I am His child.

I have been made in the image of Christ and I am His bride.

I am strong because of Him who made me.

I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

I will not be shaken because I stand on the Rock of my Salvation.

I will not let anyone but Christ define me.

I will not cave into negativity and peer pressure.

 I am covered by His blood.

I will stand for what is right.

I will love with all my heart.

I will be kind to the unkind.

I will walk and not stumble.

I will run and not grow tired.

I will find new strength each morning for He restores me each day.

I will praise Him with my every breath.

My soul cries out and falls in anguish but He lifts me to my feet.

Will they not listen? Will they not see?

Love them for me, Father! As I cannot love in this moment.

Let my hands be always about your work.

Do not let my emotions cloud my judgement.

Let your light shine from me so that you may be seen in me.

Do not let me fall prey to the doubts that crowd my mind.

Do not let me stumble and fall.

Show me your grace!

Show me the path you have set before me.

Lead me in your ways Father!

A question I have been asked quite a lot is “What school/college did you go to in order to become a teacher?” My answer has always been, “I didn’t go to college.” Most people look at me with astonishment and follow up with the question “How did you learn how to teach?” or “Then how do you know what you are doing?” Well, the answer is simply, “The curriculum we use does not require you to go to college in order to teach it as this curriculum has training sessions during the summer that you can take. It does require that you at least graduate from high school in order to understand how the curriculum works.” The last and final question the person always (and I mean ALWAYS) asks is, “Do you have any plans to further your education in the future?” My last and final answer to all these questions is “Maybe one day.”

Would I like to have a “Higher Education” degree of some sort? I guess so. Now don’t get me wrong, it is important to have some sort of education BUT I would not have been able to come and work on the Navajo reservation if I had gone strait to college after graduating high school. Nor would I have been able to pay any school bills after graduating college because most of the work I do is volunteer work. I do not get paid for most of what I do. I have to raise support from people around me so that I can live and work at the Mission. I have no regrets about not going to college right out of high school. When I was trying to make the choice of which college I would go to (I did look at my options) I became so over whelmed that I could hardly function. One day, I was looking at some of the different Bible colleges and programs that I had on my list and my Dad was there in the room with me. I kept going on and on about how I wasn’t sure which one I should choose. He looked at me and said, “You don’t have to go to college.” Dad told me that a look of relief washed over me. So instead of going to college I went to work for a year while I waited on God to say it was the right time to move to New Mexico.

Now almost 7 years after that conversation with my dad, I am starting to feel like it is time to start learning more and possibly take a college corse or two. Now choosing what I would like to learn about is a whole other thing. What kind of courses/classes would I like to do? I would like to take some pastry/culinary art classes to maybe have my own bakery/restaurant some day. I would like to take a cosmetology course and learn how to cut hair. I would like to take some classes on the topic of earth science or even archeology. I love designing things and making things look beautiful. Maybe I could take some classes on architecture or interior designing. I love to paint and have taken art lessons before but wouldn’t mind taking more classes on how to paint with materials other than watercolor. I have a love affair with music and dancing. I’m not a very good actress but I can be dramatic. Most likely I will start all this learning by taking some Bible classes. I don’t plan on leaving New Mexico any time soon and only God knows what will happen, but the future is looking like it’s full of possibilities.

What do you do? Do you turn and run? Do you take life in stride and keep moving forward? What if it feels like you are drowning? Do you call for help? Or do you try to save yourself? If you feel like you have been hurt by someone, how do you get past the pain? How does your heart begin to heal?

These are all questions I have faced or still dealing with on a daily basis. There have been a lot of rough times in the last couple of years that have made me evaluate the importance of having boundaries. Yes, I enjoy the day to day relationships that have been cultivated over the years, but I have come to a breaking point where if I don’t start taking care of myself, I won’t be able to continue the work God has placed me here to do.

