Leia Foxen is six years old and lives in Africa. Listen to her firsthand account of moving to Tanzania with her parents, who serve as WELS World Missionaries. You can also read her dad’s blog at wels.net/communicate-the-gospel.
Learn more about WELS mission work in Africa at wels.net/africa.
The installation of a home missionary. The first Bible information class. A church name. The first event. The first volunteer opportunity. The first worship service. A land purchase. Ground breaking. The first baptism. The first Sunday School class. These are all amazing firsts for our home mission congregations. Each one is an exciting step as God gathers people together around the Word. But what happens before the āfirsts?ā Have you ever wondered that? What takes place before the first pastor is called, or before this group of Christians even has name? How do our WELS home mission congregations get their start?
Marana is a town of more than 50,000 just northwest of Tucson, Ariz., and it continues to grow rapidly. The prime example of Maranaās growth is a community called Gladden Farms in the area the locals call North Marana. Twenty-five years ago it was all cotton fields but not anymore. What started with just a few small subdivisions is now home to 15,000 people. In the last six months, McDonaldās, Fryās Marketplace (Kroger), and Starbucks popped up Gladden Farms. But perhaps the most noticeable difference has been the traffic lights. In the last few months three Gladden Farmsā intersections now have traffic lights. Letās just say that this has taken some getting used to. The commute to Tucson is longer. The traffic is thicker. And, yes, frustration comes more quickly. But what are these traffic lights a sign of? Well, more people of course! More traffic lights means more souls.
And WELS members who live in Marana have noticed. They each attend one of the four WELS congregations in Tucson, but the traffic lights (along with all the signs of growth) have caused them to wonder: might North Marana be ripe for a new mission opportunity?
Currently, a group of about 20 WELS members from area congregations meet one Sunday evening every month in our home for Bible Study. As of December, we have met four times. We gather together and enjoy some snacks and refreshments, study the book of Acts for about an hour, and then have a 20 to 30-minute planning session concerning what might be next. One of our WELS Mission Counselors joined us for one of our gatherings to help us think through what a new mission in North Marana might look like.
At our December gathering we decided that the Founderās Day parade and picnic in March would be a good events for our first service opportunities. Our group discussed whether we should walk in the parade or simply have a booth later on at the picnic. Finally someone said: āWhat if we just volunteered to serve in whatever way was needed?ā What a great idea! Our first step in reaching this community that is growing by three traffic lights at a time is going to be to simply serve. From there someone in our group volunteered to call the event coordinator to let them know they have 20 eager volunteers. Another started working on a logo so that we might have something to put on a t-shirt as weāre serving together. If youāre curious, for now weāre calling our group āMission Marana.ā The name, too, of course, came out of one of our Bible study and planning gatherings. After all, Marana is the mission.
Please pray for our efforts. Pray that gathering, studying, and serving leads to sharingāsharing the good news of Jesus with souls who need to hear it. And my prayer is that you will never look at another traffic light the same way.
Written by Rev. Nathan Moldenhauer, pastor at Shepherd of the Hills in Tucson, Ariz.
District mission boards, mission counselors, and other area congregations work with local WELS members to build a core group, initiate Bible study, and conduct initial outreach before submitting a formal request to the Board for Home Missions for new mission status and subsidy. These exploratory missions, like Mission Marana, are laying the groundwork for their formal request. View more exploratory mission efforts on the interactive Google map found at wels100in10.net, and stay tuned after the Board for Home Missions meets on April 3-4 to learn which home mission churches will be approved next!
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āIt was like the light bulb came on, and you felt so much more peace when you went to church,ā says Denice.
Hear more from Jerry Laster, a trauma surgeon, who draws a powerful parallel between his work of healing physical wounds and the churchās role as a hospital for sick souls. Discover how he and his wife, Denice, found peace and healing through Godās free grace at Christ Alone Lutheran Church, a WELS home mission congregation in Keller, Texas.
Learn more about the WELS 100 Missions in 10 Years initiative at wels100in10.net.
At the end of October, Pastor Paul Hirsch (St. Paulās Congregation in Norfolk, Neb.) met me, One Africa Team missionary, Dan Kroll, at Roberts Airport near Monrovia, Liberia. We traveled about an hour to Buchanan with Pastor Toye Barnard who leads a small congregationāLamb of God Lutheran Churchāof about 50 people.
Small study groups review material
After a review of what was needed to complete stage one (of four ā the One Africa Team program for those who want to come into fellowship), we agreed that we should review the Ministry of the Keys and Baptism. Pastor Hirsch was slated to teach the Ten Commandments and managed well while Pastor Kroll gave a review of the Ministry of the Keys and practical applications of Baptism.
While we were there, we also considered a piece of land that the congregation would like to buy. It would be big enough for a school, but not quite enough for much expansion thereafter. We are still praying about the idea. The One Africa Team is hesitant to make big financial commitments in places where we have not yet been able to confirm a unity of teaching and practice. We expect that to happen in 2025.
The One Africa Team is blessed to work with this group after they had separated themselves from a Pentecostal group in 2022, confident that the Lord will bless this work in Buchanan Liberia.
To Godās glory!
Written by Missionary Dan Kroll, world missionary on the One Africa Team.
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Missionary Matt Behmer shares an update of the work being done by the One Latin America Team. The team works with a ministry called Academia Cristo that connects with people online and trains them in God’s Word. Additional training and in-person visits are conducted by the team guiding the students towards the Church Planting Level, where the student is leading their own group. Learn more about the work of the One Latin America Team at wels.net/latinamerica and save the date for our Taste of Missions event on June 14, 2025, in Mequon, Wis.
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TELLestrations
If youāve never played Telestrations, you can think of its counterpart, Telephone. You have a sentence; you pass it on to someone, who in turn passes it on to someone else. You just hope that in the end, it turns out the same! The difference? In Telestrations, you alternate between writing sentences and drawing pictures. What can be lost in translation, even within your own family, is incredible!
Asia Lutheran Seminaryās new roll-out of TELL sometimes reminds me of Telestrations. TELL doesnāt just teach the Bible; it trains people how to share it. We have a message, and weāre trying to pass it down like Paul. āAnd the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.ā (2 Tim 2:2). If Paul were the first one to draw on his Telestrations sheet, there would have been four people involved in that game! We are teaching others, to teach others, to teach others.
This doesnāt come without difficulty! Challenge #1: Even though our studentās English levels put any of my second languages to shame, it is still not their heart language. Challenge #2: The sheer diversity in our classes. This game has players throughout Asia. One is trying to gather a small collection of house churches in a predominately Muslim country in South Asia, and another is a police officer in the Philippines. Yet another is a chieftain of an indigenous tribe. Another is a cancer survivor turned Christian from India who has read through the book of Romans over 500 times without formal training. Everyone comes from different cultures and backgrounds, so you better believe they will draw different pictures!
And thatās a good thing.
While language and culture barriers occasionally cause misunderstandings in the classroom, these are precisely where the TELL program shines. Each culture has its own picture of what things like love, honor, and forgiveness look like. One of the most beautiful things about TELL is that we train and entrust ālocal artistsā to draw the message more clearly.
What is our message? The Word came down to Earth and gives us the words of eternal life (Jn 1; Jn 6:68). Scripture perfectly draws that message for us. The Message (the Word) became flesh to explain and live out our salvation. Christ, the Word made flesh, is the message we hold and want to hand down.
With a message that important, we want to make sure itās handed down well. We work hard to ensure that the message remains the same despite the picture looking different. We give feedback between āeach roundā as students submit the Bible study they have created. Sometimes, we receive videos of students using their final project to teach others. This has been one of the most remarkable moments as a teacher! Also, after completing eight courses (1ā2 years), students may work with a counselor to deepen their training and work towards fellowship.
