My Missionary Journal

This journal is dedicated to my children:

Shelly, Michael and Cherylyn. 

Just as God had Joshua set up pillars of stones so that future generations would remember His faithfulness to the Israelites, so this is a memorial of God’s faithfulness to the Hetler family.  As I compare God’s faithfulness to us and His faithfulness ‘in the days of old’, I’m reminded and encouraged that God truly is the same yesterday, today and forever! 

• Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom. One generation will     commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts."

• "They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty..."

• They will tell of the power of your awesome works..."

• They will celebrate your abundant goodness..." Ps. 145: 3,5a, 6a, 7a (NIV)

I hope that my testimony of God’s love and faithfulness will inspire my children and anyone else who reads this, to trust God all the days of their life and to know that, regardless of where we live, there is much to be gained in denying self and following God’s ways.

Gary, my ex-husband, and I received our BA in Intercultural Ministries, with New Tribes Mission (NTM) in 1975, but we didn’t actually go overseas until 1979.  We stayed and taught at our Language and Linguistics Institute, in Camdenton, Missouri, until 1978.  I first started this journal while on our way to Paraguay, South America, where we served with NTM until 1983.  In January 1985, we went to Cochabamba, Bolivia where we worked with NTM until April of ’88, when we regretfully returned to the States because of my declining health and then eventually had to resign from New Tribes Mission.  

(This is an un-edited copy of the journal I kept.  The third year of my journal is the most detailed.  By that time, I had reached the end of my resources and needed my talks with God and my time to vent.  That was when I truly began to learn and understand what it meant to lean on God to get me through our time in Bahia Negra, Paraguay.)

1st year

2nd Year

3rd Year