I have done a lot of praying and asking God for strength to just get through each day but I still try to do everything by myself. I have said “Yes” to things I don’t want to do and then do those things begrudgingly. I have heaped on more stress onto myself than I care to acknowledge. I have had more sleepless nights then I care to recount. I have not asked for help when I needed it most. These are all things that I am calling the “lemons in my life”. Everything those lemons represent, I have brought on to myself. I can, however, ask the people around me for help. There are a bunch of people ready to help me if I would only ask. They would give me advice, support my decisions, give encouragement when I have doubts that I am doing the right thing, they will and are praying for me every day. BUT, and this is a BIG but, I have to open my mouth to say that I need help. I have to let them know how I am feeling and what my needs are. I have difficulty in this area where I am afraid to ask for help or be vulnerable where and when I should be vulnerable. I have put up walls where there shouldn’t be any and I don’t have boundaries where they are needed most. Pretty much all of my boundary walls are crumbly and not firm at all. Where my no should be, a yes resides. My “Yes” has had too much exercise and is overpowering whereas my “No” has had very little exercise and is weak and feeble. It is time for me to make a change and let my “no” have more time in the sun but I do not want to hurt others with my “no”. It is difficult to know when and how my “no” should come out especially since it will have rough, jagged edges and may taste rather sour in the beginning.

My body (includes the heart, mind, and soul) is a temple for God. If I don’t take care of my body and I let myself become tarnished by stress, un-forgiveness, and bitterness, how then can I shine for God’s glory? How can I be a reflection of Christ and his love for everyone? We as Christ followers are commissioned to love our neighbors as ourselves. If we can’t love and take care of ourselves, how can we love and take care of those around us?

I know that my strength is found in Jesus and the promises of God’s word, but it is also good to ask for help from others and work together to solve problems. There is no need to be a “lone wolf”. God has placed people around me that I can lean on and share my lemons with. When I am able to be vulnerable with another person, that is when healing will begin. It may take a while for me to be completely vulnerable and to actually see that healing is taking place but I trust that healing is here.

Wow! This summer went by so fast! We are already into our second month of school here at Nizhóní. Here are some highlights to sum up each month since my last letter.

June – My momma and my brothers came to visit me the first part of the month of June. It was lovely to have them around for a bit. Sure makes me ready for Christmas to be here so that I can see them again. Summer school started the second week of June and lasted until the last Wednesday of June. Most of the students who attended summer school were able to complete the work required to move up to the next grade level.

July – Debbie and I went to Administrator’s Training in Hendersonville, Tennessee on the second week of July and we were able to stay with my cousins for the week. Unbeknownst to me, my momma drove down from Pennsylvania to surprise me with a visit while we were on the east coast. My sister and her husband came for a surprise visit as well. After Debbie and I completed our training, we headed home to the Mission. We arrived back on a Sunday afternoon and I was excited to see that Aunt Maggie, Juanita, Jenifer and Eileen had arrived safely for their visit. They had come to interview me for Sunbeam Camp at Roxbury and to help me start readying the school for the upcoming school year. We had some adventures while they were here which included seeing our fist live scorpion, driving on washed out roads to go see the hoodoos, driving through NAPI (Navajo Agricultural Products Incorporated) and spotting prairie dogs, finding wild horses, and laughing a lot. I drove them to Gallup to catch their train to head home. The very next day, my dad arrived with my new car! Not only did he bring my lovely new-to-me car but Grandma Shetterly came along with him! I enjoyed having both dad and grandma around for a couple of days. Too soon it was time to take dad and grandma to the airport and head to Supervisor’s Training in Albuquerque. Both Debbie and I passed the Supervisor’s Training with flying colors.

August – The first week of August was spent on the final things to finish before school started. Things like assigning desks, ordering curriculum, and making sure the school was clean. Orientation was on Monday, August 13th. Both parents and students came and learned about changes that have been put in place for this school year. So far we have 14 students enrolled here at Nizhóní. Three of the 14 students are Kindergarteners. The rest are 4th and 7th – 12th. 

September – Here in September the school was able to go on a field trip to the State Fair in Albuquerque. It was great fun to see all the exhibits, eat good food, and ride some of the rides. One of the stands/exhibits I went to was about beekeeping. It was very interesting and informative. I learned that one bee only makes 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in its lifetime and will fly an average of 55,000 miles to collect nectar to make honey. Isn’t God’s creation amazing?

