Photos of Kid's Weekend with Church in La Piedad

December Update

We wish you and yours a blessed Christmas and New Year. We believe God has blessed us and moved among us in many ways since our last report. We want to mention a few things for your prayers and thanksgiving.

The Churches – A Kid’s Weekend in La Piedad – Planting Seeds

The fellowship of house churches seems to be doing well right now—each with stories of growth and trials. We pray for the churches in La Piedad, Jocotan, Cerro de Cuatro, Jardines del Valle and Mariano Otero—we pray that each of these groups will grow deeper and stronger in their discipleship—that each will discover opportunities for incarnational mission. We pray that God will open doors for the planting of new churches.

One of the best things about this month was getting to help the Camarena family in their mission in La Piedad, Michoacan. Each of the house churches around us look for ways to flesh out Jesus in their specific neighborhoods. Martin and Rosa have always recognized the many children that live around them and that are connected to their lives in some way or other. They believe their mission involves reaching out and loving these kids. Two weeks ago, we got to help them begin what they hope will be an ongoing mission effort to these kids—25 kids and 7 adults participated in this first weekend. If you want to read more about this weekend and see some photos, you can read this reflection that I wrote earlier. We are thankful for God’s work in the Camarena family. We pray that God will guide and bless them and the other churches as they all seek to live into God’s mission in their neighborhoods.

Missionary Retreat

We were blessed to participate in the Mexico Missionary Retreat in Zihuatanejo early last month. 91 missionaries from across Mexico shared in fellowship, conversation, prayer and fun. We are thankful to the missionary families in Tlalpan for organizing this event. We are also thankful to the Sunset Church of Christ for sending Jay and Sherry Jarboe to share teaching with the group. We pray for the mission works across central Mexico: Mexico City, Tlalpan, Cuernavaca, Toluca, Leon, Guadalajara, Morelia and Lazaro Cardenas.

Upcoming Partners’ Meeting

We want to remind you of the upcoming Guadalajara Multiple Church Planting Project Partners’ Meeting which will take place the weekend of February 8-11, 2008. We continue to pray that it will be a useful time to consider and celebrate our partnership in God’s mission.

You should have already received information regarding this weekend and how to reserve your place. Please remember the deadline for registration is January 15, 2008. Let me know if you have any questions.

Family News – Planning to be in Texas for Christmas

We are excited to spend this Christmas with our family in Texas. With Ceci’s adoption and operations, it has been three years since we were with our family at Christmas. We plan to be there December 23-January 3. Please pray for travel safety. Ceci has never seen snow—you know what she is praying!

I’ll stop for now. As always, we thank God for your partnership in our life and mission.

November Update

We trust you are well today. We are blessed—can’t believe it is already November. A lot has happened since our last report. We want to mention a few things for your prayers and thanksgiving.

Family News

The school year seems to be going well for the girls. Morgan and Natali are in their second year on the Lincoln School girls’ volleyball team—they recently won their 1st game (I mean their first game in these 2 years!). Needless to say it was a day of great celebration. Ceci is also doing well—she loves school and is learning so much! She has several friends among our neighbors. She also swims twice each week and can now swim the entire length of the pool without help. We are thankful to God for our girls. We pray for their ongoing health and spiritual formation.

Chadd’s mom, Sandra Schroeder came for a visit a couple of weeks ago. We had a great time—even took a couple of days to travel to the nearby state of Michoacan. We thank God for supportive family!

Churches

We thank God for his obvious work among the churches lately. The group in La Piedad seems to have come through a crisis and is doing well again. God has obviously shown his power in delivering Martin and his family from the bondage of addictions again (Thanks for prayers—answered prayers!). They seem to be stronger than ever—committed to the Lord and to one another in a deeper way. They especially desire to minister to children and youth around them…are seeking for their home to be a “safe place” for children who suffer at the hands of their parents who are addicts. Please pray for ongoing transformation in the life of this group of people. Pray for more workers from the harvest around them. Pray for the children and youth around them who have not yet chosen drugs and alcohol. Nancy is working with Martin and Rosa to plan a “kids’ weekend” on November 17-18. We are excited about what God might do during this time. We are also excited about the idea of helping the house churches reach out in simple ways to the kids living around them. Please pray for this time.

We are also thankful to God for his work among the church in Jocotan. Jose Julian and his wife Liliana decided to be immersed into Christ a couple of Sundays ago. Members from a couple of the other churches accompanied them to a waterfall outside of the city for a special time of celebration and sharing of life as they took this new step. Please pray for this couple and the community of faith that is growing deeper and larger in Jocotan.

Missionary Retreat

Missionaries from several of the cities in Mexico are traveling this week to Zihuatenjeo for our annual Mexico Missionary Retreat. Several of our families from Guadalajara will be joining missionaries who work in cities such as Cuernavaca, Mexico City, Morelia, Leon, and Lazaro Cardenas. We expect that it will be a good time for fellowship and renewal. Please pray for travel safety—and for the time we spend together.

Upcoming Partners’ Meeting

Finally, we are praying for the upcoming Guadalajara Multiple Church Planting Project Partners’ Meeting which will take place the weekend of February 8-11, 2008. The theme of this event will be Discovering the Story of God’s Kingdom in Guadalajara. We are praying that it will be a useful time to consider and celebrate our partnership in God’s mission. We pray that God will prepare us for this time together. We pray that there will be a good representation from our supporters.