Weāve only started working with TELL in Asia in the past few months. Still, itās humbling to see how eager students are to refine their understanding and improve their ācomprehendingā and ādrawing skillsā for sharing the gospel. I am humbled to be able to teach the students who join our classes.
Please pray for TELL in Asia. Pray for the handing down of the Word from culture to culture and from generation to generation. Pray that this handing down and drawing of the message would bring a lot of joy, not because the picture looks different, but because it matches the face of our Lord when he comes again.
Written by Rev. Justin Steinke, world missionary for the Asia Oceania Team based in Manila, Philippines.
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For over 60 years, Godās people have been gathering at King of Kings Lutheran Church in Garden Grove, Calif. WELS men and women have been supporting additional ministry from this same location, starting with a King of Kings grade school that is approaching 60 years of existence. King of Kings also assisted in the formation of California Lutheran High School, which is nearing 50 years of ministry. In recent years, King of Kings opened their campus to support their fellow WELS congregation Pan de Vida and a new WELS outreach to the Vietnamese community.
On Dec. 22, 2024, members of King of Kings had the chance to witness WELS pastor Rev. Trung Le gather a group of 44 Vietnamese friends and neighbors to hear the gospel on the King of Kings campus. With support from WELS Joint Mission Council, members of Pan de Vida, and members of King of Kings, a multi-purpose room on the King of Kings campus was renovated to become an additional sanctuary for worship. It was in this worship space that Pastor Trung Le preached the good news of John 3:16 to the ears and hearts of the Vietnamese community.
God is blessing this partnership in gospel ministry so that more people in Garden Grove are hearing that God loves them ā so much so that he sent his one and only Son to save them ā and that whoever believes in this Savior, Jesus, will not suffer eternal punishment but rather will enjoy eternal life with God in heaven. This “gospel in a nutshell” is an invitation for life: for believers to find peace, both in this life and for eternity. God has blessed the gospel proclamation on the King of Kings campus for over 60 years and we pray with our brothers and sisters that God would continue to bless this same proclamation, in various languages, for many years to come. The Vietnamese community knows that Pastor Trung Le and fellow WELS believers will continue to be present and serve in their community. And now this same community has received an invitation for life: for as long as King of Kings is open, the gospel will be proclaimed to them, just as it has been for generations in Garden Grove. Yet this invitation for life goes beyond a location or church building. The gates of eternal life are open to the Vietnamese community just as they are to anyone who hears the saving Word of God and believes it. This was visible for all in attendance at the opening Vietnamese worship service, as Pastor Trung Le baptized a new brother in the faith. Rejoice with all the brothers and sisters who gather and support the ministry in Garden Grove, Calif. God invites all of us to find joy in his love that is for us today and for eternity.
Rejoice that you too have an invitation for life.
Written by Rev. Neil Birkholz, North American Asian ministry consultant.Ā
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Sometimes missions happen organically. Even though I have only been in the mission field a couple months, God is still growing his kingdom as his faithful people care for one another and reach out to the lost and straying. A couple stories from West Lafayette, Ind., illustrate the words of Jesus: āAll by itself the soil produces graināfirst the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the headā (Mark 4:28).
West Lafayette is home to Purdue University, and while the WELS campus ministry presence there has been small recently, the students who participate are active. Students are faithfully inviting their friends to worship and on-campus Bible class. For weeks and months, they have been reaching out, but sometimes it takes many tries before anyone joins us. Yet God is using these Christians and their everyday witness to bring people into his church.
In one instance, a student invited a young man (āJinā) to Bible study. Jin was looking for a Christian community, and he saw at work an on-campus Bible study. He came to worship that Sunday. It just so happened that my wife, a very talented cook, invited everyone in worship that Sunday to come to our house for a house-warming party. Not only did this young man join us for lunch, but he even helped cook one of the dishes. During lunch, he was able to visit the members of the church and talk to me about the WELS stance on the Bible. We thank God for these opportunities provided by faithful Christians inviting their friends to join them!
On another occasion, a car was parked in the church parking lot. I stopped over to see if everything was all right and introduce myself. I came to learn the gentleman sitting there (Kyle) was waiting to go to work; he often stops by our parking lot to sit and think. He had trauma in his church growing up, coupled with more recent struggles. Kyle wants to get back in the church and hear the Word of God. After following up, we set up a time to meet. Kyle started a Bible instruction class, and we look forward to our time together in Godās Word.
Slowly, one by one, the kingdom of God grows, through the faithful outreach of Godās people and God putting people in our paths. But this kingdom grows all by itself as the Holy Spirit works through his Means of Grace. Itās just like our Lord says, ā[The kingdom of God] is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plantsā (Mark 4:30). God is providing shelter for his people as his Word works in and through his people.
Written by Rev. Andrew Ewings, home missionary at Lamb of God Lutheran Church in West Lafayette, Ind.
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Finding the best ways to communicate well is always something WELS missionaries are thinking about. Thatās why, in mid-October, my family landed in Arusha, Tanzania. We planned to spend about two months in the country to learn to communicate in Swahili.
Old and young learners communicate
I enrolled in two courses at MS-TCDC, a college focused on teaching Swahili to foreigners, for five weeks. Outside of class, there were plenty of opportunities to practice Swahili with people. We bought groceries, asked for directions, flagged down bijajis (three-wheeled taxis), and just said: ājamboā (hello)! The official languages of Tanzania are both Swahili and English. However, much more emphasis is placed on Swahili in Tanzania. Itās common to find people who speak very little or no English. This made using the language a must in day-to-day interactions.
My wife, Becky, and two youngest children, Katya (9) and Leia (6) joined me for the experience. Becky homeschools the girls, so temporarily relocating from our home in Lusaka, Zambia, to Arusha didnāt interrupt their learning. Becky integrated quickly into the local homeschooling scene, and she and the girls made new friends quickly.
Connecting with local Christians
I also interacted with Africa Mission Evangelism Church (AMEC), a Lutheran church body based in Tanzania. After carefully working through One Africa Teamās Four Stage Process, WELS will declare fellowship with AMEC at this summerās synod convention, God-willing.
Our normal practice is to visit one of our mission partners for about two weeks. After two months in Tanzania, we visited many churches on Sundays and deepened our relationships with church leaders. I also met with leaders from the Community of Evangelical Lutheran Churches of Central Africa (CEELAC). CEELAC is a new partner based in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). We have been meeting in Tanzania due to security concerns in the DRC.
Both AMEC and CEELAC use Swahili in their worship services. Attending worship was a great opportunity to put into practice what I had learned in my classes. Two months isnāt enough time to communicate like a native Swahili speaker. I was excited to see that I could understand much more and even teach a little in their language. Iām thankful for the opportunity to communicate the gospel no matter where I live!
Listen to Leia Foxen communicate in her way about what she saw in Tanzania in this video posted on the One Africa Teamās YouTube Channel.
Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news, and receive updates.
Written by Missionary Ben Foxen, world missionary on the One Africa Team.
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Dear Family of Believers,
Are you one of those people who waits impatiently to see that first Christmas card in your mailbox? Many of us cherish this festive season, which allows us to exclaim the great news of Jesusā birth to family members and loved ones through warm holiday letters and greeting cards.
āThe Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.ā – John 1:14
On behalf of Home, World, and Joint Missions, we want to thank you for your prayers and support. We hope this Christmas season will bring joy to many and will inspire hearts to share the priceless message of Godās love with others. We are truly grateful for your encouragement and offerings. Thank you! Together with you, we pray for the Lordās continued blessing as we keep reaching out to the lost and hurting people in our communities and all around the world.