Praises and Prayers

Thank you all so much for helping me buy a car. I’m so happy with what I was able to get with the money that you all donated. For those of you that don’t know what kind of car I have, it’s a 2009 Suzuki. It brings me happiness to be able to jump into a vehicle and drive into town without having to ask if I can borrow someone’s vehicle.

Please continue to pray for the students here at Nizhóní. Some of the students have a difficult home life—some without running water or electricity—and all, including staff, need your prayers.

We are still in need of sponsors for 2 high school students ($1,000 each) and 1 kindergarten student ($750). If you would like to sponsor a student, you can call or email the mission or school. missions@navajobic.org nizhonischool@me.com 505-960-1212 

Thank you for all of your prayers and support. You help make a difference in a child’s life.

Thats all I have for now. I’m looking forward to all that is to come in the next couple of months.

Hello from New Mexico!
Wow! I hadn’t realized so much time has passed since my last newsletter. A lot has happened so we will see where this letter takes us.

April and May were filled with planning the High school graduation for Latanya and closing things up for the end of the school year. I believe that Latanya is now studying to become an EMT at San Juan College in Farmington.

In June, I was able to visit my family in Pennsylvania. I am very grateful for the time to rest and visit with friends and family. When I returned to the Mission, I had the opportunity to help with a summer lunch program through a local school. They provide breakfast and lunch for the children who came to Vacation Bible School. I or another person would go get the food from DZ school and then we would set up in the gym for the children to eat.

July was spent helping mission teams with VBS and helping Diane in the Mission Office.
In August, Ms. Sue and I went to Albuquerque for Supervisor’s training. When we arrived back at the Mission we finished setting up for school to start on the 14th. 16 students had enrolled for the beginning of the 2017-2018 school year.

With September came a new student to make a total of 17 students enrolled here at Nizhóní.

The Fall Festival came and went in the month of October.

One of our High School students graduated in November. Bob and Carmie Hess from Pennsylvania came to spend some time serving at the Mission. Carmie was a wonderful help at the Academy while Bob helped Dave complete some projects around the Mission. I spent Thanksgiving with Duane and Diane and the rest of the gang at the Mission.
December was jam packed with Christmas Love Gifts, practicing for a play at the Community Christmas Celebration, enrolling another student at Nizhóní, and packing to go to Pennsylvania for Christmas! I had a lovely time with my friends and family.

The new year has swept along to bring its own challenges. As of January, our enrollment is down to 15 student from 17 and the school is also looking for another teacher to take over the Kindergarten – 2nd grade classroom. Ryan Thrush from Pennsylvania came to work here at the Academy and Mission for about 6 weeks.

In February, two very special ladies have arrived to lend a hand at the Academy and Mission. Ruth and Kate came last year around this time and decided to come back to help again!Valentine’s Day is at hand. I am planing on making some sweet treats for my students to enjoy this Valentine’s Day.

Prayer Needs

In recent months, there have been many things for which I am thankful. I am thankful that my health has been good, my students bring me joy, and God provides everything I need right when I need it. But, I do have needs that cannot be met unless they are known.

•In November, my car stopped on me. It has been diagnosed that I need a new engine for it or I will have to find a newer car to call my own. I am currently using a Mission vehicle to drive to and from town for groceries and appointments.

•Please pray for some more help for the next school year. I am currently the only teacher in the classroom to supervise and teach 15 students.

Sometimes it is very difficult not to doubt when hard times feel like they are here to stay. I know in my heart that God will provide for my every need and that everything is in His good timing.

That about covers a year in the life of me. Your prayers and support will forever be appreciated.

Sincerely yours,
Betsy Shetterly

Everyone has a story to tell and all of them are different. Some are filled with happiness and few trials while others are full of sorrow and tribulations. Some start out happy and end in tears. Some are full of surprises both good and bad. For me, my story is full of the finger prints of God. Being raised in a God filled home has been the best thing that has ever happened to me. Now I’m not trying to sound like I am boasting or being prideful. It just so happens that both of my parents love God with all of their hearts and have taught me and my siblings to do the same. I am very grateful that they did because I probably would not be serving God if they hadn’t. I won’t get into my childhood years in this post but I will share the beginning of this chapter of my life.

