Another year has gone and a new one has arrived! Our hearts are filled with awe and gratitude for all that God has done in the ministry of Missions: East Asian National Support by His grace and through working in the hearts of ministry partners like you. This past year, MEANS has:
1. Provided Training for Pastors and church Leaders – MEANS had the privilege to serve 150 ministry partners, church and youth leaders by sponsoring them to attend the Global Leadership Summit held at Metro Manila. The summit aims to “transform Christian leaders around the world with an annual injection of vision, skill development, and inspiration for the sake of the local church.” Our goal is to send 200 Christian leaders to this training in November 2012.
2. Tagalog Bibles to high school students . We partnered with Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship of the Philippines to give 400 New Testaments to high school students in Mindoro for their small bible study groups. Many students cannot afford to buy even a New Testament. Imagine the effect if we teach a child to read the bible? It can create a ripple effect in the child’s family and the community where they belong. Our goal in 2012 is to give out 1,000 bibles to high school students in the Philippines.
3. The Back Pack Project – MEANS gave backpacks to indigent students in Good Shepherd Fold Academy and Orphanage in Guimaras Island, Iloilo, Philippines. Each child was given a backpack full of school supplies, like pencil, notebook, crayons, ruler and more; tooth paste, toothbrush, bath soap, face towel, and Christian literature. Imagine the glow and smiles on the faces of these children after receiving their very own back pack. The backpacks were distributed to students during their Christmas Party.
4. The Thongs Project – (Flip-flops) are simple resource for protecting children’s feet from rough terrain, infection, and soil-based diseases. Thongs are less expensive to purchase in the Philippines and other Asian countries but at the same time not a priority to many of the poor families. We had distributed 1,000 thongs in partnership with churches in the Philippines and Elpis Ministry in Maesot, Thailand.
5. Student Assistance Program in a Muslim Community – Currently MEANS employs 5 student assistants through a ministry partner based in a creative access area. Imagine the impact this will make in the lives of students who will be employed and trained in the program. The student assistants will experience working with members of the Christian community in a student center setting. Our goal in 2012 is to increase our assistance to ten (10) deserving Muslim students.
6. Aid to flood victims in Central Luzon and Northern Mindanao – It is sad that in the midst carrying on with our MEANS projects, we have been diverted by the visit of two typhoons that wrecked havoc in the lives and properties of many Filipinos in 2011. One was in September in Central Luzon and another in December in Northern Mindanao where a lot more people died and many are still missing. Financial aid was given through our ministry partner, APPEND, so that immediate aid could be given to 65 families in Central Luzon. MEANS help to flood victims were done in partnership with Zion Community Church in Bulacan and Philippine Mission Associations in Zambales. In Northern Mindanao, financial aid was sent through Intervarsity Christian Fellowship of the Philippines. MEANS will continue to send help to flood victims in Northern Mindanao (Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City).
God is transforming individuals and communities, but there is still so much work left to be done. Thank you for praying and partnering with us as we trust God for 2012.
“Our God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come, Our shelter from the stormy blast, And our eternal home.”
MEANS 
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