Also – You are invited to participate with us in this event. The following are some of the specific details that need your attention if you are interested:

Some details we can pass on to you now:

• The cost for the meeting will be $125 USD per person. This will include 6 meals (Friday night through Sunday lunch), transportation, coffee and snacks, printed material, conference room, etc. It does not include hotel rooms, souvenirs and meals after Sunday lunch.
• Like the last couple of meetings, housing and group meetings will take place at the Hotel Posada Guadalajara. Rooms with 2 double beds are available for $50 USD per night. The cost is the same for 1-4 people. Your specific cost will depend on how many people you want in your room.
• We plan for the meetings to begin on Friday evening at 6:00 pm. Arrival time would need to be in the early afternoon on Friday (or earlier). We will plan a “wrap-up” session on Sunday evening followed by a trip to the Tlaquepaque market on Monday morning. Preferably, we would request that you postpone your departure until Monday afternoon. For those who must leave on Sunday, the latest Sunday flight would work but you would miss the evening wrap-up and the time together on Monday. Of course, we would welcome you to arrive a few days early or stay a few days later as well!
• We would like to hear from you as soon as possible if you are planning to attend. Please let us know two things. Who is planning to come? How many hotel rooms will you need? This news ASAP will help us in our planning.
• We also ask that by January 15, 2008 you send $125 per person to our team account. The address is: Amherst Church of Christ, 106 West 8th Street, Amherst, Texas, 79312. Please make checks payable to “Amherst Church of Christ” and mark “Partners’ Meeting.” These funds will allow us to make the final plans for the weekend.
  
  
  I’ll stop now. As always, we thank God for your partnership in our life and mission.
  
  Praying to the Lord of the Harvest,
  
  Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder
  

September Update

We hope you and yours are well. It has been too long since our last report­much has happened. We want to mention a few things for your thanksgiving and prayers.

Trip to Texas

We recently returned from our summer trip to Texas. It was a great time to spend time with family and friends­to also spend time with some of the congregations that partner with us in our mission in Mexico. We made missions presentations, taught classes and/or preached at Amherst, Crescent Park in Littlefield, Comanche Trail in Amarillo, Petersburg, Greenlawn in Lubbock, and Sunset. We were blessed to eat meals with many of you­to be blessed by your hospitality and with many good conversations. We thank God for good friends and family!

Family News

The girls have all had birthdays in the last couple of months­Ceci turned 6 in June; Morgan and Natali turned 14 in July. Classes began a couple of weeks ago and we are all getting back into the school routine.

Churches

Please pray for the fellowship of churches in Guadalajara. It seems that the Evil One has especially been on the prowl in the last few weeks. So many good things have happened in the past months: baptisms, evidence of maturity, growth in leadership, clarity and follow-through with mission projects in each of the churches. However, there have also been many attacks lately: sickness, return to addictions and sinful habits, discouragement, conflict, doubt. We are praying for the churches and their leaders: Mariano Otero, Jardines del Valle, Cerro del Cuatro, Jocotán and La Piedad. We are praying that the Evil One will not have his way with these young churches.

Several of us who focus on church planting plan to go away for a retreat this weekend, September 7-9. We expect it to be an important time for prayer, evaluation and discernment. Please pray for God’s presence and guiding in this time…that this time will be used for good as we seek to move forward.

As always, we thank God for your partnership in our life and mission.

Praying to the Lord of the Harvest,

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder

"Immanuel" in La Piedad, Michoacan

As followers of Jesus we believe that the local church is an expression of the body of Christ—that each community of faith should envision itself as a fresh incarnation of Jesus Christ—an “Immanuel” in a specific locale. It has been especially fun to walk along with one of these local expressions of Jesus Christ in the city of La Piedad, Michoacan.

For most of their lives, Martín and Rosa Camarena—along with their children Martín, Jesús, Luis, Erica and Isaac—experienced the dark side of life in Mexico. They lived the stories of alcohol and drug addiction, abuse, violence, trauma, jail, hunger, fear and hopelessness. Then, they began to recognize the Lord’s presence and activity among them and his desire to save and transform their lives. Through a series of events, God caused our paths to cross and over the past couple of years we have all begun to catch a glimpse of God’s vision to live with and minister to the people of La Piedad through his people there.

Their simple home is being transformed into a safe place of laughter, praise and prayer for dozens of kids, friends, and extended family who live around them. Drawing on their own experience with drugs, alcohol and abuse, Martín and Rosa move among and minister to various recovery groups and dozens of people who desperately need the freedom they have found in Christ. A couple of months back, their older sons Jesús and Luis were baptized into Christ. Though they see God’s work through them in their neighborhood, this small church also lives connected to a larger fellowship of simple bodies of Christ in their region.

Immanuel…God with us…In flesh and blood. May God’s kingdom and presence continue to grow and multiply in our world!

Truama Seminar

This past May 25-27, we spent a great weekend with Hugo and Sandra Monroy. Originally from Columbia, this couple now lives and ministers in New York City. Out of their experience and ministry to trauma victims—refugees, victims of disasters, war zones, abuse, etc.—they have developed an equipping ministry for leaders and workers who are also ministering among those who have experienced high levels of trauma and brokenness.

The time was great for a small group of 25 or so of us—Mexican leaders and missionaries from Guadalajara, La Piedad and Mexico City! It was a great time of fellowship and equipping—hopefully an important time to be drawn more deeply into mission among hurting people.

May Update

We hope everything is well with you and yours. Much has happened since our last report. We want to mention a few of these things for your thanksgiving and prayers.

Family News

The girls are doing well—the summer break from school doesn’t begin until the last of June—they think they are ready! Ceci is doing swim therapy 3 times a week right now and is becoming quite a swimmer. Several weeks back she won a medal for completing the 1st competence level. She (and us) was very proud! We are thankful for her growth.

Nancy and Ceci continue their “Moms and Kids” English group with some of our neighbors. Although Nancy insists that she is really not an English teacher, the neighbors show up every time—and go on and on about how their children’s English has improved over the past months. We believe God has provided the opportunity and grace to mix with and form friendships with neighbors. We are thankful.

