Elizabeth Busscher

Miss Busscher loves teaching at NPC! Ever since she walked in the doors and met Mrs. Vanderberg, she could feel that this was where God wanted her. Third grade is her passion, and she has taught it for 9 years. In her spare time, she loves running, reading, and being outside in God’s creation.

My faith and Christian worldview were shaped through many experiences. I grew up in a wonderful Christian home, learning what it means to be a Christian, learning Bible stories and how to apply them to my life. It was in fourth grade at Grace Youth Camp I accepted Christ as my personal Lord and Savior.  Early on I knew I wanted to be a teacher with a servant’s heart. My faith and ability to teach grew when I helped out with the children’s’ programs at my church, at camp, Vacation Bible School, and tutored at an elementary school while in a Christian college.  God confirmed my calling to be a teacher. For the past 13 years in my church home at Ada Bible Church, my faith is maturing as an adult.

In carrying out the Love Mandate here at NPC, I think of Jesus telling his disciples that He is going to heaven to “…prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:3). It is belief in Christ, loving Him, and serving Him that brings us home to Him. This relates to my classroom in two ways. First, I need to be an example of God’s love for my students and teaching them to discern idols from God Himself. Second, I will practice and teach students to treat those around us with love and compassion; Together we will practice JOY: Jesus, Others, Self.

To carry out the Mission Mandate, as a servant leader, I want to not only equip my students with academic knowledge, but with a Christian worldview for the future. Part of that is having students see that Jesus is in my heart through forgiving, caring, praying, guiding them as Jesus did, inviting students to come to me.

Part of this mandate is teaching what Jesus told his disciples to do before He ascended: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20). Not only this, but I will seek to model and teach Christ’s plain word for treating others as He  would: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you…” (Matt. 7:12)

In teaching the Image Mandate, I believe that God is the Creator of all things. John 1:3 says, “Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.”  He created all that is around us, meant for our enjoyment and for our wise use.  I will point my students to the beauty in it and show them how to care for it.

I especially want to help students see that God made each and every one of us uniquely: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Gem. 1:27). Our students are all unique and special. It can be tempting to want all our students to be perfect, “cookie cutter” students. Yet God created each student differently with his/her own background and gifts. Since everyone is made in God’s image, we will seek in my classroom and beyond to treat each other as persons made in the image of God.

Finally, I want to be God’s light in a dark and hurting world, a Godly, shining example to my students, to honor my Lord and lead students to love Him too.