Friends Network

06/01/2026

Friends Network is proud to partner with St. Croix Lutheran Academy as we equip and encourage the next generation of missionaries.

Recently, Executive Director Aaron Wakeman had the opportunity to train students and chaperones for their upcoming mission trip to Southeast Asia. During the trip, the SCLA team will serve alongside our Friends Network missionaries and connect with several families of SCLA's international students.

Please keep them in your prayers as they complete their preparations and get ready to serve.

05/27/2026

A special "thank you" from Missionary Stephen Wiesenauer!

05/20/2026

Peek into a day in the life of Missionary Lauren Christman in Seoul, South Korea! What a fun video. 🎥

Training for more than a 10k

05/19/2026

Congratulations and God's blessings on your new call, Cindy!

Cindy Lendt accepted the call to serve as Women’s Ministry Coordinator for the Asia-Oceania Team starting July 2026. Women have unique challenges in many areas of Asia, and this position is focused on increasing their access to the gospel. Lendt will develop and oversee a comprehensive framework for women’s ministry across Asia-Oceania mission fields and coordinate local teams to amplify existing efforts and implement new initiatives.

Lendt grew up in Minnesota and graduated from Martin Luther College in 2009 with a double major in staff ministry and elementary education. She has taught students from kindergarten through university level in a variety of settings. Previously she served as a teacher and musician at St. John in St. Paul, Minn. (2009-2017), Good Shepherd in Burnsville, Minn. (2017-2019), with Friends Network in Southeast Asia (2019-2022), and St. Paul in Beverly Hills, Fla. (2022-2026). She will be moving to Chiang Mai, Thailand, at the end of the summer. Join us for the commissioning of new missionaries and stay for the fellowship, ethnic food, and afternoon program on all things WELS Missions.

Learn more and register before June 7 at tasteofmissions.com/register

05/18/2026

📆 Mark your calendars 📆

Join us for the commissioning of our newest missionaries to South Korea, Vietnam, and the Philippines!

The service will be held at New Life Lutheran Church in Shoreview, MN on July 19, 2026 at 2:00 PM.

We will welcome Pastor Ben Workentine as our guest preacher. Ben is a former Friends Network missionary to China and now serves as a pastor at St. Mark Ministries.

05/13/2026

Help us say 👋 goodbye and 🙏thank you to Jake Wassermann, who served as a Friends Network missionary in Manila, Philippines for more than three years. Jake was a pioneer in every way, landing in our new mission field without much direction other than to explore and build relationships alongside his fellow teammates and a few local believers. The Manila mission has now grown into a THRIVING Bible community.

Jake embodied the Friends Network spirit, and he spread that energy and enthusiasm to everyone he met along the way. God bless you, Jake, as you move on to your next phase of life and ministry!

05/07/2026

We can learn a lot from Jesus! Enjoy these reflections from Missionary Liam Kopp in Mito, Japan.

The following reflection was written by Missionary Liam Kopp (Mito, Japan) and included in his recent newsletter. In church today we read the account of Jesus and the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24: 13-35), and I was struck by something I’d never considered before. On this road to Emmaus...

05/06/2026

Our Director of Member Care Gwen Schroeder just returned from a field visit to the Philippines, and she had a terrible time. None of the people are any fun at all.

Just kidding. It was an awesome trip, filled with encouragement, worship, prayers, and laughter. Plenty of challenges, too...but in the company of Christians, even those provide strength and joy.

05/04/2026

This week we're continuing to recognize our missionaries who have recently transitioned off the field. Carina Rahn spent over EIGHT years in East Asia and Southeast Asia, and she made hundreds of meaningful relationships over that time.

A few years ago, Carina wrote a blog post that is worth sharing again (linked in the comments). In the post you'll see Carina's sincere heart for the lost, and the inspiration behind her evangelism work.

We wish you God's blessings on your next chapter of life, Carina!

04/28/2026

God's richest blessings to our very own Abby Micheel! Abby recently returned to the United States to prepare for her next phase of ministry.

Here's a photo from her farewell service at めぐみルーテル福音キリスト教会　Grace Lutheran Evangelical Christian Church in Mito, Japan.