We have already been given the most precious gift that could ever be given. Our heavenly Father delights in our excitement as we declare this great news to others during the Advent and Christmas seasons and all throughout the year. Joyfully, we proclaim, āwe have seen his glory. . . full of grace and truth!ā
May Godās peace be with you and your family today and in the year to come.
WELS Home, World, and Joint Missions
P.S. – Want to learn more about WELS mission work? Follow us on Facebook or Instagram @WELSMissions or subscribe to Missions Blogs and Update Newsletters at wels.net/subscribe.
Originally appears in the Native American Missions (NAM) News from December 2024
The list is long.
Very long.
So, if youāre short on time, donāt ask Nathan and Julie Wagenknecht to tell you about all the places in the world they have been and how they have served the Lord in various ministries.
But if you ask, and I hope you do, youāll learn a lot. Not only about the where and the what but especially about the how and the why.
Isnāt it encouraging to learn from any brother and sister in Christ about their journeys of faith as they have followed the Lordās call? Isnāt it inspiring to hear from the Abrahams and Sarahs of our day who have ventured into the unknown, sharing how God has been with them every step, every move, every location.
Oh, the stories and the surprises along the way.
And for the Wagenknechts, even though theyāve already spanned countries and continents, God wasnāt done with them yet. He moved them yet again.
Now we find them in Farmington, N.M.
WELS Board for World Missions called Rev. Wagenknecht to be the Native Christians Counselor for Outreach.
What does that entail?
Great question. Iāll let Missionary Wagenknecht explain his new call:
Iāll be coordinating outreach to the Native American tribes in the Four Corners area of Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado. Iāll also be developing a new model for Native American outreach, working closely with Apache and Navajo members who want to reach out to friends and family with the pure gospel message.
With all that on his mission plate, Nathan humbly requests your prayers.
Please pray for me personally that I may carry out a proper balance of time between family, office, and building personal relationships outside of the office.
Please pray for my family, too. We ask the Lord to help us settle in as we establish the services we need in a new city (doctors, dentists, etc.), find friends, and build relationships in our childrenās school and our community.
And one more. Please pray for my ministry. I would love insight into this new culture so that our mission work meets people where they are, provides help where they have real needs, and connects people to their very real Savior.
Meanwhile, as Nathan settles into his new role, Julie and the kids (and one adorable pet bunny) have things to do of their own.
When Mateo (10 years old) is not in school, you will probably find him riding his bike, kicking a soccer ball, playing board games, or playing with Hopscotch.
Notice I didnāt say, playing hopscotch.
Playing with Hopscotch.
Hopscotch is the Wagenknechtās beloved family pet.
Very photogenic, too, donāt you think? All three!
Natalia (10 years old) gave him that name as soon as he hopped into their Alaskan backyard. In this case, it wasnāt the Wagenknechts adopting Hopscotchā¦ it was Hopscotch who adopted them!
Natalia loves it that Hopscotch made the move with them and is right there in their Farmington family room. When Nataliaās not cuddling up with Hopscotch, she enjoys art and reading.
Julie has her hands full with the kiddos, setting up the house and adjusting to life in Farmington.
Ah, yes, adjusting one more time. Each major move not only means adjustment, but also waiting. Waiting for shipments, waiting for paperwork, waiting for new friendships, waiting to fill a niche, waiting for who knows what. Itās no wonder, then, that one of Julieās favorite āgo-toā Bible verses is Psalm 27:14,
āWait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.ā
With the Farmington move, the LORD didnāt make them wait at all for a much-desired blessing: a home church. Christ the Rock Lutheran Church is conveniently located in Farmington. It immediately became their church home and family. Ever since the Wagenknechts rolled into Farmington, Pastor Jon Brohn, his wife Kay, and the members of Christ the Rock Church have welcomed the Wagenknechts with open arms and lots of help.
On Sunday, Nov.24, Pastor Brohn installed Missionary Wagenknecht at Christ the Rock Lutheran Church.
And hereās another blessing: Missionary Nathan Wagenknechtās father, Pastor Myrl Wagenknecht, preached the sermon for his sonās installation!
Pastor Myrl Wagenknecht speaks a blessing upon his son Nathan.
The list goes on. And on. And on.
The list is long.
Very long.
If you have time, just ask the Wagenknechts about it. Theyāll be thrilled to share with you how God has equipped them with āeverything goodā for their various ministries in Mexico, Japan, Malawi, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Brazil, Alaskaā¦ well, Iāll let them tell you.
Welcome to the team, Nathan, Julie, Mateo, and Natalia!
Written by Missionary John Holtz, Native Christians counselor on the Native American mission team.Ā
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Partnerships are everywhere in our Christian faith: partnerships with our fellow believers, partnerships with our home churches, partnerships with the pastors that guide us, and most ultimately our partnership with God. In Philippians 1: 3-6 we are reminded by God that partnerships are necessary to share the good news of the gospel.
The Central Africa Medical Mission (CAMM) started as a partnership; the Lutheran missionaries used the Central Africa Medical Mission to provide healthcare to the local community and because the communityās physical needs were being taken care of, doors were opened for the missionaries to share Godās spiritual love and healing with those visiting the clinic.
Today, CAMM operates with many partnerships. We partner with the missionaries through the Board of World Missions and the One Africa Team, with local national staff, with local African pastors, and with supporters all across the United States and abroad.
The Board of World Missions and the One Africa Team help support CAMM by providing spiritual support, marketing support, and help to lead CAMMās mission. WELS Christian Aid & Relief (CAR) provides CAMM with financial grant support. CAMM has been extremely blessed by CAR with their grants to purchase medicine, fuel, and vaccinations. They are a key financial supporter for the short-term medical camps that were held in Kenya in 2024 and the camp that is planned for February of 2025.
While today we have all national staff at our clinics, originally CAMM employed an American nurse-in-charge and an American clinic administrator in both Zambia and Malawi. The individuals who held these positions moved far away from their families and lived in Malawi and Zambia for three years or more. They helped lead the national staff and relayed communication on clinic operations back to the CAMM stateside committee, even though communication was slow due to limitations in phone and mail service, especially from our start in 1961 through the late 1990ās. CAMM relied on the leadership and professional background of the American nurse-in-charge and American clinic administrator at each clinic to ensure the clinics ran smoothly, and their partnership was essential to the success of CAMM, especially in those early years.
In 1994, the Lutheran Rural Health Centre in Zambia was turned over to national staff to run the clinic. The same followed for the Malawi staff in 2022. Where would CAMM be now without the knowledge, commitment, and integrity of the Malawian and Zambian staff? CAMM relies on them to ensure devotions are held each morning and to treat each patient that arrives at our clinics with empathy and professionalism. The staff is the face of our clinics and through the love and compassion they share with each patient, they are reflections of Godās compassion to them. The local pastors of the Lutheran Church of Central Africa are also key partners with CAMM, as they have an important role to further develop the spiritual welfare of each staff member and patient.
Finally, all of our supporters are key partners with CAMM. Schools, churches, and womenās groups, including LWMS, help spread the word about the work of CAMM with even more individuals across the country. And this in turn has caused an outpouring of support, in the form of prayers, monetary donations, assembling and mailing parcels to the clinics, and special projects such as a CAMM baby shower, chili potlucks, special mission Sundays, and school mission projects, which help fund building projects and new vehicles. The CAMM stateside committee members are filled with gratitude when we see photos of these activities or learn of all the assistance that is being provided. Since CAMM is supported solely by donations, we would not be able to carry out our work without the partnership of all of you, our supporters.
God has truly blessed the work of the Central Africa Medical Mission for over 60 years, beyond what we ever could have imagined. May he continue to use all of these partnerships to guide and bless our work in the future to provide Christ-centered health care and to share the gospel with all those who come to the clinics.