I guess I should mention that I got bit by a dog a couple of weeks ago. About five minutes into an early morning run I met up with a big dog that had a thing for my thumb! Due to the encounter, I spent several hours in the ER, took several stitches and continue to nurse a pretty decent wound! Thankfully, the dog had been vaccinated and there has been no serious infection.

Churches

Lots of good things are happening among the churches—of course there are always challenges as well. Please pray specifically for the churches and forming churches in Jardines del Valle, Mariano Otero, Jocotan, Cerro de Cuatro, Cd. Granja, Las Pintas and La Piedad.

We’re especially encouraged to hear of new groups being started and of incarnational outreach into new areas. Gerardo and Carola Garcia continue to move among families in crisis…because of their daughter Meloni’s diabetes, they have many opportunities to minister to other families who are dealing with the recent discovery that their child has this disease. Both Gerardo and Carola regularly teach and give counseling to these families. Gerardo has entered a program through the hospital system to prepare himself to minister to those who have terminal illness (and their families) We are encouraged and hopeful as a growing number among us are discovering paths to incarnate Christ and minister among groups of people for whom God seems to have prepared them. Pray with us that God will increase this number, clarify an incarnational vision and lead us into the harvest.

The last weekend in March there was a retreat for the fellowship of house churches. The church in Mariano Otero was the host and the conversation was focused on “The New Testament and the Formation of Healthy Families of Jesus.” At least six of the groups were represented and it was a great time for fellowship, fun and Bible study. Three men were baptized into Christ: Javier Luna, Jesús Camarena and Luis Camarena. We are praying for the ongoing growth and formation of these three men and for their influence in the communities of people around them.

Mexico

Please continue to pray for Mexico—for God’s transforming work at all levels. As you’ve surely read and heard, as part of Felipe Calderon’s new presidency, there has been increased pressure by the government on the drug cartels in Mexico. Partly as a result of this, there have been 900+ drug related executions already in 2007. It seems that the cartels are giving a clear message: you better not mess with us. Everyday the headlines tell of police, military and high level leaders being killed. Yet common Mexicans seem to be in favor of Calderon’s strong stance—the polls show Calderon’s popularity at over 70%. We pray for God’s clear intervention…for protection for innocent people. We continue to pray for change.

As always, we thank God for your partnership in our life and mission.

Praying to the Lord of the Harvest,

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder

March Update

We trust you and yours are well. Wow! Time is flying lately. The winter coolness has passed and we are in full spring in Guadalajara. Much has happened since our last report. We want to mention a few things for your thanksgiving and prayers.

Family News

Ceci has recovered well from the surgery in December. God has really blessed us with excellent physical therapy. One of our coworkers, Kim Rush was driving a friend home in a rather poor neighborhood on the outskirts of the city back in January when she unexpectedly came upon a large physical therapy complex. Juntos por un Caminar offers several types of therapy (horse, swimming, conductive, etc). The therapists and doctors are extremely competent—and they are great with Ceci. Her progress has been excellent over the past two months. We thank God for her continued growth and healthiness.

The girls are ready for the Holy Week break in a couple of weeks (2 weeks of break from school). Though we didn’t get to see family over the holidays, we were blessed with a visit from Jason and Kara Schroeder (and the cousins!) in February. The girls took several days off of school—lots of fun!

Churches

There is much to be excited about among the churches. In early January, three more were baptized into Christ from the Mariano Otero church and the church in Jocotán. There are exciting things going on in each of the groups—along with challenges of course. Please pray for the ongoing transformation in the lives of Omar, Gerardo and Adriana. Pray for God’s power and direction for each of the churches—pray that we would all follow Jesus.

One of the highlights for us lately has been the growing fellowship between the Mexican leaders of the various house churches. Since October, the emerging leadership of six different groups has been coming together on a Sunday evening each month for fellowship, prayer and study. Next weekend, one of the churches will host an all-church retreat at a site outside of the city. We are praying that it will be a great time for fellowship and unity. We plan to focus our study and conversation on “The New Testament and the Formation of Healthy Families of Jesus.” Please pray for this time together—pray especially for the monthly fellowship of leaders, for their growth and for the communities of faith they care for.

Mexico

President Felipe Calderon completed his “First 100 Days” of office this past week. You may remember that his margin of victory was razor thin…that he came into office amid chaos and uncertainty on several fronts. Many analysts are pleasantly surprised with his leadership and strong show of force in confronting organized crime—yet they point out that many challenges continue to confront his administration and the Mexican people. We are praying for Mexican leaders. We are praying for healthy change in Mexico.

As always, we thank God for our partnership with you. May God bless us all to know and obey him more fully. May God’s Kingdom come with more fullness and power!

Praying to the Lord of the Harvest,

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder

Nancy is taking a phototography class--this is a Catholic Church in our Colonia that she shot a couple of nights ago. More to come later--maybe!

Update on Ceci

Hello All

We are hoping that you are all well this Christmas season. We are thanking God that all is well and peaceful in the Schroeder household. Ceci’s surgery was a great success. She is laying on the couch singing songs and very comfortable. Thank you all for your prayers and e-mails of support. They are always appreciated. It is cool here in Guadalajara. Nice weather for this season. The girls are finishing up for the Christmas vacation with service projects at an orphanage here in Guadalajara and a movie day on Monday. We are wishing for you all a time of tranquility and reflection for the New Year to come. May God be powerfully among us.

For the Schroeders,

Nancy

December Update

We hope and pray that you and yours are doing well in these days—that you are feeling God’s blessings during the holidays. We always thank God for your partnership with us in prayer. Like always, the last month has been full of blessings, answered prayers, and new opportunities and challenges. As we consider the last month, we want to mention a few things for your thanksgiving and prayers.

