Author: MC

1. For Kids and Families: The Great Gathering Prayer Cards
2. Resource Kit: Ramadan Prayer Night Experience
3. Articles: Four That Are Important for Mission Mobilizers
4. Podcasts: Talking About a New Generation
5. Events: Coming Soon on the Mission Events Calendar

Read or share the email edition.

Source: Via

Do you remember the THUMB prayer cards? They featured great pictures of unreached people from the major religious blocs and described them in terms kids could understand and were printed in full color on sturdy card stock. And now they’re back!

This second edition has a fresh design and includes 25 unreached people groups, carefully chosen to highlight the breadth and beauty of God’s world. One extra card celebrates three people groups from the first edition who are now reached—a powerful reminder that prayer makes a difference.

Each card can help your family or the kids in your life:

• Learn about a people group’s culture and beliefs
• See their faces and find their home on a map
• Pray for God’s love to reach them

These cards make prayer simple, hands-on, and meaningful for all ages. Display them on your fridge, use them during family time, or try one of the fun activity ideas included with the cards.

Learn more or pre-order. I don’t see a release date but their ads say, “Pre-order for Christmas delivery,” so act fast to get them in time to put in someone’s stocking.

Also from Via, read Bedtime Prayers for the Nations: How to Help Your Children Care About God’s Global Mission or see an oldie but goodie, Advent Prayers for the Nations (with a prayer garland you can make for your Christmas tree).

Source: Crescent Project

As someone with a heart for the nations, you know that prayer is the starting point of every movement of God. That’s why Crescent Project created a new resource called the Ramadan Prayer Night Experience—a free, ready-to-use event kit designed to help churches gather for prayer for Muslims during Ramadan (February 17 to March 18, 2026).

This resource includes a 60-minute video with testimony, teaching, and guided prayer topics, along with a Leader’s Guide and promotional materials. The goal isn’t just to raise up prayer—but to stir hearts for the Muslim world, helping cultivate deeper compassion, awareness, and vision for the unreached. It can be used in a sanctuary with 100 or in a living room with 10—whatever you need for your community of faith.

“We would love to see churches and champions hosting a Ramadan Prayer Night in February, using it as a spark to inspire new workers, deepen engagement, and awaken mission vision in their congregations,” they write.

Learn more and download the resource (registration required).

Also from Crescent Project, in case you missed it, see How to Find Unreached People Groups in Your City with Google Maps.

See also Top Global Challenges Christians Should Pray for (INcontext International) which we included in last week’s News Briefs. It would also make a good guide for prayer with your church or group. 

Sources: Various

Five Insights from a Study on Cheering: Strategies to Mobilize More Missionaries (Dave Jacob)

In 2022, three sport psychologists interviewed runners to discover what kind of cheering helped them and what type of cheering didn’t. They discovered the most helpful type of cheering was either instructional or motivational. Cheering that was unhelpful included criticisms and shouts to dig deeper when the runner already felt that they were giving all they had.

Based on their research, here’s their advice for how to best cheer for someone running in a race, and it just might work for those we are mobilizing as well.

Unlocking New Missionary Potential: Analyzing Key Motivations and Barriers (Launch Survey)

What truly drives or derails the next generation of aspiring missionary candidates? How can North American churches and mission agencies reverse declining missions involvement and recruit more laborers for the remaining harvest? How do the needs of the emerging generation differ from generations before, and how can we effectively pass the torch to the next generation of gospel workers?

You’ll have to provide your email to access related resources; they have some new ones.

Understand Your Missionary’s Support: Correcting 10 Misconceptions (Catalyst Services)

“What you don’t know won’t hurt you!” This familiar adage does not apply to your church’s understanding of missionary financial support packages. Ignorance or misunderstanding of important factors related to missionary funds definitely can hurt your missionary, the people they minister to, and your church.

(I was so encouraged when my sending church practiced the advice in #8, letting me know as soon as I accepted my first full-time mission role that they’d pick up 20% of my support!)