Have a blessed Christmas season as we celebrate the joyous birth of our Savior!
Written by Angela Sievert, Central Africa Medical Mission chair
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Just to date myself, Iām a fan of Oklahoma rock group Flaming Lips. One time they released an albumāactually four discs (dated again!)āmeant to be played simultaneouslyācalled āZaireka.ā They wanted a name that evoked chaos and joy . . . and Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or DRC) was the ultimate byword for chaos.
Not so, on the One Africa Team’s travels to Lubumbashi, a busy, thriving mining city in the southeast of the DRC. We need the governmentās permission to go there and offer workshops to the confessional Lutheran church groupāthe Evangelical Lutheran Mission to The Congo (MELC) āwith whom we are exploring the possibility of fellowship. The intelligence officers monitor One Africa Team missionariesā visits closely, both for their good and for ours. We have heard that they are happy to have us visit, so that we can spread the word that Lubumbashi is safe, orderly, and open for business.
But weāve also heard that they like what weāve been teaching. As theyāve read reports of our pastoral training workshops, theyāve mentioned that they think the contentāwhich has been the small Catechism of Luther, so farāis wonderful. The gospel Word is spread, sometimes in surprising ways.
In November, One Africa Team Adjunct, Pastor Joel Seifert, and I presented a second training workshop for the pastors and evangelists of theĀ MELC who came to Lubumbashi from as far away as Kinshasa in the west and Manono to the north. On Wednesday evenings, I continue to hold French-language doctrinal studies on Zoom with the leaders of MELC.
Thank you for whatever ways youāve been supporting this new mission field! Congo-reka! And soli deo gloria. Peace.
Written by Missionary Keegan Dowling, world missionary on the One Africa Team.
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As I closed my laptop for the night, I found myself sitting in awe of what had just happened. Students from across Latin America had gatheredāvirtuallyāfor the final session of The Christian Church, a month-long journey through the book of Acts. Faces lit with joy, hearts filled with gratitude, and words of thanks filled the digital space. It was more than a class; it was a glimpse of Godās work unfolding before my eyes.
And as I reflected on the experience, I couldnāt help but wonder: Who is more thankfulāthe students, or me? How many people get to study Godās Word with students from 13 different countries? How many people get to share the love of Christ as their job? The truth is, though, itās not my job just because I was called to be a missionaryāitās my job because God called me, and all Christians, throughout the world, to go and be witnesses, to make disciples, to share Christās love.
Thatās really the point of the course The Christian Church, which I had the privilege of guiding over 50 students through this last month. We are all commissioned to āgo.ā You donāt need to be a pastor to share Godās Word; you donāt need to have a church building to worship; you donāt need to be an Israelite to be a part of Godās family. The Christian Church is made up of believers across the world, and Jesusā command to us all is to keep on sharing the gospel message!
This course also serves as a beautiful summary of our work within Academia Cristo. In the course, we study the book of Acts, where we see Paul working alongside believers throughout the ancient worldāsharing both the law and the gospel, and encouraging them in their study of Scripture. He wasnāt aloneāleaders in the cities he visited and fellow missionaries traveling with him were doing the same. Our work as a team of missionaries serving Latin America follows this same pattern. We have the privilege of sharing the teachings of the Bible with students throughout Latin America and encouraging them in their study of Scripture. We also get to support leaders living in a variety of countries to do the same. What a privilege! What a joy!
Over the next two weeks, Iāll be receiving final projects from about 50 believers, each one commissioned by God to share his Word with others. Some will begin immediately, eager to share everything theyāve learned. Others will gain more confidence with each passing course. Some may continue their ministry within their own church, but now equipped with a deeper understanding of the truth of Scripture. And, God willing, some will join us in planting new confessional Lutheran churches in their neighborhoodsābecoming vital partners in the gospel.
We are the Christian Church, called by God to carry his message of salvation to the world. What a privilege and responsibility we all share! May we all find joy and purpose in the special work that God has entrusted to each of us, wherever he has placed us in this world.
JosĆ© MarĆa, one of my students, messaged me after the last class, asking if I thought he could be a missionary. My answer for JosĆ© is really Godās answer. And itās Godās answer not just for JosĆ© MarĆa, but for each of us: Yes! Go, tell your family about Jesus. Go, share the gospel with your neighbors. Go, into all the world and be Christās witness.
Acts 1:8 – āYou will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.ā
Written by Missionary Luke Beilke, world missionary and Dean of Students for Academia Cristo.
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On Sat., Nov. 23, 2024, our sister congregation in Leipzig, Germany, participated in an annual citywide event sponsored by a cultural group called the Leipzig Music Trail Association. Lu Hirsch, a member of Holy Trinity Congregation, organized the event. Read Luās description:
Every year the Leipzig Music Trail Association organizes a āNight of House Music.ā Hosts open their homes, stores, rooms, and museums to enjoy music together. The event always takes place the evening before the last Sunday of the church year at 7:00 p.m.
Those who wish to host a concert register with the association. They tell how many musicians and which instruments will be featured. The association posts all the concerts on its website, and people can sign up to attend concerts throughout the city.
This year, our congregation, Holy Trinity, hosted a concert for the second time.
Fifteen amateur musicians from our congregation play many different instruments: piano, organ, violin, flute, trumpet, bass clarinet, cello, and double bass. We were able to perform very different pieces from baroque to classical to klezmer.
During a short intermission, we had opportunity to talk to our guests. A woman who also attended last year particularly enjoyed the many young musicians and the variety of music. She was also interested in our congregation, church services, and other events we might host.
Other than a large cross on the outside, our church building looks much like a regular house, so it is always important to make people aware of the congregation here.
The Night of House Music is a good opportunity to invite music lovers and interested people into our worship space to talk about our faith and our hope.
I was honored to attend the Night of House Music at our Leipzig congregation and play a small part. These were my five favorite takeaways:
1. An outreach opportunity especially suited to Leipzig! Leipzig has long celebrated music and musicians. Bach and Mendelssohn spent significant portions of their careers in Leipzig.Ā Mendelssohn founded Germanyās first music conservatory in Leipzig. Here he trained musicians for the cityās orchestra, which he conducted. Leipzigās prominence as a book and music publishing center from the 18th to the 20th centuries drew composers to the city as well. The love of music lives on! Every weekend the old cathedrals downtown are filled for nearly free concerts by local choirs and instrumentalists. The opera and symphony hold places of honor. Friends gather in their homes to play music and sing together. Leipzigers love music and appreciate musicians! What could be better than a concert to invite the neighborhood into church?
2. A lay-led evangelism effort. The musicians of our Leipzig congregation took the initiative and conducted the event from start to finish, freeing their pastor for other important work. The musicians acted as hosts for the concert, not only introducing the pieces being played, but describing how we gather in this same room every Sunday morning to listen to Godās Word in the Bible, sing hymns, pray, and grow in our faith.
3. More than a third of the musicians were kids! I loved listening to the children and teenagers of the congregation gladly sharing their musical gifts with the neighborhood.
4. More than intermission . . . halfway through the concert, the musicians and guests enjoyed fellowship and refreshments, a valuable time to talk together and make connections with the community.
5. A fun day for the musicians! The musicians came early in the day to rehearse and set up the church for the concert. We enjoyed the afternoon of visiting, decorating, coffee-drinking, and eating together before the guests arrived for the concert. Growing together as a congregation was the icing on the cake!
Written by Jennifer Wolfgramm, wife of world missionary on the Europe One Team, and Lu Hirsch.
