Sept. 1

Dear Friends and Family,

It’s a big week here at the Navajo Nation: It’s fair week. Schools take off one day for the fair, but we expect lower than usual attendance for the rest of the week. We were interested in the Miss Navajo contest. Here are some of the events the young ladies compete in: Butchering and Fry Bread competition, Contemporary Skills (such as sheep shearing, weaving, and speaking Navajo), Talent, and Meet and Greet. Quite a difference from a fluffy beauty contest!

Three of our students rode in the Junior Rodeo this morning. Two of the first graders did calf riding. Ignorantly, I asked if they did “wooly riding,” but was immediately informed that riding the sheep was for babies. Nope, they have achieved the next step. Another older girl was in the barrel racing event. As we drove down Hwy 264, we noted that practically the entire street was already staked out by people saving parade spots. There were even a few tents. The parade isn’t until next Saturday!!

View from the top of the hill.

We have a good-sized preschool.

Playground. School is background right. 

Waiting patiently.

Overheard Nuggets:

Said in prayer by a 1^st grader: Help this lunch to make our brains work and make us healthy. Let us obey. Let us be safe.

Said in conversation in 4^th grade: B – God is such a Good Father!

E. Yes, He is.

Said by a young snack eater: Look, I see a mushroom in my granola bar. (I think she meant marshmallow.)

One of the parents in R’s class returned a textbook with all the pictures of snakes covered with yellow stickies. Yes, there is an acknowledgement of Christianity, but many are controlled by “powers and authorities” such as snakes and coyotes. “Christ has disarmed all such powers and authorities; he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross!” Col. 2: 15. Pray for us as we persuade our students and parents that Jesus is more powerful than “elemental spirits.”

We have a busy week because we are also hosting a Hilltop Christian School reunion. The school has been around for 50 years and has made quite an impact on the community during much of that time.  We’re praying for the school as it took last year off and is beginning again this year, seeking to again impact the community for Jesus Christ.

Love

Aug. 24

Dear Friends and Family,

Cedar Wood is the best for BBQ.

Wow! This afternoon as we walked home from church, I was thinking that God called me into missions when I was saved as a child. I’ve been in Christian education all my life, but now we are involved in a Mission organization with a broader vision than Christian schooling. At our business meeting, we heard the reports from many of the others: Indian Bible College; The Nehemiah Project (to rebuild this mission station which has deteriorating buildings); the Radio Station, which will host a Shar-a-thon soon and is opening a new station in Tuba City; Community Outreach (which connects with the community and with the Navajo pastors), Youth Ministries, which supports and encourages youth workers throughout the Navajo Nation, and Jail Ministries.

It was disheartening to hear that many of the Navajo churches are dying and the pastors either don’t know how to or don’t wish to deal with the problems that are still rampant in their communities: problems such as alcoholism and unemployment. Church is seen as something to do on Sunday, but it is not applicable to the rest of the week. There are approximately 600 Native churches on the Reservation. Statistically, fewer than 10% of Navajo are Christian. Even the President, who is supposedly a Christian, was reported to have said that the medicine men needed to be consulted before a decision could be made.

There's always room for play dough.

School seems to be going well. I just got another new student. Fortunately, he is in a group with another new student. Let’s just say, they have some catching up to do. The little girl I mentioned last week is doing very well. She always has a smile and is willing to try everything. She’s a bit shy, but seems very bright.

Third grade is fun.

It’s hard to tell where my little ones are spiritually, as some know the “God talk.” They did listen intently this week when I told the exciting account of the Resurrection of Jesus, but asking Jesus to be their Savior and Lord is a foreign concept at this time.

R* is having fun teaching his small class too. He has five, and they are all at a different place academically, so he asks for wisdom continually. They are responding to his warmth and enthusiasm.  We’re still finding that vocabulary is a challenge. We’ll ask a question and get blank looks; it’s not because they don’t know the answer, it’s because we’ve used a word that they don’t commonly hear.

On the playground.

We have a garden that was a school project for one of the former students who is now a university student. We’re trying to harvest the squash before the critters nibble on it. The corn and tomatoes will show up later. I’m not sure what else is out there.