Family News

Our family is doing well. As it is in the US, the Christmas season of course is upon us in Mexico with decorations, shopping and posadas (Christmas parties). It seems that in Mexico—more so than in the States—the pace of life really slows down for 2 or 3 weeks. We plan to stay in Mexico again this Christmas—hopefully will spend good time with some of our coworkers and the members of a couple of the churches. The girls continue with school until December 20—they are counting the days! Of course, we will be thinking of our family and friends—plan to visit by telephone and internet a lot!

Tomorrow, December 14, Ceci is scheduled to have a follow-up operation on both of her hips. The doctors plan to remove the metal plates that were placed in her hips from last year’s operation. We expect that this operation won’t be nearly as big a deal as before—probably just one night in the hospital. Please pray for Ceci, for Dr. Salas and for us. We are praying that this operation goes smoothly and that Ceci will recover quickly.


Mexico Missionary Retreat

We believe the Mexico Missionary Retreat last month was a great success. 14 families and at least 16 singles met together over the Thanksgiving Holiday (November 22-26) at a Mountain Retreat center a couple of hours outside of Guadalajara. Workers representing mission points in Mexico City, Cuernavaca, Toluca, León, Lázaro Cardenas, Morelia and Guadalajara enjoyed the time of fellowship, fun and renewal. We are thankful to God for the renewed relationships, for the sense of unity among this group, and for the spiritual renewal that many of us experienced. Please continue to pray for these mission works across the central region of Mexico.


Answered Prayers/Additional Request

As you may remember, last month we asked you to pray for Rosa Camarena and the surgery she was to have to remove a tumor on her thyroid. We thank God for answered prayers! Contrary to their expectations, when they removed the tumor, the doctors found that it was not malignant! Martin and Rosa continue to minister among a growing house church in La Piedad, Michoacan. Both Martin and Rosa traveled to Guadalajara this past weekend to visit us and to participate in the monthly meeting of church leaders. It was great to hear Rosa tell of God’s work in her life and her own growth through all of this—to see how the fellowship of Mexican leaders are responding to one another with love and support.

We also ask that you pray especially for Luis Bernal’s father Alfredo. Luis is a young single who has been working with us for several months to begin a new group of disciples in and around his folk’s home in the Las Pintas Colonia of Guadalajara. Alfredo suffers from diabetes and is not doing well. In the last few weeks, as his health has declined he seems to be turning more and more to the Lord. We are praying that God works in Alfredo’s life to continue to draw him to Jesus. We are praying for healing. We are praying that God will use Luis (and us) to serve his family during this time.

Also, please pray for our missionary coworkers in Guadalajara and across the region who will be traveling during the holiday season.

Again, we thank God for our partnership with you. We are thankful for your prayers—for the concern and solidarity you communicate to us. May God continue to bless you richly! We wish you a blessed Christmas.

Praying with you to the Lord of the harvest,

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder

November Update

We trust this letter finds you and yours well today. For us, the last few weeks have been full of life and ministry, blessings and challenges. As we think about this time, we want to mention a few things for your prayers and thanksgiving…

Family News

We have felt blessed by God in many ways lately. Ceci is almost always happy with life; she likes kindergarten and especially loves it that almost every week someone has a birthday party! A year has passed since her double hip surgery in 2005. She continues with physical therapy a couple of times each week and is walking better all the time; we are planning for her to have a follow-up surgery in December to remove the metal plates from both of her hips. Please pray that this operation will go smoothly and that Ceci will recover quickly. Morgan and Natali seem to be doing well in their second year of Jr. High (Secundaria). They recently joined their school’s girls’ volleyball team and seem to be having a good time with practices and weekly games against other schools. The girls’ grandmother, Sandra Schroeder, along with their cousin Meagan visited us in Guadalajara this past week. We all had a great visit.

One of God’s great blessings in our lives has been the ongoing growth of the girls in their relationship with God, in their understanding of and participation in God’s kingdom and mission in the world. This past Sunday, November 5 was a special day as Morgan and Natali were baptized at a waterfall outside of the city. They were blessed to be surrounded that day by others who were also being baptized, good friends, fellow-missionaries, Mexican brothers and sisters, along with their grandmother and cousin from Texas. We praise God. Please continue to pray for Morgan, Natali and Ceci and their formation as followers of Jesus.


Baptisms and Evidence of Growth

This past Sunday was a great day of fellowship and celebration—a great day to see evidence of God’s faithfulness and the fruit of God’s kingdom. Almost 100 people representing at least 5 growing house churches met together for a time of worship, food and fellowship. Five people from 3 different groups were baptized: Morgan Schroeder, Natali Schroeder, Luis Bernal, Alejandro Zendejas and Angelina (not sure of last name). Besides the obvious blessing of witnessing the new births, it was a special blessing to see the different churches fellowshipping together and encouraging one another. The groups represented were: Las Pintas, Mariano Otero, Jardines del Valle, Jocotan, and Cerro del Cuatro. There were also several visitors present who are not yet followers of Jesus. We praise and thank God for this fellowship of churches, for the diversity in this group, for the unity and Mexican leadership that was so clearly seen there. We pray that God will continue to move this group to maturity, that God will multiply followers of Jesus, churches of Jesus and fellowships of churches like this one.


Special Prayer Request for Church in La Piedad, Michoacan

The Lord seems to be continuing his work with the Camerena family in La Piedad, Michoacan. Martin and Rosa continue to incarnate Jesus among their family and friends. They also continue to work with a group of addicts and alcoholics from their city. In September, this group put together their first “Prevention Retreat” aimed at 10 to 16 year-olds who may be in danger of falling into Satan’s trap of drugs and alcohol. 18 young people attended this retreat along with 15-20 adults who hosted the retreat. Several of us from Guadalajara participated with them in this—it seemed to be a positive experience for the youth—a positive and learning experience for those who hosted the event. It seems that God is working in this group…that Martin and Rosa are being used by God in all of this. We continue to pray that God will lead the way for this group and that God will raise up more coworkers for Martin and Rosa from among their friends and family in La Piedad…

A few weeks ago, Rosa Camerena was diagnosed with a tumor on her thyroid. Rosa is scheduled to have the tumor removed tomorrow at a hospital in La Piedad. Please pray for Rosa’s healing and protection; pray for the doctors and nurses who will be helping her tomorrow; pray that the peace of God will be present with this family.