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The Lutheran Mission Rural Health Centre (Mwembezhi) in Zambia has been providing both physical and spiritual help to both the clients and patients in its 63 years of existence. It is the hand of God that has brought us this far. God established this work through His missionaries and their wives who were serving this area at a time when it was most difficult to live in Africa. Today the clinic stands tall with its ever-increasing population which has grown significantly since the 1990ās. The area has witnessed growth in both population and infrastructure since the area was declared a district in 2011 by the President at that time. There would have been even more growth in population and infrastructure had the President lived to see his vision through.
The clinic serves eight separate areas within our catchment and was seeing about eighteen thousand eight hundred people per year. In 2023 The Zambia government built two new health posts within our catchment area. These health posts were designed to provide people with a clinic closer to their homes rather than travel to Mwembezhi. The Mutombe health post is located about eight kilometres from our clinic and the Shikatende health post is about twelve Kilometres from Mwembezhi. Each health post was given a population of around five thousand people to serve thereby lowering the population served at Mwambezhi by around 10,000. However, it did not work out that way. People prefer coming to Mwembezhi over the health posts for reasons such as āat the Mwembezhi clinic they pray to Godā and āoffer Bible readingā (devotion), they have drugs and at the centre there are āDoctorsā available (Doctors in this case meaning medical staff in white coats). True to the peoplesā words, we are vessels of God sent for the sake of providing physical and spiritual help to our brothers and sisters in that area. As a team, we believe that the clinic is a Christ-centered facility. We treat, but Jesus Christ heals.
I am grateful to hear how people in the area praise God and mostly I hear them saying āLeza alelekwe pakutupa chibadela cha Lutheranā meaning that āMay the name of God be glorified for giving us the Lutheran clinicā. Hearing of the nice comments reminds me of the favour of God in our lives and how we ought to be grateful to Him. We are grateful for everything that God allowed us to see and do this year and remain grateful to all who pray for and support the Clinic. Letās encourage each other to live for God and be grateful to Him, especially around this time.
As children of God letās remember what He has given us despite the many challenges we face. There is an example of two people travelling in a public bus, one passenger (a woman) accidently spilled something on a smartly dressed passenger (a man) who was seated next to her and his clothes became dirty. It was expected that this smartly dressed man would get angry at the woman. But to the surprise of everyone the man smiled and said, āItās okay my sister, I will be dropping at the next station and home is near.ā The point is, let’s not
stress too much on the issues beyond our control, rather we hand over everything to God and be grateful for what He has given us.
With prayer and believing in God’s promises it was possible to establish the clinic that does His work now as it did 60 years ago. The God our forefathers served is the same God today. The clinic serves as a ready platform to extend Godās grace to His people, showing the love of Jesus to all who come. Our hope is that more will praise God for his salvation through Jesus as well as being grateful for the medical care given at our clinic. Thank you for your time.
Written by Alisad Banda, CAMM Clinic Administrator in Zambia.
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Dear Friend of Missions,
ā. . . because of your partnership in the gospel. . .ā
ā Philippians 1:3-5
This was Paulās reason for giving thanks. He cherished his partnership with Godās people, knowing he couldnāt do mission work without his brothers and sisters in Christ in the congregation at Philippi. So, he said this at the beginning of his letter: āI thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel. . .ā (Philippians 1:3-5)
We, too, cherish our partnership with you in the gospel. Humanly speaking, we couldnāt do what we do in Home and World Missions without it. This is by Godās design. The many parts of the body are meant to work in partnership with each other for the common good. Your partnership in the form of prayers, encouragement, and gifts enables us to enter new mission fields and provide ongoing support to missions throughout North America and across the globe. We thank God for this blessed partnership! Enjoy this video that shares a small taste of how God blessed our partnership in 2024.
We also join with you in giving thanks to our gracious God. We know where we would be without him. Yet, by his grace, we are children of God, bought with the blood of Jesus Christ and heirs of eternal life. By his grace, we are showered with an abundance of earthly blessings that provide for our daily needs and more! And by his grace, we are partners in gospel outreach ministry that has an eternal impact on souls around the world. Praise the Lord!
From all of us in WELS Missions, we thank God for you.
Happy Thanksgiving!
WELS Home, World, and Joint Missions
P.S. – Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to watch even more videos from our missionaries in the upcoming weeks!
A little blonde haired boy is doing laps around a small play center in a mall near a Kmart. (Yeah, they still exist in Australia). He starts to play with a boy about his age. They chase each other and climb through the play centerās obstacles to head for the slide. Each in turn, they inch down a slide that is inexplicably slow. And then they race back up to do it again. And at least for now, it doesnāt matter at all that they canāt speak the same language. After a while, the boysā mothers connect and begin talking. Before they leave the moms exchange contact information for hopefully a play date for the newly formed friends zooming around mall.
Three and a half months into living in Australia, weāre just starting to get the hang of some new things. Thereās a different vocabulary with a serious affection for shortening words and tacking on an O (servo, arvo, bottle-o, flanno, rego, smoko, garbo, to name a few), thereās some exciting new food options (meat pies, TimTams, excellent coffee, and yes, Vegemiteāitās excellent on toast with butter!), and there are a lot of different people groups here. We knew that having experience living in East Asia would be a benefit in making friends here and it has, but weāve also met Filipinos, Japanese, Indonesians, Colombians, Malaysians, Taiwanese, and Mongolians. And the main person starting the connection with most of those people: my wife Alanna. And sometimes my son Marvin.
One of the most exciting aspects of ministry here in Australia is that weāre all working on it together. Yes, the WELS missionaries, Matt and Peter (me), but also Christine (Mattās wife) and Alanna (my wife), and even unknowingly Marvin and Jonas. We’re exploring, trying out things like English programs, play groups, parks, library events, cultural nights, and running into all sorts of people and making friends with so many people. Hopefully, some of those connections turn into coffee, dinners, and conversations. Conversations about God. And all that feels very normal.
I would venture a guess that in your community, wherever you may be, thereās probably someone new, learning a new culture, maybe learning a new language, figuring out how to do basic things, and could use some help. And I bet that person would appreciate a friend. Weāve certainly appreciated all the help weāve gotten from friends so far.
Thereās something really fascinating in Psalm 86. Itās a psalm that praises God for how he listens and delivers those who trust in him. And in the middle of the psalm, the position of emphasis, there is verse nine. “All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord; they will bring glory to your name.” Itās a beautiful cause and effect explanation. God I trust in you, you save me, you deliver me, you answer me, and you help me.
Written by Rev. Peter Janke, world missionary on the Asia One Team based in Australia.
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Looking back on our second annual WELS Texas Campus Ministry Retreat, Ephesians 4:3-4 comes to mind; āMake every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called.ā Through the Holy Spirit, that unity was reflected in the fellowship we had at our retreat.
At the beginning of our spring semester, 17 WELS college students from Baylor University, Tarleton State University, and Texas A&M University took a weekend away from our studies to spend time together at a retreat in Lorena, Texas. We played games, ate delicious food, showed everyone around Waco, and watched a heartbreaking triple overtime Baylor basketball loss on T.V. More importantly, we spent time in the Word with Bible study focused on how we can share Christ and his love in each and every one of our relationships.
On college campuses, even Christian ones like Baylor, sometimes you arenāt quite sure what the people around you believe or how it differs from your own faith. Even with a loving community of Baylor friends, who I know love Jesus, there can still be a disconnect between what we believe. This retreat was especially refreshing in that I got to sit down and dive into the Word with people who I know for a fact believe what I do. While I had never met half of the students there, our faith in the āone hopeā of Jesus connected us and made it easy to talk to each other about everything.
I am certain that our hope in Jesus is one and the same. I have peace in knowing that outside of college, I am a part of a family of believers with whom I have complete unity. Our retreat was the perfect expression of that fellowship.
Written by Lilia Kasten, campus ministry student at Baylor University.
