Jake Friesen was raised in a home where the Bible and church were not part of his upbringing. He was taught to do the best he could and hope that he would make it to Heaven somehow. He had a lot of fear in his heart about going to Hell. At the age of thirty, someone shared the Gospel of Jesus Christ with him. Telling him how Jesus had paid his sin debt by dying on the cross, and by trusting in Him, he could be saved from Hell. On October 29, 2000, Jake trusted Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour. He joined Pembina Valley Baptist Church shortly after that. Jake served in the youth department for nine years, and also graduated from Canadian Baptist Bible College.

In 2010, Jake and Anna surrendered to the call of God to be missionaries to the Mennonites of Mexico. Both Jake and Anna were born into Mennonite families and spoke the Low German language fluently. In 2013, after two years of deputation, they moved to Mexico. They served with missionaries Will and Cindy Klassen for five years.

During their fifth year in Mexico, God directed their hearts to CanAmera, through much prayer and fasting, and counsel from their pastor, Jake and Anna moved back to Manitoba, where Jake now serves as General Director of CanAmera Baptist Missions International.