Love and Prayers

First Grade Rainbow! 

See our garden grow.

A recess favorite -- the teetertotter. 

August 18

Dear Friends and Family,

This is Window Rock.

Wednesday was our first day of school here at Hilltop, and things could not have gone any more smoothly! We now have almost 50 enrolled. Our principal was comparing his ‘first day of school’ stories with his associates back home, and they admitted that he had won for the best story. Right outside our window, we could see a sheep being slaughtered for the Camp Meeting feast on Saturday! Actually, the children did not bother to watch because they’ve all seen this before.

Preschool Playground.

Our classes have been cooperative and fun the first few days. Naturally we know about “honeymoon” periods, but we are encouraged because many of them have been through our preschool and kindergarten program. They know about Jesus. We have been told that the Navajo tend to compartmentalize what they believe, so it is OK for the children to believe in Jesus and go along with the teaching while they are here, but to participate in Navajo ceremonies when at home. In fact, one girl already told me that she would be absent a few days for a ceremony.

We love the Navajo fry bread.

About that sheep, the Navajo pastor told us that they dress it very quickly so the meat stays tender. The innards are used immediately. The women stretch out the small intestine and make sausages. They froze the rest of the meat in large hunks for the mutton stew. The church women made the stew on Saturday. They started by boiling the frozen meat and veggies then added dumplings. R* went over and tasted it. The stew was served with blue corn meal mush, which was procured from the bottom of the canyon, and fry bread.

We attended the first Friday evening camp meeting. They served Navajo burgers (beef) at 5pm, and we finally left at 10 pm, after the sermon but before the altar call. They always joke about the Rez cars being held together with wire and duct tape. The pastor’s two Bibles were so well-used, they were also held together with duct tape. He effortlessly swung back and forth between English and Navajo, getting two laughs for each punch line of his jokes. The sermon was about taking discipleship to the next level. I noticed that the men and women dressed up, most wore turquoise jewelry and some of the women wore traditional footwear.

I was reading yesterday in Proverbs 16.  Verses 1 and 9 talk about how we make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps. We are grateful that He has determined that we be here at WIM and at Hilltop Christian School, and we’re excited about the weeks to come. Please pray for our young ones, that they will see Christ in us and want to follow Him exclusively. Also pray for one of my precious students who is recovering from cleft palate surgery.

Love in Christ

Canyon DeChelly: pronounced Canyon De Shay.

Canyon DeChelly. They grow the blue corn at the bottom.

August- Back to School

Dear Friends and Family,

HCS is part of Western Indian Ministries.

God is Good. We packed up a U-haul and trailer and moved to New Mexico last week without incident, and we’re starting to get into a rhythm now. We have two major tasks: to organize our house (trailer), and to organize our classrooms. Both involve billions of boxes. Hilltop Christian was closed last year, so the previous summer, the teachers had boxed up their classrooms. R opened all of the 3^rd and 4^th grade boxes to determine what he would need for his classroom this year. I did the same with the 1^st and 2^nd grade boxes. We’ve finally gotten our rooms looking ready, so tomorrow we will start preparing lesson plans and schedules.

School starts officially on Wednesday. We welcome the parents and children back with an Open House on Tuesday, so please be praying that it goes smoothly. I already have 11 enrolled in my 1 – 2 combo. I’m so excited! R has five enrolled so far, but has been assured that class sizes grow and shrink throughout the year, and many students don’t come until after Labor Day. Kindergarten and Preschool enrollment is very strong.

Another view of WIM.

We enjoy the staff here. It is different for us because Hilltop is not just a school; it is part of a Mission Station. We also have a Radio Station, Teen Ministries, and other community outreaches going on.  www.westernindian.org  When we arrived, the mission was hosting a work group from PA. Some were remodeling a dorm, but others were quite willing to help us in our classrooms. We are grateful for the hours they saved us! We loved hearing their stories about how God provided for them to come on this trip and how He blessed them abundantly while they served the Navajo people here.

This is part of our trailer. I love the background rocks.