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Meskel, or “cross” is the name of a holiday that the Ethiopian Orthodox Church celebrates. The full name of the festival is “The Finding of the True Cross.” According to their tradition, God spoke in a dream to a woman named Helena, who was the mother of Constantine, the first Christian Emperor of Rome. In the dream, God instructed Helena to light a fir tree on fire. The smoke from the burning tree miraculously led Helena and her friends to a certain place on the ground. When people dug into the ground at that place, they found the true cross on which Jesus died.
Itās just a legend, not a true teaching of the Bible. But many people in Ethiopia celebrate this festival. When the day comes, thousands of men, women, and children stream out into the streets and public squares, dressed in colorfully embroidered white robes. They build a huge teepee-shaped bonfire that is intended to look like a fir tree. Everyone joins the celebration. Many of them are not members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, and many of them are not even Christian at all. Many of them do not understand the true meaning of Jesus and his cross. They just want to have a party.
New Contacts from Sudan and Ethiopia
When WELS missionaries Dan Kroll, Howard Mohlke and I visited Ethiopia a few weeks ago, the Meskel celebration was underway. We had several exciting reasons to make that trip to Ethiopia. First, we wanted to meet with leaders of the Lutheran Church of Sudan (LCS). The LCS is an Arabic-speaking Sudanese group that claims to have 16,000 Lutheran members. Over the past year, we have been communicating with this group via the internet. We have shared some Arabic printed materials so they can study the Scriptures in their own language. But we have never been able to meet them in person. Sadly, our plan to meet them in Ethiopia was not successful. The leaders of the LCS were not able to get the proper passports and visas.
Thankfully, other goals were more successful. My colleague, Dan Kroll, focused on meeting with a group called the Gambella Evangelical Lutheran Church (GELC). (Gambella is a region in western Ethiopia). The members of this group number about 150 and most of them belong to the Anuak tribe. Together with Missionary Kroll, about 35 leaders of this group were blessed to study what the Bible says about the Church and its ministry.
South Sudanese Refugee Work
Meanwhile, Howard Mohlke and I were more focused on another group, the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ethiopia and South Sudan (CELCESS). This group ā also located in the Gambella region of Ethiopia ā claims to have 28 congregations and about 14,000 members. Many of the members belong to a tribe of people called Nuer.
Especially, we met with a man named Lam Nhial Luak. Lam himself has been very well trained in Lutheran teachings. He holds a Bachelor of Divinity degree given by our sister synod, the Lutheran Church of Ethiopia. WELS missionaries also participated in Lamās training. Every month, WELS provides funding for Lam to teach a three-day workshop on Christian doctrine to 15 Nuer pastors. The pastors take what they have learned from the Bible and share it with their members. During our visit, we attended one of Lamās workshops. On the following Sunday, we were privileged to observe Lamās official installation into his teaching role and the ordination of four new pastors.
To be clear, WELS is not yet in fellowship with any of these groups ā neither the LCS nor the GELC nor the CELCESS. I do not know what will happen with these groups in the future and if God will bring them to a full understanding of the Scriptures and into fellowship with WELS. But I do know this: These people love their savior Jesus Christ. They are eager and excited to receive instruction from Godās Word. They know that God has saved us, not because of any good thing that we have done, but by the perfect life and innocent death of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Through their study of the Scriptures, they have found the true cross, and that is a reason for us to celebrate.
Learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in peopleās hearts at wels.net/africa.
Written by Missionary Mark Panning, world missionary in Malawi, Africa.
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1.Ā Annual meeting and new ten-year target
From October 11-14, 2024, the One Latin America team held its annual meeting at Divine Savior Academy in Doral, Fla. The meeting centered on establishing a ten-year target, a three-year picture, and one-year goals. At this meeting, the One Latin America Team set this new ten-year target:
2. Baptisms in Argentina
Luis Bello and his wife, Karina, from Baradero, Argentina, joined the Lutheran faith through Academia Cristo. They began hosting a small group in their home, gathering 15-25 people regularly. One evening, after a lesson on Jesus’ baptism, a young couple asked if their daughters could be baptized, inspiring six others to request baptism as well. Over the next two weeks, Luis and another leader, Jorge, baptized a total of ten people, including adults and children.
3. Church planting in Ecuador
Henry Isidrio, a church planter from Guayaquil, Ecuador, continues leading three groups through a Bible information course to prepare members for confirmation in the Lutheran faith.
4. Church planting course implementation
The instruction team is leading the writing and implementation of new courses for the Church Planting Level of courses, This advanced level, following the Discipleship Level, is for students in doctrinal agreement who have committed to starting or supporting new groups.
5. Discipleship Level capstone course
Twenty students successfully gathered groups and taught them a brief course on sin, grace, faith, and works. This was the final project for the Discipleship Level capstone course that wrapped up in early Sept. Several of these students are in doctrinal agreement and will continue their studies in the Church Planting Level of courses. Another session of the capstone course started on Sept. 30, 2024.
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For Ann, Robert, Jennifer, Linda, Dave, Sue, Tom, Chris, Lisa, Dan, Andy, Nancy, Emily, Carol, Paul, Nick, Jace, Jon, Justin, Megan, Cheryl, Josh, Kathy, Gary, James, Kyle, Sophia, and Aliceā¦
Why do we need another church in Wisconsin? Whatās your church going to be like? How are you going to decide on a name? These are all legitimate questions. And I think I finally have a good answer: For Ann, Robert, Jennifer, Linda, Dave, Sue, and so on and so forth . . .
I just arrived at the new location the Lord has now placed me to share his Word ā Kronenwetter, Wis. (think southeast Wausau, Wis. – east of Hwy 51, south of I 29, north of Hwy 153). For the first two weeks after the installation service on Sept. 15, I was welcomed into the homes of each family of our core group. We had a short devotion, got to know each other a little bit, and started sharing some initial gospel ministry thoughts of how to reach out to the unchurched in our target area.
I was also asked to conduct a couple of mission festivals in the area. During the sermon on Isaiah 6, I encouraged the congregations to work through the āFriends Who Need Jesusā diagram. Itās a common diagram that has been around for quite a long time, but every time I work through it, I think about another soul in my sphere of influence who doesnāt know about Jesus. And others were experiencing the same thing! (You should take 90 seconds and try it too!) In fact, several people gave me the contact information of their unchurched friend, relative, acquaintance, or neighbor who is living in our target area.
So I thought that would be a good way to start our first official meeting on Sept. 29. The group that gathered worked through the diagram. It didnāt take much effort ,and we filled the board with names! But they arenāt just names, are they? Those letters on the board indicate that there are dear souls in our area who need Jesus! And how can they believe in the one about whom they have not heard?
So right from the start, we were reminded why we need another church in Wisconsin and 99 other places as well. For Ann, Robert, Jennifer, Linda, Dave, Sue, Tom, Chris, Lisa, and Dan. We learned how we are going to pick a name and make all the decisions when it comes to starting this mission. For Andy, Nancy, Emily, Carol, Paul, Nick, Jace, Jon, and Justin. Because our synod is aggressively reaching lost souls, this will be another WELS congregation sharing Godās Word in its truth and purity for Megan, Cheryl, Josh, Kathy, Gary, and Lord-willing, many other souls who all need Jesus!
Written by Rev. Frederic Berger, home missionary at the new mission start in Kronenwetter, Wis.
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In October, Asia Lutheran Seminary, Hong Kong, celebrated the graduation of 13 students. Nine of the students received certificates in either Greek or Hebrew, two received an associate of arts degree in theology, and two were awarded a diploma of Christian Studies. We praise and thank God for the opportunity to teach his Word to brothers and sisters around the world. Learn more about mission work in Asia at wels.net/asia.