Upcoming Missionary Retreat

For the past several years, the missionaries working in Central Mexico have joined together in a “Mexico Missionary Retreat.” For the past couple of years it has taken place over the Thanksgiving Holiday. This year it is the Guadalajara Team’s turn to host the event. We are expecting 70-80 missionaries (families, kids, singles) from Mexico City, Toluca, Leon, Morelia, Lazaro Cardenas and Guadalajara to participate in this event November 22-25. Please pray that this will be a great time of fellowship, unity and mutual encouragement. Pray for travel safety. Continue to pray for the expansion of God’s Kingdom in this region. Pray with us to the Lord of the harvest that the Lord will raise up and multiply an army of Mexican workers for and from the harvest in Mexico.

As always, we thank God for you and your participation with us in God’s mission in Central Mexico.

May God bless you richly!

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder

August Update

We trust that you are well in these days. For us, the last few weeks have been full with the trip to Texas and ministry the last couple of weeks. As we think about the last few weeks, we want to mention a few things for your prayers and thanksgiving…

Texas Trip

Our trip to Texas was a great blessing. We spent good time with our family in the Lubbock area and Ceci got to know all of her aunts, uncles and cousins well—many of them for the first time. We had a great time showing her off and seeing her experience Texas culture and food for the first time. She was especially fond of corn dogs; we lost count of how many she had eaten at about 10! God was good to us in many ways.

We also spent time with most of the congregations that partner with us in Guadalajara. Chadd preached, taught and/or reported with the following congregations in July and early August: Amherst, Petersburg, Crescent Park in Littlefield, Comanche Trail in Amarillo, and Sunset in Lubbock. We also met with mission committees and spent good time around the tables of our Christian brothers and sisters. We were impressed with the love and interest in mission that mark all of these churches. As we told stories of God’s work in and through people in Central Mexico—of what we see God doing in these days, it was great to see how all of us felt encouraged and challenged. Again, we are thankful for God’s goodness and blessings!

Back to School!

The 2 ½ weeks since we’ve been back home seem to be mostly about getting back into school. Chadd was invited to teach a survey of the New Testament to 40-50 teachers during the teachers’ orientation at Lincoln School—the Christian school where Morgan and Natali are enrolled. God seemed to use the time for good in many ways. We had a great 5-day discussion regarding the New Testament, the role of Scripture in spiritual formation, and the practice of engaging Scripture for the purpose of formation. You may remember that Lincoln School is an interdenominational school that serves that larger Christian community in Guadalajara. We are praying that God will use this conversation for good in the lives of teachers and leaders from diverse churches all over this city. We pray to the Lord of the Harvest that He will raise up and multiply an army of Mexican workers for this city and beyond.

Morgan, Natali and Ceci all began school last week—Morgan and Natali began 8th grade; Ceci began kindergarten. After the first week, one of the girls commented that the first week wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be. I guess that’s good! We pray that God will use this year for good in their growth.

Addiction Prevention Retreat

As we’ve spent time the last few days catching up on news with our fellow missionary co-workers and the Mexican leaders of the different churches, we continue to hear stories of God’s work in Jardines del Valle, Mariano Otero, Cerro de Cuatro, Ciudad Granja, Jocotan, Las Pintas, La Piedad, and Tampico. We traveled last weekend to La Piedad to be with the Camarena family and the church that meets in their house. We continue to pray that God will work from these places to form vibrant churches of Jesus Christ. We also continue to pray for our coworkers in other cities across this region: Mexico City, Cuernavaca, Toluca, Morelia, Leon, Lazaro Cardenes to name a few.

Martin Camarena, one of the leaders around whom the young church in La Piedad, Michoacan seems to be forming is a recovering alcoholic and drug addict. You may remember that he and his wife, Rosa are very involved with a community of recovering addicts—that they see this group as part of their mission assignment. For the last couple of months this group has been thinking and praying about beginning an outreach to youth. They are especially interested in reaching young people who are “in danger” of following in their path of alcohol and drug addiction. Please pray for Martin and Rosa, and this group as they host a “Prevention Retreat” this weekend, September 2-3. Several of us from Guadalajara plan to join them this weekend as resource people and helpers. It looks like as many as 9-12 youth from GDL may join us to participate with many youth from the city of La Piedad. We are praying for Martin and Rosa and this band of God seekers…that God will use this mission to draw them closer to God and to one another. We are praying for youth who are in danger…that they will know God’s love for them and that there is a better way. We are praying that God will teach all of us…that we will be good listeners for what God may want to do with this mission.

Mexican Election Results and Political Chaos

As you probably know by now, the Mexican presidential election of July 2 has not been resolved yet. People are generally frustrated and uncertain as to what will come of this. We are praying for Mexico and that God will use these events for good change—for the coming of God’s Kingdom to the lives of Mexicans.

As always, we thank God for our partnership with you.

Blessings,

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder
Calz. De los Paraisos #51, Casa #12
011-523-33-629-2076

July Update

Please keep us in your prayers as we travel today! The last 10 days or so have been crazy with our plans to travel to Texas up and down. We drove to Mexico City on July 2 to present all of our documents to begin Ceci's immigration process and get an immigration card with the idea of traveling to see friends and family in Texas. We ran into problems--because we do not have plans to actually move to Texas in the near future, the immigration officials at the US Embassy advised us to seek a simple "tourist visa." This should have been good news, except that the waiting process is 3 or 4 months for this type of visa. However, because we are US citizens, they moved Ceci's appointment up and yesterday she was issued a 10-year tourist visa. We can work out immigration things later.

