inc. (MCA) is a Christian non-profit organization working internationally and across sectors. We focus on personnel development for mission, humanitarian, development, and health workers and their organizations; global mental health; ethics and good practice; and integrity/anti-corruption. Our services include consultation, training, research, developing resources, and publications. MCA is shaped by the Global Integration framework and the Missio Dei model of global member care (updated in Global Member Care Volume 3 in 2024). ----------
Our Special News-Updates 1) promote the wellbeing and effectiveness (WE) of staff and their families and sending groups and 2) support the diversity of colleagues with member care responsibilities. The focus is on the mission sector with applications for/from the overlapping health, development, humanitarian, and other sectors.
Global Integration (GI) is a framework for responsibly and actively engaging in our world--collaborating locally through globally for God's glory. It encourages connecting relationally and contributing relevantly on behalf of human wellbeing and the issues facing humanity, in light of our integrity and core values (e.g., ethical, humanitarian, human rights, faith-based). See more perspectives about GI HERE. |
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