I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. -- Philemon 1:6

We can influence others to practice our sinful habits, but we can also pass on our faith. Edith's parents passed the prayer principles and life of faith they learned from Hudson Taylor's China Inland Mission on to her. And the Holy Spirit worked in Edith's life from such an early age that she cannot remember when she first believed in Jesus as her Savior. She passed on this heritage to her children. And Priscilla, Susan, and Debby passed on their faith to their children. Some of Edith's grandchildren now work as missionaries. For example, one now serves with her husband in Nepal through a Canadian missionary society. We can easily trace four generations of missionaries from Edith Schaeffer's parents to her grandchildren, because each generation practiced their faith and taught God's Word to their children.

Francis Schaeffer could have passed on the unbelief and cynicism of his parents. But after reading the Bible for himself as a teenager, he committed his life to serving Jesus Christ. And he too passed on his faith to the next generations. We need not remain in the downward spiral of sin. We can come to Jesus Christ for transformation, and ask the Holy Spirit to help us pass on the truth of God, instead of our sins, to our children. But we must not take the teaching of true faith for granted. It is possible for some in every generation to turn from the faith of their parents.

Eventually, the Schaeffers' L'Abri became a second generation China Inland Mission. But God added the new element of making L'Abri into a spiritual orphanage for wandering young people and adults from all over the world. As we shall see, with some modifications, God made L'Abri into a combination of the work of Hudson Taylor and George Müller (the founder of Müller Homes for Children in Bristol, England). Fran and Edith accomplished with their own family what they would later accomplish in what would become the larger L'Abri Family. Should the Lord tarry, He may raise up a third and fourth generation of fellowships and societies similar to their "parents," but with differences that are vital for meeting the needs of each generation.

God united the Schaeffer family in the cause of serving Jesus Christ. Their great power in prayer came from this family unity. Even before they began L'Abri, Priscilla, Susan, and Debby committed themselves to evangelism and teaching others the Bible as much as their parents. And Fran and Edith prayed with their children for God to put the people who needed to hear the good news in their path, so they could help them in their special ways. And then they actively looked for the people God would send them.

As Fran prayed and traveled in 1951, he witnessed for the first time to the first adult man in Champéry to eventually become a Christian through their ministry. The man knew about Schaeffer and simply asked, "What is the difference between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism anyway" Fran's answer led to several other conversations and Bible studies, and in 1952 Mr. Exhenry prayed in his own simple way, "I am a sinner, I believe in Jesus as my Savior. Thank you God for sending Jesus to die for me." He later became one of the first elders in their new congregation when they formed the International Presbyterian Church.

Priscilla knew the Bible so well by the age of eleven that she talked intelligently about Christianity with an American college student traveling through Europe on the train. She made the Bible so interesting that the student received a fresh appreciation for God's Word and wanted to read the Bible and seek God's truth for herself when she got home. Later, when Priscilla attended boarding school, she habitually read her Bible before bed time, and then the other girls in her room asked her read it out loud. One evening, during 14-year-old Priscilla's reading, the Holy Spirit moved a 16-year-old German girl to stop her so she could bow her head and ask Jesus to be her Savior.

Susan actively recruited her girl friends in the village to come to the Children for Christ classes that Priscilla taught in French, and everyone rejoiced each time Susan convinced another little girl's mother to let her attend their classes.

Debby learned to do these things from her mother and sisters. Her mother taught her a deep love for Jesus by their naturally singing hymns together as they rejoiced over what the Lord was doing in their lives when they worked together at home.

God gave the Schaeffers unity in prayer and filled their home with a joyful love for people. Through daily prayer, hymn singing, reading Daily Light, and family worship, they maintained their joy in the Lord. They studied their Bibles personally and prayed privately each day. And then God opened the eyes of others, and they saw such joy in the Schaeffers that they were drawn to them and asked about the God they worshiped. Girls from India in boarding school, who knew about Hinduism and Roman Catholicism personally, saw such a radiance in the Schaeffers that they were drawn to their home to study the Bible and ask questions. Some of these girls accepted Christ as their Savior and went home to witness for Him in spite of the rejection and persecution of their families. The new reality of Christ's joy in their hearts was so real that they could return home and suffer in His name.

Because Fran and Edith encouraged the entire family to actively share their faith with others, God taught them more and more about the good things of Jesus Christ. As they learned more, they could meet the needs of more people, and they had more to share with others. They prayed for each other to be given the opportunity to witness, and they also prepared themselves spiritually and intellectually so they would have something real and meaningful to teach. Through daily prayer, they remained close to the Lord so His joy would fill them and overflow to others. Through prayer, the Holy Spirit showed them deeper truths from the Bible so they could teach what they learned to others. Because they prayed fervently and worshiped the Lord together each day, Biblical truths remained fresh and alive in their minds, and the Holy Spirit enabled them to lead others to the Savior.

Through much prayer, God will change us and use us more effectively; and then our prayer requests will more consistently reflect His loving and holy character. As we strive to grow in our faith and pass on truth to our children, they must see us actively practicing our faith. If we teach about prayer, our lives must show the importance of prayer. If we teach about witnessing, we must be witnessing. If we talk about sin, we must confess and forsake sin. Our children will learn about God by our prayers, words, and actions. But if we seek to pass our faith on to others, even to our own children, some may still turn away and we will be grieved; however, we are not necessarily the failures if some refuse to believe and come to the Savior.

Prayer

Dear Jesus, you died for my sins and saved my soul, and then you cleansed me and filled me with your Spirit. Help me teach others the truths about you that they need to hear. Amen.

© Copyright L. G. Parkhurst, Jr. Revised Edition 2008
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