Please pray for us as we travel the next few days towards the Lubbock area. We hope to spend about 3 weeks with family and supporters. Hopefully, we will see many of you and will get to introduce our new daughter to you.

Blessings,

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali, and Ceci Schroeder

June Update

We trust that you and those around you are well. We are seeing that it has been almost 2 months since we wrote our last update! We did not intend for so much time to pass without writing. These weeks have been filled with life: some challenges and many blessings. As we think about the last few weeks we want to mention a few things for your prayers and thanksgiving to God.

Family News

Morgan and Natali finished 7th grade classes yesterday. Final exams are this next week, but the girls, due to their grades and attendance record, are exempt from all but one exam. They would say they "survived" 7th grade--probably all and all their most difficult year (relationships, adolescence, peer pressure, etc.). Natali says that it was like a roller coaster ride--one that she wouldn't buy the ticket to ride again. We are very proud of them and see them being formed into strong and faithful young ladies. Of course, we pray for their ongoing formation.

In our last update we told you that Ceci's adoption had become final. Since then, we've made two trips to Mexico city. Besides having her official adoption sentence, we now have her Mexican birth certificate with her new name: Cecilia Grace Schroeder Burris (two last names in Mexico--paternal and maternal). Last week we also got her Mexican Passport. With her past and abandonment, this is a big deal! We are now getting all of our documents together and translated into English so we can make application for Ceci to be recognized by the US Government as our family member. U.S. citizenship will come later, but this will allow us to travel with her to visit many of you along with our family in Texas. We are hoping to present all of this next week to Pedro Alonso, the I.N.S. officer at the American Embassy in Mexico City. If we are approved, we will be traveling to Texas by mid-July. We are praying for Pedro Alonso and the interview we will have with him in the next few days--that he will be helpful and kind--that we will be approved to be able to travel to the US. We are tired of working through all the red tape...but are thankful for Ceci and the blessing of being almost finished with the process! We are certainly learning alot!

Ministering Among Luke 10 Communities

We see God's ongoing work in and around Guadalajara and across central Mexico. Many of us continue to reflect on Luke 10 as a way to envision ourselves as "sent ones" who are going before Jesus into the neighborhoods, towns and cities where Jesus is planning to begin something new. Praying and knocking doors (usually figuratively), we are looking for a household (usually a network of family and their friends) that will invite us in to proclaim in word and deed the good news of Jesus and the Kingdom. Of course, our desire is to see some of these (all of them!) "households of peace" become vibrant churches of Jesus Christ from which Jesus and the Kingdom will continue to be proclaimed and incarnated among others in the immediate vicinity. One of our roles as missionary church planters is to help begin some of these groups as "sent ones," and then to continue ministering to clusters of churches as they learn to follow Jesus as his disciples.

The Schroeder family continues to focus attention on two such family groups. Please continue to pray for the Camarena family and the church that meets in their house in La Piedad, Michoacan. Martin and Rosa Camarena continue to minister among their family members and among of addicts and their codependant family members. This past weekend, they helped lead a retreat for alcoholics and ministered to at least 20 people. We are praying that the Lord of the Harvest will raise up more workers from this group to partner with Martin and Rosa. We are praying for Martin's and Rosa's continued trust in Jesus and for their growth and transformation.

The other group that we are working with lives near and meets in the house of Luis Bernal and his mother, Rosario in the Las Pintas Colonia here in GDL. Among this group we envision ourselves still in the early stages of entering their "household." Chadd is mentoring Luis. The group is very diverse and most everyone is having their first experiences with Bible reading and contact with serious followers of Jesus. Most all have been formed by Mexican Catholic traditions and much superstition. In one of our recent group conversations, the group began working through their beliefs and practices regarding the Catholic and local Saints. We heard numerous stories of their fears and experiences with local saints/powers like the "niño de cacahuate" and the "niño de palomitas." At this point we are trying to help them gain confidence in reading the Bible for themselves. While listening to their diverse stories and accepting their hospitality, we are trying to speak of and model a faith that is Christ-centered and connected with scripture. Please pray for the Las Pintas group, for Luis Bernal and his growth as a servant leader. Pray that Jesus Christ and the Kingdom would truely come to this Colonia.

Our fellow workers in Guadalajajara and central Mexico are living similar experiences. To name a few: since our last update, the group of Christians that live in Cerro de Cuatro (another area of GDL) has begun thinking of themselves as a young church. We are praying for this young group, and for Gerardo and Martin as they help the group in their growth. We are also praying for Tim and Kim Rush as they have recently begun to work among a new Luke 10 community living in San Juan de Ocotan (outskirts of GDL) and another nearby colonia.

Also, the church in Mariano Otero celebrated three baptisms since our last update: Alfredo and Susana Garcia, and Salvador Jimenez. We are praying for the maturity of the church in Mariano Otero, for Joe and Elaine Pruett as they help this church, and for these young disciples. The church in Jardines del Valle is having many new opportunities for growth and outreach lately.

We pray that the Lord of the Harvest will continue to raise up and multiply workers with similar stories in the cities of Cuernavaca, Mexico City, Toluca, Morelia, Leon, Lazaro Cardenas, Tampico, Tlalpan, La Piedad, and Aguascalientes. We are praying that God will raise up and connect a band of Mexican workers who will be committed to seeing the Kingdom truely come to this region. We are also praying for Hispanics, Latinos, Mexicans who live in the U.S....are praying for workers and for the spread of the Kingdom among this group.

