Episode Details

What does it take to bring the gospel where Christ is not yet known—and remain faithful for the long haul? Summary In this episode of the Lausanne Movement Podcast, Jason Watson speaks with Janelle Stoops about calling, cost, perseverance, and leadership formation in frontier mission. Drawing from her years in Central Asia and her current leadership with A3, Janelle shares what she has learned about reaching unreached and unengaged people groups, preparing leaders for mission, and cultivating rhythms that sustain faithful service over time. Main Points

• Calling begins with surrendered obedience. Janelle shares how a sense of calling at age 16 eventually led her to Central Asia as a young missionary.
• Frontier mission is costly and often slow. Life among unreached people requires perseverance, cultural humility, language learning, and faithful obedience when visible fruit takes time.
• God is already at work among the unreached. Stories of dreams, visions, digital outreach, and spiritual hunger remind us that mission begins with joining what God is already doing.
• Prayer must come before strategy. Janelle emphasizes extraordinary prayer as foundational for ministry among unreached and unengaged peoples.
• Disciple-making should be relational and reproducible. The gospel spreads naturally through families, friendships, local believers, and simple practices that new disciples can carry forward.
• Leadership must be formed for the long haul. Competence and charisma should never outpace character; healthy leaders need spiritual formation, rhythms of silence and solitude, and wisdom for each season of life.

  Call to Action If this episode encouraged you, subscribe to the Lausanne Movement Podcast and share it with a leader, missionary, or young person discerning a call to mission. We’d also love for you to join the conversation in the Lausanne Movement Podcast space on the Lausanne Action Hub, where you can share your thoughts and engage with our podcast community—and if this episode encouraged you, please consider leaving a rating or review so others can discover it too. Guest Bio Janelle Stoops serves as U.S. President of A3, bringing experience in global missions leadership, organizational strategy, and cross-cultural engagement. She previously served with her family as a church planter in Central Asia, later worked with Frontiers in strategic leadership roles, and now helps strengthen A3’s work of developing Christlike leaders for mission and multiplication. A3’s announcement of her appointment describes her as uniquely qualified to lead its U.S. ministry into its next chapter of growth and impact. Lausanne Movement Podcast Archive

• The Making of a Leader: How God Forms Character, Calling, and Influence Over a Lifetime with Richard Clinton
• The Art of Whole Life Mentorship: An Interview with Ole-Magnus Olasfrud
• Training Christlike Leaders for the Harvest: Preparing Leaders in Every Nation and Every Sector of Society

  Links & Resources A3 — Learn more about A3’s work developing Christlike leaders who multiply churches and transform communities. A3 Leaders — Explore stories, updates, and resources from A3’s global leadership community.