About Us

Our Story

Long before Upstream began, Jaya felt God pulling her heart towards missions after graduating with a computer engineering degree. She was faced with two options: either abandon her passion for technology and go to the mission field, or reject the call to missions and find a job in the tech industry. There was no clear path for integrating software development with church planting efforts in the 10/40 window.

Jaya chose to go to Asia with a church planting team, walking in faith that God would show her how her skills could be utilized. It took time, but after years of conversations with missionaries from a variety of organizations, one thing became clear. Many teams would love to integrate technology into their church planting strategies. Unreached contexts introduce complex security, linguistic, geographic, and cultural situations that invite unique tech solutions. There is a need for software developers to build these missional solutions, and that need is huge.

There’s a need for software developers to build these missional solutions, and that need is huge.

Upstream was started by Jaya in 2019 as a network of Pioneers to connect technologists to work among unreached peoples. We seek to cross denominational and organizational lines to rally the Church’s technological resources for the sake of those without the light of the gospel. Several current contributors are professionals who volunteer their time. If you are a developer and God has given you a passion for the unreached, Upstream is for you.

FAQ

Is Upstream only for software developers?

We welcome any disciplines (UI/UX design, web design, project management, etc) needed for building technical solutions. Get in touch if you’re skilled in these areas and want to be involved in using your gifts for the unreached.

What do you believe?

See the Statement of Faith of Pioneers.

What are your core values?

See the core values of Pioneers.

How is Upstream held accountable?

Upstream, as a network of Pioneers, is held accountable financially and theologically.

I’m new to the concept of unreached peoples. Where can I go to learn more?

We praise God for starting you on this journey! There are many ways to grow in understanding the unreached. Here are some places we’d point you to:

• If you’re in a country with a Perspectives course nearby, we’d encourage you to look at Perspectives.
• Joshua Project and People Groups. We’d encourage you to begin by praying for the unreached. These two resources are great for exploring particular unreached groups and knowing how to pray for them. Joshua Project Definitions is a great page for disentangling all of the jargon associated with the unreached world.