Our music teacher is a fireball for Jesus. When she is not teaching keyboard and guitar, she is driving all over the Rez leading Bible Schools for the Navajo children. Her enthusiasm brightens my day. She was recently at a church service and two of her former students led worship. She got emotional as she related how Bud and Matt hadn’t been such star pupils in music, but now they were up in front boldly playing and singing. And that is what it’s all about – teaching the way of salvation and shepherding the young ones so they will be leaders in their own communities for the Lord.

Resting on the rocks behind our temporary lodging
in Holbrook

Thank you for your prayers and gifts.

We went on a hike just outside of Flagstaff.

www.hilltopchristian.net

May 31

So, it’s spring here and that means sheep shearing time. Those sheep, no matter how uncomfortable they are with all that wool-weight, do not want to get caught. Mr. N somehow corralled them away from the watchful llama, ‘Tia,’ who protects them from strangers. Still the wild-eyed sheep elude capture.  Mr. N knows that by patient coaxing, he can get a sheep into the smaller pen.  Yes, that crazy running is funny, but that’s the way we sometimes look, ridiculously trying to avoid God’s best for our lives.

Mr. N challenges any of us (teachers and students) to wrestle the sheep and set her upright in the shearing position. First a brave 5^th grade girl tries, and though she might know the technique, she lacks the strength. Then Mr. C, the 7^th grade teacher, steps up and manages to roll the woolly creature into a couch-potato position. And amazingly, all the fight leaves the sheep, and she becomes docile. (It reminds me of the verse that says Jesus was like a sheep before the shearers; He allowed them to do what they were going to do.) So, am I like a sheep, ready to stop protesting and patiently endure the process of snipping off the weight I’ve become accustomed to?

Wool class was scheduled for Tuesday and Thursday. Ms. K led the children through the long process of turning the wool into a rug. For some of them it was very familiar as they have grandmothers who weave Navajo rugs. For others, it was new, but fun.

[If I may, I would like to continue the metaphor through the process.  (My friend, A, will be speaking at various churches this summer, and she shared some of her thoughts with me… Thanks, A.)]

First the children carefully washed the wool. Frankly, it stinks and is sticky with lanolin. The scrubbing is gentle, but hot (140 degrees).  Jesus purifies us, delivering us of our own filth and the smells of the desert.  The wool cannot be used unless it is clean, just as I cannot be used in the Kingdom while refusing His cleansing.

So, we surrender to the washing; and the drying in the Arizona sun actually feels pleasant. Maybe God will let me stay out here toasting in the sun for a while. But no, the next step is cleaning.  It takes hours to pick the wool of unwanted material and field debris. There’s pulling and stretching in my life.  Hey, Lord, you’re throwing away some good stuff there, aren’t you?  I not only want this to be over because it hurts, but I’m not sure the Cleaner is leaving me anything. So much for that little hoard.

 

So, now the wool is cleaned up. Thanks, Lord. But here come the carding combs. These two wire-tooth brushes straighten out the stuff of my life, pulling back and forth. More debris surfaces and must be discarded. Are you sure, Lord? I thought I had things pretty organized on my own. Finally, though the carding is done, and my life lies in untangled puffs in the basket.  Surely, it is time to be useful for God’s Kingdom.

 

But no, the gentle hands grasp the wool and draft it, creating a spider web appearance. Is this transparency and stretching necessary? Can’t I just keep doing the things I am used to doing?  Then on to the spinning. Though this looks so homey and somehow traditional, it involves twisting the threads. Twisting and twisting. Perhaps the worry about the future and my abilities is this twisting. I feel like a wrung-out dishrag. And as I am spun, a feeling I don’t like at all, I am being joined to other gossamers. We are strengthened as we are mingled. Whether we like it or not, relationships with people matter. How we treat God’s people matters.  God has gifted us differently, so together we form the strong threads.

Finally, the yarns are wound on bobbins, and the weaving can begin. Each student chose his/her own colors and pattern, as the Maker orders our pattern and path. Even then there is pulling and pressing on the threads. He knows the end result, and I must trust Him to make the product beautiful. Then, whether I am a rug or a placemat or a coaster, I am ready to be used by the Lord.

 

Thank you for your prayers. We are unsure of our next step, but we want to trust in God with all our hearts and not lean on our own understanding. We trust that He will make our paths straight.

Love,

The Coasters