For those of you that don’t know, my journey started back in 2010 on my first mission trip. That trip was the seed of my calling to being a missionary. My first ever mission trip was to the Grand Canyon with my youth group and church family of that time. I went to the Grand Canyon to minister to the people of the Havasupai tribe. Boy! Was that ever an eye opener. The people there welcomed us in and we held a week long vacation bible school program for their children. My heart broke for the children of the Havasupai. I was still open to going on other mission trips. While I was in the Grand Canyon, the older of my two younger brothers (Ben) went on a different mission trip. He was with the youth group from our home church. His trip was to the Navajo Brethren in Christ Mission in New Mexico. My brother helped with their bible school program and was also able to stay an extra week since our Aunt and Uncle from Kentucky were arriving the following week to do a work project. He fell in love with the Mission and wanted to go back the following year. I decided that I wanted to go along with him to see what this Navajo Mission was all about.

At this point I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. I had a year before I graduated High School and I was searching for what God wanted me to do. I already knew that I wanted to be a missionary because that calling was placed on my heart at a very early age. I just didn’t know where I was going to end up. So in June of 2011, my brother and I set out on our month long adventure to the Navajo Reservation to work at the Navajo Brethren in Christ Mission. We arrived in Albuquerque, New Mexico and met with the directors of the Mission. Their names are Duane and Diane. As we drove to the Mission, I did some sleeping and when I woke up I was amazed at how much the landscape had changed in two and a half hours. Duane and Diane showed us where we were going to be staying. It is a more traditional house called the Adobe House. It has a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. The kitchen and the bedroom are about the same size and the bathroom is right in the middle of the house. You have to walk through the bathroom to get to the kitchen and vise versa. Duane and Diane gave us a couple of hours to settle in and refresh ourselves before sitting down to go over orientation. They told us all about the mission and gave Ben and I guild lines to follow.

After orientation, Ben and I went back to the adobe house for the evening. About an hour or so later there was a knock on our door. It was our soon to be close friends, Jr. and Rephiaih. We had many evenings of campfires and good food. During the day, Ben, Rephiaih, and Jr. worked around the mission. I worked in the office doing little things for Diane so that she was able to focus on other things. Ben and I also helped with the bible school teams that came to the Mission. One of the teams that came took Ben and myself under their wing and I was finally able to go site seeing. We went to the top of the Mesa and to Angle’s Peak. While we were at Angel’s Peak I felt the call to come back and work among the Navajo. More specifically, to work at the Mission. I said, “Ok God. My life is yours.” I told Duane and Diane about what had happened at Angel’s Peak. I said to them, “I will be back. I don’t know when or how or what I’ll be doing, but I will be back.” They said “Ok.” In no time at all it was time to leave. Duane and Diane took Ben and I to the airport and we said a tearful goodbye.

Fast forward to the beginning of 2013 and Diane calls my mom and says “Hey, we have a position opening up here at the school here on our campus. The current teacher is getting married and leaving at the end of the school year. Could you spread the word that we need a teacher?” Mom does, and of course she tells me about it too. At that point I had almost stopped focusing on what God wanted me to do and was focusing more on what I wanted to do. When mom told me what Diane had said my thoughts were along the line of “Well, that would get me out to the Mission but is teaching what I want to do?” The answer to that for the past three years has been yes. I believe that Diane called again a couple of weeks later saying that no one had called or emailed her about the position. Let me tell you what was happening with me during that time in-between the times Diane called. After Diane had called the first time and I had had my reservations about being a teacher, I turned back to God. He helped me discover that teaching is what he wants me to do. Now back to Diane’s second phone call. One of the other things she had said when she called was that whenever she prayed or thought about the school position, my name came to her mind. Wow! Did that ever blow me away! After some more prayer and sitting to God, I called Diane up and asked her all about the school and what I would need to do in order for me to come to the Mission. One of the things I needed to do was raise my own financial support since woking at the school doesn’t pay very much at all. I told Diane that I would need to wait for some more confirmation before I would be able to say whether or not I could be the next teacher.