Mexican Presidential Elections

You are probably aware that Mexico will choose its next president next Sunday, July 2. We are praying for this process--that God will work in these things also to bring about good for the Mexican people. Most sources point to an extremely close decision between two men with what seem to be radically different positions. I found a recent video clip from the Washington Post that describes the situation from one perspective. This link should take you there if you are interested: http://blog.washingtonpost.com/mexicovotes/2006/06/obrador_profile_and_campaign_v.html

Most of all, keep this in your prayers this week.

As always, we thank God for our partnership with you. Hopefully, we will see many of you in July/August.

Blessings,

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder

April Update

We trust that you and those around you are well. The last few weeks have been filled with normal life and many blessings. As we think about them we want to mention a few things for your prayers and thanksgiving to God.

Family Update

We are still waiting on news regarding the finalization of Ceci's adoption. We've been in communication with our lawyer and social worker in Mexico City--they assure us that everything is going well and that the adoption should be finalized very soon. We are still hopeful that we can get things together in order to make a trip to Texas in July with Ceci. Once the adoption is finalized, we must apply for and be issued a new birth certificate for her. This will allow us to apply for her Mexican passport afterwhich we must apply for a U.S. visa for her to travel with us this summer. Please pray for this process.

We are very excited that Ceci has begun to walk again following her double hip operation last fall. The last few weeks have shown huge strides (pardon the pun!) in this area. She is able to walk 20 or 30 feet without falling--its still alot of work for her but we are thankful for God's healing and strengthening of her legs. We continue to pray that she will be walking and running in the months to come! I'm thankful for Nancy and the diligent work she puts into Ceci's therapy and exercises.

All three of the girls are out of school now for the Semana Santa (Holy Week) break. In Mexico, the week leading up to Easter is called Semana Santa and the week after Easter is called Semana Pascua. Most all schools take both weeks as an extended vacation--a kind of mixture between a religious holiday and "spring break." The girls have already been out of school for 10 days and still have another week. They love it! Nancy mom and aunt are coming for a visit tomorrow and will be here for over a week. We are thankful for family and the blessing of a visit from them!

Continuing Work with Two "Luke 10" Communities

In addition to mentoring/coaching several Mexican and American church planters, our family continues to work out of two households which we believe are growing to become vibrant house churches. The Camarena Family in La Piedad, Michoacan is growing stronger in their discipleship and their understanding of mission. For the past couple of months our family has spent every other Sunday with this family with two goals. First, we want to help them as they grow in their walk with the Lord. We are especially focusing on helping them to hear and obey God's word as they learn to read the Bible. We are using a simple tool called "Life Transformation Groups" which allows them to develop three key Christian practices: weekly reading of Scripture, regular confession and honesty regarding sin, and evangelistic prayer for specific people around them. Our second goal with this family is to help them envision their household as the beginnings of mission activity in their neighborhood and beyond...to function as a simple church with a local mission. We are participating with them in this when we are there, helping them to reach out to other family and friends, and coaching them and modeling how a simple New Testament church might function. We were especially blessed this weekend as 5 members of the Camarena family spent the Easter weekend as guests in our home in Guadalajara--this was the first time that we were able to show them hospitality in our home. They traveled back to La Piedad yesterday. Please continue to pray for Martin and Rosa Camarena and for the dozens of people who are being directly influenced by God's Kingdom as it comes more fully to their lives. Pray that the Lord of the Harvest will raise up more workers from La Piedad who would participate with them in God's mission.

We are also encouraged by a new group that has been forming in the Las Pintas Colonia in the southeast section of Guadalajara. Luis Bernal and his mother Rosario have opened their home recently. We believe that this is a "Luke 10"-like opportunity and we are being invited in to the household (other family members, neighbors, friends) to proclaim Jesus and the Kingdom of God in word and deed. Last Saturday (the 4th time the group has met) evening 18 adults and children spent several hours reading the Bible, praising God, praying, telling stories of God's work in their lives and talking about what they believe God wants them to do as followers of Jesus in their neighborhood. We continue to focus on teaching, mentoring and coaching Luis and Rosario as this group forms around their home. We are praying that God will transform this group of seekers into a vibrant New Testament church in the days to come. We are praying for the neighborhood around them and for the many who are being directly influenced by God's work in these people. We are also praying to the Lord of the Harvest that he will raise up more like-minded workers from Las Pintas who will join this group to participate in the mission of Jesus.

Odds and Ends

In mid-March (March 12-18) we were blessed to host a University group from the Sunset Church of Christ in Lubbock. We felt encouraged by their fresh perspective and their genuine interest in God's work in and around our lives. Besides good conversation and encouragement, they spent several hours prayer-walking and serving in some of the neigborhoods where we hope to find new Luke 10 households to enter with the gospel of Jesus. As a result of God's work in this group and specifically in the lives of Cory and Toni Burns, it seems that a new family is opening their door for the Burns to enter for Bible study, prayer and ministry. Please pray for the household of Javier and Rosario. We are praying that the Kingdom of God will come to this entire household--that a new church would be formed from their house in the Ciudad Granja Colonia.

With the visit of University students from Lubbock, the Lord seems to have awakened in a few of us a desire to pray for the university campuses in Guadalajara. Please join us as we pray that the Lord of the Harvest would raise workers for and from these campuses.

Please continue to pray for our coworkers and similar activity and stories in neighborhoods, Colonias and cities in and around Guadalajara. Some of these include: San Sebastian, Mariano Otero, Jardines del Valle, Cerro del Cuatro, Chapalita, Aguascalientes, Tepic, Residencial Moctezuma, La Floresta and San Pedro. Pray also for other missionary coworkers who are working in Mexico City, Tlalpan, Cuernavaca, Morelia, Toluca, Lazaro Cadenas, Leon, and other cities across Mexico. Pray to the Lord of the Harvest that he will raise up and multiply workers from the harvest...that a Kingdom movement would truely ignite and spread like wildfire!