āThe harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.ā (Matthew 9:37,38)
Jesus spoke those words to his disciples after seeing crowds of people who were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd.
What happens to flocks when no one cares for them? The same happens to people.
Rev. Dan Rautenberg, installed as pastor at Peridot and Grace.
And Jesus doesnāt like it.
And who would? Who likes being harassed? Who likes being helpless? Do you hear a pained sadness in Jesusā voice when He compares the size of the harvest to the number of workers?
One is plentiful, the other is few. What was true then is still true today.
Considering the dire situation then and now, Jesus urged: āAsk!ā
So people asked. And He answered.
God answered a big ask by guiding Pastor Dan Rautenberg and Mr. David Thompson to accept their calls as pastor and pastoral assistant. Together they will be serving the dual parish union of Peridot Lutheran Church and Grace Lutheran Church, both on the San Carlos Reservation in Arizona.
What better way to thank God for this blessing than to hold a worship service and install the shepherds in front of a flock of Jesusā sheep! Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, was indeed a joyous occasion!
The installation service was filled with the Word of God in every aspect. The late Rev. Kirk Massey, Jr. led the worship liturgy, Rev. Gary Lupe preached the sermon, the choir and congregation sang hymns and gifted musicians played their instruments. The area pastors and leaders participated in the laying on of hands, sharing of Scripture and words of encouragement. Not to mention all the amazing food prepared by congregation members. All done to the glory of God!
The sheep at the two congregations are very blessed to have these two shepherds. Like David of old, they are men āafter Godās own heart.ā
Mr. David Thompson installed as pastoral assistant
Mr. David Thompson has been involved at Peridot Lutheran Church and Grace Lutheran Church as a confirmed member since 2013. He speaks Apache and shares the gospel in Apache! David and his wife, Samantha, have a family āflockā of their own: five children and three foster children!
Rev. Dan Rautenberg began serving in Native American ministries 24 years ago. Except for serving three years in Grenada, his whole ministry has been on the reservations of Fort Apache and San Carlos. The people know him and he knows them. Pastor Dan and his wife, Katie, have four children, all born and raised on the reservation.
Join us, wonāt you, in thanking God for his big answer to a big ask.
Written by Rev. John Holtz, world missionary on the Native American mission team
Exactly a month after this installation service, God called home to his side Pastor Kirk Massey, Jr. āI am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.ā (John 11: 25-26). āDeath has been swallowed up in victory.ā (1 Corinthians 15:55)
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I recently traveled to Malawi and Zambia and was looking forward to sharing some updated information and news about the field. My wife Beth and I recently gave a presentation about CAMM for the Grand Canyon Circuit of LWMS (Lutheran Womenās Missionary Society) at a retreat at a camp outside of Prescott, Ariz. There were about 80 women attending and three Arizona pastors who helped with devotions and worship. We were glad to see our former Malawi Mission Liaison, Rev. John Holtz, and a former pastor in Zambia, Rev. John Hartman and his wife, Sharon.
At the retreat we had the opportunity to learn about the mission work to the Native American Mission, including the school in Peridot. We also heard about the mission to the children in Mexico and its Spanish ministry to Mexicans in Tucson.
We shared our slides about the Lutheran Mobile Clinic in Malawi, the Lutheran Rural Health Center in Zambia, and the medical camp that was run in Kenya last February. We enjoyed answering questions and feeling so much support for the ongoing work of CAMM. We knew these women would be praying for our African staff and supporting the mission with their prayers and offerings. It was apparent that many of them also had ministries in their churches and with other mission organizations. We give thanks for these brothers and sisters in Christ, who love Jesus and want to help spread the gospel around the world!
In other news, in Malawi we have recently completed the construction of two private consultation rooms at our clinic at Thunga Village. We have seen that outpatient numbers have been growing at this clinic, which has caused crowding and even less privacy. We decided that it was it about time that these patients were provided the same degree of privacy as the patients at our other clinics, hence the new consultation rooms were built. Now all outpatient consultations at all four of our clinics are conducted in private.
Also, in Malawi, after a few months of wondering why we have not received many parcels, we have just received 40 parcels of pill bottles and other supplies. Supplies were getting low and we were beginning to worry. But the Lord provided. We suspected that something was amiss either at the post office or customs, but only recently discovered that parcels were being held by the Malawi Revenue Agency (MRA) for possible customs duty. Lusungu Mwambeye ā our administrator in Malawi ā was able to work with the MRA and get the parcels released to us without duty. She also obtained a letter from MRA giving us customs clearance for three months. While our stocks are looking good today, it can take up to three months for a parcel to arrive, so please keep the parcels coming so that we always have a ready supply of pill bottles, blankets, hats, onesies, etc. for our patients.
Written by Mr. Gary Evans, CAMM Field Director.
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āI thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.ā (Philippians 1:3-4)
I love this verse from Paulās letter to the Philippians. Paul was known as the great missionary who took the gospel throughout the known world at the time. Yet, in these verses, God reminds us that Paul didnāt go alone; he had partnersāthose who supported him financially, prayed for him, sent him care packages, and shared the gospel themselves. Paulās stories were their stories. Ministry is all about partnerships in the gospel.
I can still hear President Schroeder on assignment day in May 2015: āStephen Apt. New mission start. Liberty Hill, Texas. South Central District.ā I was so excited to be going to Texas, starting a mission church and telling people about Jesus. I quickly found out that we had one other family in our core group: Jerry, Laura, and their second-grade son, Christian. That made five of us. We rented space in a commercial storefront property where our nearest neighbors were a gas station, a survivalist store, and a BBQ restaurant. It seemed like a daunting task to start a church with just the five of us, but we had big dreams and an even bigger God.
Fast forward nine years, and our church now worships an average of 153 souls each Sunday. We have 83 adults growing in the Word during the week, whether in Sunday morning Bible study or in our small groups, along with 50 youth and teens in our teen ministries and 56 in our childrenās ministries. In addition to our church, we have a school with an enrollment of 370 students, and weāve completed two building projects. How did all of this happen? Through partnerships.
We have the amazing opportunity to share the gospel with many people from diverse backgroundsāsome who didnāt know Jesus at all and others who have been away from the church for a long time. Weāve had the privilege to share Jesus with people who havenāt had a good walk with the Lord in the past, including Terri and her husband, Todd.
If you were to ask Terri and Todd about their walk with God prior to our church, they would say it wasnāt very good. But one day, they decided to give our church a try. They attended our Starting Point class and learned all about Jesus and what he has done for them. Four years later, Todd and Terri are now partners in our ministry. Todd serves as our churchās head usher, and Terri is currently taking classes to become synod certified to teach in our school. Terri recently said, āI feel so much closer to God than I ever have in my entire life.ā
As I type this from my desk in Liberty Hill, Texas, I canāt help but feel thankfulānot only for all that God has done but also for our partners in the gospel. These stories are not just my story, nor are they solely Divine Saviorās stories; they are your stories as well. The ministry and the gospel work here have only been possible because of the partnership of WELS supporting our mission in Texas. I am grateful for your partnership as you support the spread of the gospel ministry through the Board of Home Missions with your prayers, service, and offerings. Ministry is best accomplished through partnerships. Thank you for your partnership from the first day until now.
Written by Rev. Stephen Apt, home missionary at Divine Savior Church in Liberty Hill, Texas.
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“Itās better to have 100 friends than 100 rubles!ā
This bit of Russian folk wisdom comes from a time when 100 rubles was worth a lot of money. Having many talented friends who can help in different situations makes life a lot easier ā especially for people living in a collective society.
God has blessed me with many friends.
From Siberia to Portugal, from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia, God has allowed me to develop deep, spiritual relationships with many dear brothers and sisters. The members of Jesusā body are precious, blood-bought souls carefully gathered by the Lord of the Church and placed exactly where he wants for our mutual edification and his glory.
