Easter Sunday at NEOS

On April 4, 2010, 34 children and 27 adults heard the Easter story. Valerie used pictures, drama, and visual aids to tell the story of Jesus' death and resurrection.

Four children made a decision to follow Jesus. After the story, the children got to enjoy the fun part of Easter and look for Easter eggs.

It truly was a fun filled day for all of us.

Volunteer's Outing

On April 1, 2010, we took all of the regular NEOS volunteers to the beach for a fun day. In the morning we did a workshop on how to lead worship and how to deal with the weekly Sunday school classes. In the afternoon they simply got to have fun in the water.

Our NEOS volunteers are mostly young people who are excited about being trained to be used for God's kingdom.

Kindergarten Graduation

On March 25, 2010, Idylyn Casayas was the graduation speaker at a local kindergarten in Tagum City.

Idylyn came to Christ at NEOS as a young girl and has been teaching at NEOS since 1997. What a joy to see a NEOS disciple doing just what she was trained to do.

May God be praised.

Creative Electricity

The island of Mindanao is in a state of calamity due to the lack of rain since December. The water level is so low that many of the wells are completely dry. Due to the lack of rain, we are having scheduled electric power failures daily. The shortest has been 30 minutes and the longest has been 5 hours. We never know when it will happen or for how long. So, we are ready at all times with a back up power system for the house.

Mike takes the battery out of the car, hooks it up to a 400-watt power inverter, and then plugs in an electric fan and a lightbulb. Ta-Da!! Light and air at the same time. It sure helps me to sleep in the afternoons when it is hot and it helps me to do lesson plans in the evenings when it is dark. So grateful for the inverter that Mike bought several years ago.

Valentine's Day at NEOS - 2010

The NEOS Fellowship Center had two special celebrations for Valentine's Day.

The first one was for the youth on February 9. Mike and Val shared on the topic of True Love Waits to a group of 97 youth and adults. We are trusting God that the young people were challenged to save themselves for marriage.

Steven (in white t-shirt) and some friends.

The second celebration was on February 14 and it was for the adults.

Mike and Val spoke again but this time it was on the rules of communication. There were 15 couples in attendance. They learned how to sit down and talk about situations that come into their lives.

Rules of Communication:

1. Speak the Truth in Love

2. Keep Current

3. Act and don't React

4. Attack the Problem, not the Person

The Rules of Communication were taken from the General Association of Regular Baptist marriage counseling topics. Mike attended a GARB conference in 1993. We have been using what he learned at the conference in our marriage and with other couples ever since.

Outland Adventure 2010

On January 5, 2010, the NEOS staff and volunteers spent the day at the Outland Adventure extreme day of challenges.

There were 14 of us and we

had a wonderful

day of team building

exercises.

It was just a fun day of being together

and doing something out of the ordinary.

Esther's Faith Academy Basketball Team

Esther was on the 2009-2010 Faith Academy Mindanao girl's basketball team. She had a wonderful time. She made new friends, learned how to be on a team, and honed her basketball skills.

Christmas at NEOS

NEOS had 18 Christmas parties in December of 2009.

We had a marvelous time telling the Christmas story and giving out toys to the children. Everyone had a great time.

NEOS Baptism

On November 28, 2009, Pastor Mike Boado and Pastor Cipriano Marinas baptized 19 people in the Pacific Ocean. It was a wonderful day of seeing lives dedicated to Jesus Christ.

Taylor University Homecoming 2009

Valerie had the joy of attending Homecoming at Taylor University in October of 2009. The special reason she was there was to attend the 25th reunion of the very first Women's Cross Country team from the fall of 1984.

A group of Taylor Women's Cross Country

alumni since 1984.

Coach Ray Bullock and women from the 1984, 1985, and 1986 teams.

All in the Family

On August 9, our family visited a small church in Tagum City -- Anchor Bay Evangelistic Church. Mike preached, Val took photos, the Boado kids taught Sunday School, and Val made sure each of us had what we needed to do our part.

Mike preached on the importance of training others to carry on the kingdom work of God. His text was 2 Timothy 2:2. Mike explained that God is looking for FAT Christians. The only way the church will grow is if there are plenty of FAT Christians working together.

F = Faithful - Someone who will be there no matter what is happening in their life.

A = Available - Someone who is visible and present and is always willing to help do something that needs to be done.

T = Teachable - Someone who is willing to learn something new or learn more about something they already know.

Mike went on to say that it is difficult for Christian leaders to even find FAT Christians:

If someone is available but not teachable, he is not FAT.

If someone is teachable but not available, he is not FAT.

If someone is faithful but not teachable, he is not FAT.

The person to be trained must be completely FAT in order for the kingdom of God to grow and make a difference in the world.

The Boado kids also taught Sunday school. They first reviewed the lesson on Joseph they had taught here previously. The new lesson they taught was from Valerie's new published Book 1 on Creation. After the lesson they played a review game with paper plates.

Esther would ask a question and then the students were to put one paper plate between their knees and one plate between their shoulder and their cheek. Then, they

had to run around a chair and back to their line. The first team to return to their line was given the privilege of answering the question. The students not only had fun but also learned about God at the same time.

We are so blessed to be here in Tagum. Thanks for your prayers for our family as we show others the importance of knowing Christ and following Him. We are definitely an All in the Family ministry.

Esther in High School

Esther officially started her high school career on August 6, 2009. She is now living in Davao City and attending Faith Academy Mindanao. It is an international school that was started in 1984 to educated the children of missionaries in Asia. We are so thankful that Faith Academy is so near Tagum City.

Esther will be living with friends in Davao City and traveling home almost every weekend.

Esther's Locker

Her new life is a challenge and yet it is one that will prepare her well for the plans that God has for her future. We are shouting God's praise.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord,

"... plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11