We thank God for your support and ministry to us in prayer.

Blessings,

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder

March Update

We hope you and yours are well. The last month has seemed to fly quickly with normal life and ministry along with a couple of special visits from Texas. We were blessed with a week-long visit from Chadd's parents in mid-February. Then, at the end of the month, we were blessed with a visit from Bob and Sandy Jackson and Iris Sneed (Al came down with the flu and had to cancel at the last minute) from our sponsoring congregation, the Sunset Church of Christ. As we reflect on this month, we want to mention a few things for your specific thanksgiving and prayer.

Family - Ceci's Adoption - Jr. High Girls

After waiting several months on the paperwork, Chadd and Nancy traveled last week with Ceci to Mexico City where we registered Ceci and were given her original birth certificate. Because of her situation, she was never registered as an infant and did not have a birth certificate. This caused the adoption process to be placed on hold. With this document in hand we are being told that Ceci's adoption should be finalized within 2 or 3 weeks (We'll see--but at least they are saying soon)! When the adoption is final, we will be issued a new birth certificate with her new apellido (last name). We will then be able to begin working on a United States Visa so she can make a trip to Texas later this year. Please thank God for this blessing and pray that the rest of the process will move along quickly and smoothly. Please pray also for the healing of Ceci's legs--that she will walk soon! We are praying that God will continue to use all of this to open doors for Kingdom growth in new areas.

Morgan and Natali are doing well--right in the middle of 7th grade with all the fun (please hear a little bit of sarcasm here) of being a Jr. High girl! We are praying that God will continue to form them into godly women--that He will help them navigate difficult times-- that He will use adolescent trials for good.

Nancy continues to work with Morgan and Natali as they form a spiritual formation group for girls. Morgan and Natali, along with two of their friends from school Sofia and Priscila meet together every two weeks. It is generally a time for eating together, Bible study and prayer, and discussion of some of the real issues facing jr. high girls. It seems that God has put on Nancy's heart a burden for girls in this age group. We are praying that God will bless and lead this group of girls in their formation...that He will lead them to reach out to others.

La Piedad, Michoacan

We are thankful for good news from La Piedad, the Camarena family and God's work in their lives. Since our last update, three visits have been made to La Piedad. We see evidence that the young house church that is based in their home is on the road to health again. Martin has remained sober for over 6 weeks--he and Rosa have recommitted and shown follow-through in their walk with Jesus--they continue to grow stronger and are beginning to envision again how God may use their family/home as a strategic base of operation for Kingdom expansion in their city. Bob and Sandy Jackson accompanied us on a visit there a couple of weeks back--God seemed to use the time for mutual encouragement. We plan to travel there this weekend. We are thanking God for His recent work in their lives. We are praying that God will continue to heal the wounds in their family, that He will show them how to incarnate Jesus in their neighborhood, and that He will use all of this to see many vibrant churches planted in and around La Piedad. We are praying that God will use us to work from this household...to teach and coach this group as they move toward maturity.

Entering Into a "House of Peace" in the Las Pintas Colonia

For well over a year we have been daily praying the prayer of Luke 10:2 and reflecting on this passage as a way to envision ourselves as we follow the Lord into mission in Guadalajara. Praying this prayer and its context in Luke has led us to look for God's answer in people who would open their home to us and the proclamation of the gospel--these "people of peace" are welcoming us and turning their homes into a "house of peace"--which we are hopeful will lead to new house churches as some of these people fall in love with Jesus and committ their lives to Him and to one another as disciples.

We believe God has recently shown us an answer to the Luke 10:2 prayer. For the past couple of months, our family has been praying specifically for a new opportunity in Las Pintas (a large colonia on the southeast side of GDL). Back in January we got to know Luis Bernal who had recently been deported from Kansas after living there 15 years and becoming a disciple of Jesus. While there he had experienced Christian life in a small house church. After his deportation he found himself living with his mom in Guadalajara. We were connected through a common friend. Luis feels a strong burden for his family and their neighbors who all live in Las Pintas. He has asked that we help him develop as a planter of house churches--that we walk with him as he begins something new in his mother Rosario's house. After a couple of visits with her and family members, we recently took further steps to begin a regular time of Bible study and prayer. Luis and Rosario are inviting family members, neighbors and friends to join us in this time. Besides this, Luis and Chadd spend time weekly in Bible study, discussion and prayer. We are praying that God will continue to develop these relationships...that this group will form around Jesus and that it will become a vibrant New Testament church in the months to come.

We continue to pray for similar stories of missionary coworkers, Mexican church planters, and growing churches as they are ministering in the following places: The cities of Aguascalientes and Tepic; the GDL colonias of Ciudad Granja, Residencial Moctezuma, Chapalita, San Sebastian, La Floresta, San Pedro, Mariano Otero, Jardines del Valle, Cerro del Cuatro and Lincoln School.

Odds and Ends

A university group from the Sunset Church of Christ will spend their spring break with us beginning this Sunday. Please pray that this time will be used for good--that hearts will be cultivated and influenced for the Lord--that seeds will be sown.

We are still in need of monthly ministry support to replace the ministry funds that the Bell Trust provided in 2005. We are praying that God will connect us with like-minded partners who are able to help in this way.

As always, we thank God for you and pray for His richest blessings for your life--that we will all know Him better and be transformed into the image of His Son Jesus.

Chadd, Nancy, Morgan, Natali and Ceci Schroeder

Learning to Blog

We've been missionaries in Mexico for many years and have written countless newsletters, prayer updates and ministry reports. I use the internet daily and write and receive dozens of emails daily--yet I am struggling to figure out how to blog! Patience!