Recently God has blessed me with some new friends in the U.K. and back āhomeā in the WELS. Let me explain.
Pete Myers served in the ministerium of the Church of England. He is a Hebrew scholar and worked for several years as a professor of Old Testament studies at a seminary in Ethiopia. Pete is a sincere man who wants to confess solid Biblical faith in Christ. To make a long story short, Pete became Lutheran through an independent study of classic Lutheran writings and began searching for a Lutheran church faithful to scripture. After moving back to London, he met Missionary Michael Hartman. The two of them spent hours discussing what we in WELS believe on the basis of Holy Scripture. God blessed those conversations. Several months ago, Pete and his family joined our fellowship. Since then, they have moved to Manchester (a major city about four hours north of London), where Pete is supporting himself with secular work as a math teacher. But his real passion is to plant a congregation in Manchester that enjoys fellowship with our hub church in London.
Weāre thankful for Pete and his family, and weāre excited about blessings God is giving to his people through them. But we also want Pete to deepen his understanding of confessional Lutheranism, and we want those in our broader Lutheran fellowship (CELC) to have confidence that we share a common faith. What should we do?
Let me introduce you to some partners in WELS who are helping us.
Professor Allen Sorum teaches at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary. He is also part of the Pastoral Studies Institute (PSI). Professor Sorum has broad experience working with men who want to prepare for ministry not only in North America, but around the world. He serves as the PSI representative to our Europe team. This past June, he arranged for Pete to spend a couple weeks on our seminary campus in Mequon. Here Pete attended summer quarter classes and spoke with faculty members about a wide variety of doctrinal topics.
While in Mequon, Pete met another friend of mine, Professor Jim Danell. Professor Danell serves on the faculty of Martin Luther College in New Ulm, Minn., where he helps prepare young men for ministry. He also serves as the chairman of WELS Commission on Inter-Church Relations (CICR). This commission works to ensure that we indeed share authentic doctrinal fellowship with our brothers and sisters around the world. He is the CICR representative to our Europe team.
Iām so thankful that Professor Sorum and Professor Danell join our Europe team meetings every week. They understand the work that we are carrying out in Europe. Having PSI and CICR working together with World Missions has been a tremendous blessing. God richly blessed Peteās time during summer quarter, and there are plans in place for continued doctrinal conversations with key representatives in WELS to ensure that we are all walking together and contending for Jesusā truth.
Please join me in giving thanks for the gifted friends the Savior gives us in his Church. Letās continue to work together to share Jesusā good news with the world!
Written by Rev. Luke Wolfgramm, world missionary on the Europe One Team.Ā
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Psalm 139:16 reminds us that all the days ordained for us were written in God’s book before even one of them came to be.
On October 8, 2024, all the days ordained for Kirk Massey, Jr, were completed and the Lord took him to his heavenly home at the age of 47. Those days were full of blessings.
Since the day of his birth on April 29th, 1977, the Lord has been good to Kirk, and blessed many through Kirk. He had the privilege of attending East Fork Lutheran Elementary and High School and married his high school sweetheart, Sheree. The Lord blessed them with 5 children to raise: Michael, Marcus, Leah, Lindsey, and Meghan.
Kirk continued to be a blessing to many in his community in his work with youth and fathers and then in his eventual calling as a Pastor in the Lutheran church. He was blessed to be able to travel, to teach, to coach, to counsel, and most importantly, to share Jesus.
He loved sports, he loved to learn, but most of all he will be remembered as someone who loved his family and loved Jesus. He was determined to be a good husband and father, determined to raise his children to love Jesus, and determined to share Jesus in his congregation and community. He will be missed here, but we look forward to our reunion with him in heaven.
A viewing was held on Tuesday, October 15, 2024 from 7:00 AM-10:00 AM at the Whiteriver Lutheran Church of the Open Bible. The funeral service was held that same day at 11:00 AM in the East Fork Lutheran School gymnasium.
Join us as we celebrate 10 incredible years of Academia Cristo, a ministry that has shared the gospel and touched the lives of thousands across Latin America! Over the past decade, we have witnessed transformations, blessings, and life-changing moments as the message of Christ has reached new hearts and homes.
We reflect on the journey, the countless stories of faith, and the mission to continue spreading the good news of Jesus. From the first days to where we are now, Academia Cristo remains dedicated to making disciples, sharing free biblical teachings, and empowering leaders in local communities.
Watch the inspiring stories of those who have been impacted by this ministry, and hear from those whose lives were forever changed by the power of the gospel. Join the celebration and help us keep spreading the message of hope and salvation!
Learn more about Academia Cristo and mission work throughout Latin America at wels.net/latinamerica.
In the closing days of August, Rev. Dr. Terry Schultz from Multi-Language Productions (MLP) and Rev. Ben Foxen of the One Africa Team traveled to Uganda.
The goal? Fulfill a request made by our brothers and sisters in the Obadiah Lutheran Synod (OLS) to help them create new songs with Christ-centered lyrics.
Thanks to funding provided by MLP, we were able to gather about 20 musicians from the various districts of the OLS in one place for 5 days of training, encouragement, and hands-on work composing and performing songs. MLP also provided funds for the purchase of some equipment that will be used by the OLS to train future musicians in their church body.
In the time spent in this workshop, we were continually amazed at the musical talent and creativity that had been assembled. In a short time, these men and women composed and recorded 68 new songs that showed incredible diversity. Since the composers came from different parts of the country, they composed in no less than seven different languages. The musical styles differed as well, ranging from traditional Ugandan beats, to more of a hip-hop style, to chants and chorales. It was eye-opening to witness how the people of OLS sought to incorporate all these different styles, showing that all of them are now a part of their cultural heritage.
The content of these songs also differed, some focusing on themes of praise and thanksgiving (among them my personally favorite melody, āNebaza Musumba Wange,ā or āI thank you, my Shepherdā); others focusing on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus; others on sin and repentance; and others a recasting of the timeless songs of the liturgy.
One of the goals of this workshop was to preserve any music that was produced. So, a handheld recording device was used to capture the compositions as they were performed for the group, and handwritten lyrics were transcribed into a Microsoft Word document. Both were then transferred to SD cards that can be shared with all the congregations of the OLS, so that the entire church will be able to benefit from what was produced at the workshop.
OLS leaders have plans to take this project further. They want these composers to continue their work in producing new melodies and lyrics, focusing their talents on the various seasons of the church year, so that in time an entire OLS hymnbook might be produced and digitally recorded. Itās an ambitious project, but one they certainly have the talent to accomplish.
Through it all, we rejoice in the amazing gifts that God has given to his people. Throughout the ages, new songs have always been created to praise and glorify our God and teach people about his amazing deeds and love. The OLS may be singing some new songs to the Lord now, but theyāre also singing the same song that Godās people have always sungāChrist for us, and Christ in us. All glory and praise be to his name, in whatever melody you sing it!
Written by Rev. Benjamin Foxen, world missionary on the One Africa Team.
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SAVE THE DATE
Save the date for Taste of Missions, a celebration of gospel outreach and the commissioning of new home and world missionaries. The event begins with a special worship service, where weāll joyfully send these missionaries to share Christās love around the globe.
Following the service, enjoy ethnic cuisine from mission fields, connect with fellow attendees, and hear firsthand accounts from missionaries about their work. Explore mission displays, participate in interactive activities, and ask questions during a panel discussion for deeper insights into the joys and challenges of mission work.
The worship service is free and open to all. Registration is $15 per person for those who wish to receive food tickets. Children 13 and under attend for free. If you canāt attend in person, tune into the livestream and join us virtually! Registration will open in March 2025.