More Accurate People Group Data: Small People Group Policy (Joshua Project) 

Why did the people group count drop from 17,700 to 16,300? Did 1,400 people groups just disappear? No, Joshua Project refined how they count to make the data more practical for actual ministry work.

They now focus the main list on groups you can realistically identify and reach. The groups being moved to the separate small peoples category are tiny diaspora populations that are nearly impossible to locate or engage directly.

If you use JPL figures in your mobilization efforts, consider updating those to be consistent.

Source: Radical, Lausanne Movement

Gen Z Is on Fire for Jesus: What Happens Next? (Radical)

In this episode of Everyday Radical, David Platt and Austin Huang are joined by Timothy Ateek (Lead Pastor at Watermark Church) for an honest and hope-filled conversation about what God is stirring in the next generation. Together, they discuss how young believers are leading the way in passion for Jesus, how to bridge the gap between generations, and why spiritual fathers and mothers are vital for the future of the church.

Why Gen Z Is Being Called “The Open Generation” and How Churches & Ministries Can Reach Them (Lausanne Movement)

Everyone says Gen Z is walking away from church. But growing research tells a very different story. Today’s teenagers are spiritually curious, surprisingly open, and eager for authentic relationships. The question is: are we ready to reach them?You might also be interested in listening to a few episodes from the Urbana Podcast as the triennial student missions conference approaches.

You might also be interested in listening to a few episodes from the Urbana Podcast as the triennial student missions conference approaches, or listening to a discussion about connections between historic revivals and global mission (RAW Mission).

Source: Missions Catalyst Calendar

Note: Recognizing I may have a hard time keeping up our usual schedule due to holiday travel, I’m including both December and January events below. But if you send me info about any January events I missed, I will add them. Thanks!

December 2-3, Denominational Roundtable for Mission Leaders (Ambridge, PA, USA). An annual networking event organized by Missio Nexus.

December 3-5, Leading Mobilization into a New Age of Missions (Tempe, AZ, USA). Provided by Missio Nexus.

December 3-5, Crisis Management Seminar (Lancaster, PA, USA). Provided by Crisis Consulting International. Come early for an Interrogation Management Workshop.

December 6, Passing the Baton: Discipleship that Multiplies Through Generations (online). Training event from AllNations.

December 10-12, Support Raising Bootcamp (online). Provided by Via in various locations throughout the year.

December 11, The Rise of Sustainable Giving (online). Webinar from Missio Nexus.

December 16, Contend: Monthly Day of Prayer for Mission Mobilization (global). Coordinated by GMMI for the third Tuesday of each month.

December 28-31, Urbana Conference (Phoenix, AZ, USA). A triennial missions conference for students and a ministry of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.

January 1-3 or 5-7, CROSS Conference (Louisville, KY, USA). Calling a new generation to make their lives count by making the name of Jesus known.

January 5 to May 10, Perspectives on the World Christian Movement (online). An additional class launches on January 12 and others throughout the year, and many in-persona classes will also start this month.

January 12 to April 12, Encountering Muslims (online). Classes start several times a year.

January 13, Contend: Monthly Day of Prayer for Mission Mobilization (global). Coordinated by GMMI for the third Tuesday of each month.

January 16-17, MissionConnexion Northwest (Portland, OR, USA). A free, regional missions conference. Come early for Leadership Connexion or a MissionExcellence workshop on best practices for short-term missions.

January 19 to February 14, COMPASS (Palmer Lake, CO, USA). Language and culture acquisition provided by Missionary Training International.

January 23-24, Help! We’re Going on a Short-Term Trip (Marietta, GA, USA). Seminar for team leaders from CultureLink. Looks like seminars are also planned for Tampa in February and Cleveland in March.

January 27-28, Support Raising Bootcamp (Orlando, FL, USA). Provided by Via in various locations throughout the year.

January 29, Alumni to Advocates: How to Use Alumni to Personalize Your Marketing on a Budget (online). Webinar for communications and marketing professionals from Missio Nexus.

View the complete calendar, updated throughout the year. Your submissions are always welcome.