ITEAMS MINISTRY UPDATES | DAVID SCHROEDER

Greetings from Elgin, Illinois, and from sixty nations around the world where our ministry is flourishing under the blessing of God!

In May, ITeams held its annual International Leadership Forum (ILF) in Costa Rica. Over 200 ministry team leaders gathered for training, inspiration and fellowship. Pastor Tim Dyer from Tazmania was the primary teacher, and I'm sure all of our team leaders learned new ways of handling problems and responding to opportunities.

During the inspiration sessions we heard from dozens of leaders about what God is doing in their respective ministries. Here are a few highlights -

IRAQ
Despite the war in Iraq, ITeams workers continue to visit the safer areas of the country to share the love and peace of Christ with the Iraqi people. Many are coming to faith and being discipled.

CAMBODIA
While the "killing fields" time is over, thousands are still being brutalized through the human trafficking industry. ITeams is commissioning people to provide recovery, restoration, education and job training, especially for the children who are most at risk.

CENTRAL ASIA
The former Soviet states have populations that are torn between the atheistic ideology of communism and their more indigenous religion of Islam. Many are not satisfied with either, so our teams who work through NGOs (non-government organizations) have the opportunity to present a new life and a new creation through Jesus Christ.

REFUGEE MINISTRIES
Nearly 40 million people are on the "refugee highway" in dozens of countries. These unwanted aliens are some of the poorest and hopeless people on the earth. ITeams has about 20 strong teams scattered in many nations, bringing comfort, help and hope. Many new disciples are being made, as these folks respond to the love of Jesus.

LATIN AMERICA
A huge youth movement is occurring in South and Central America. Through our Latin America Multiplication Center in Costa Rica, and Youth World in Quito, ITeams is training hundreds of Latino young people to disciple their generation.

CHINA
Our dozen teams in China are placed strategically where there is little witness for Christ. Most of them are using English-as-a-second-language to build relationships and help people hear the gospel.

EAST AFRICA
New areas of ministry have opened up in Zambia, Uganda, and Kenya--and God is calling ITeams missionaries into those fields. From digging wells to teaching at Bible colleges, our workers are expressing the love of Jesus in ways that minister for now and for long-term. Sudan and Rwanda are next on our agenda.

WESTERN EUROPE
Many people in Western Europe do not see the gospel as good news but as an old, worn out fantasy that enlightened people do not believe. But even the most hardened are softened when they see practical love, witness vibrant worship and face the hopelessness of their existence. While church planting is not our primary strategy in Western Europe, community demand recently caused some of our missionaries to start a church in France, of all places!

PEOPLE FROM EVERYWHERE GOING EVERYWHERE
This is one of our values, and we saw it being lived out at the ILF. Our Global Refugee Ministry leader captured the experience when he said,
"It was great to pray with believers from all over the world. I saw a Filipino serving in Japan pray over a Nigerian who is a U.S. citizen and married to a Filipina with whom he serves Somali refugees in Kenya. I started praying with my eyes open after I realized what was happening!"

Returning from the ILF with all this encouraging news about ITeams worldwide, we plunged right in to prepare for ACCESS - our training program that equips missionaries being sent from the U.S. This summer, we hosted 28 missionaries-in-training, who will be serving God in a dozen countries. They are a high-quality group who are being sharpened by the good training they are receiving. We are very excited that the founder of ITeams, Kevin Dyer, is teaching one of the courses.

As you can see, new opportunities for ministry are opening up like never before! We invite you to learn more how you can be part of it. Check out the Where We Serve section of this website for more information. We've also made it easy to contribute financially to any of our ministries worldwide... visit our GIVE page for more details.

- David Schroeder, President - ITeams USA