That evening I went into work and my mom happened to stop in to buy some groceries. I was working at the local grocery store and I had been working in the Deli that evening. Mom came up to the counter and said, “You have a phone call to make.” I said, “Who am I supposed to call?” mom said, “You need to call Diane and say you can move to New Mexico because you have your first pledge of support.” I was completely stunned. I hadn’t expected God to confirm my going so quickly.  I called Diane up the next day and told her the good news and asked if the position was still open. She said yes but I would need to move to the Mission as soon as possible so that the teacher could train me in the school procedures. And so the date was set for Saturday, March 2, 2013 for me to arrive at the Mission. Before moving, I had to buy a few things and pack up my room since I needed to furnish my new dwelling place. Many people gave items to me to begin setting up house keeping. I was and still am very grateful to the people who helped me in any way.

It soon came to the time for me to leave home and begin the journey to New Mexico. My two younger bothers and my mom drove me out to New Mexico. It was a sad morning when we left. Not only was I leaving the area I had lived in for 14 years but my Dad was not able to go along on the trip because of work. This made leaving home very hard because I knew that it would be a long while before I could hug my Dad again. On the way to the Mission, we stopped at Asbury University in Kentucky to visit with my older sister. It was great to see Abi and hang out with her for a little while. We then continued our trip and stopped overnight at our Aunt’s house. The next day we met with two cousins along the way. We stopped in Arkansas the second night. On the third day we continued on I-40 west and met up with Duane and Diane’s daughter and grandson for supper in Amarillo. We had a great time together. After having a delicious supper with Dawn and Mason, we kept on going and stopped in Albuquerque for the night. We slept in the next day as we only had two and a half hours drive to go. We arrived at the mission around 2 in the afternoon. As we were driving in, I knew I was home.

Since I moved to the Mission, there have been times where I have doubted whether or not being a teacher was the right thing to do. When ever I have those thoughts and feelings, I feel God surrounding me and I am reassured that this is where he wants me. It hasn’t been easy to step out in faith and say “Ok God, I am yours to lead.” There have been many bumps along the way but I am able to see God in each step along this path. I am excited to see what else God has for me in the near future.

Let me share some of my heart with you tonight.

I was looking back in one of my note books and I came across an entry that come from 2012 and is about a page and a half long.

I wrote it during my last year as a camper at Cristian Retreat Center.

It comes from a time in my life after I had received my calling to work at the Navajo Brethren in Christ Mission on the Navajo Reservation.

It was before Grandma Yoder passed away. I was grieving for her even before she died. I still sometimes feel that empty space that she once filled with her love, and I cry.

I was waiting impatiently for God to say that it was time for me to do his work in New Mexico.

I was discontent in the job I was holding at the local grocery store. Now, don’t get me wrong, I liked working with the people and my coworkers in the store. But I knew that it wasn’t permeant and that God was working in ways that I can’t even imagine.

Needless to say, it was an emotional year.

The entry goes,

To you my God I lift my voice in praise. In song you speak to me. You fill me to overflowing. In the depths of my heart I feel you working on my soul. Shaping me into the person I should be. In the midst of my pain and suffering, you touch me and heal my wounds.

     You tell me each day, “I love you!”

But I look to the future and I am scared.

     You say, “I am with you always. Forever and ever. I was, I AM, I will be FOREVER! In the midst of your trials, in the midst of your pain, and in the midst of your confusion. I will always be with you! I will always be by your side. I will Bless Your Socks Off! I will give you more then you can imagine! There is no end to my love for you! The heavens cry out to you in your pain. They rejoice in your triumphs and victories!”

With all that I am, I will praise God! 

With this entry, I am reminded of how much I love my God and my Savior. I feel as if that entry was written to encourage others; not just myself. Though my life on the mission field may seem all sunshine and roses in my news letters, it’s not. I have rough days and good days just like everyone else. Most days are good. But somedays it’s good to find little gems like I found this evening.

I hope this has been an encouragement to someone out there. I pray that you may find the wonderful peace that comes with knowing how much you are loved. Not just by the people around you but by God as well.