L’Abri, by Edith Schaeffer, is an enrapturing novel full of twists, turns, conflicts, and resolutions. The Schaeffer family has trusted God through many difficulties, both complex and simple. In the time span of 13 years, they built a community, which was bustling with joyous, christian influences. The family has had their share of stress. Frankie contracted polio, Susan developed rheumatic fever, then the family was coerced to find a house in a limited time or be banished from Switzerland. However, as long as they strongly held their faith, God answered faithfully.
One of the most serious incidents in the book is Franky Schaeffer catching polio on a return trip from America. At the time, Franky was only two years of age. “The next…show more content… She came down with rheumatic fever in her earlier years which would haunt her for the most of three years. “One week, we had a splendid talk with the doctor from Monthey, who came to visit Susan,who had complained about a pain in her knee.”1 Later in the book she was doing well and playing tennis, as Franky was recovering. However, one day she came home complaining about ankle pain. “Susan came in after playing tennis after school and said ‘I must have turned my ankle, it hurts and it’s kind of swollen.’ A day or two later Susan had been hiking and complained again, ‘I must have twisted my knee…it hurts so much, and it’s kind of red and swollen.’ The doctor then said… ‘I’m sorry to tell you this… But susan has rheumatic fever and is going to have to be in bed for at least two months!’”1 As you can see, even Susan had some tough times to deal with throughout her…show more content… The Schaeffers were given thirty days to move to another home, or be kicked out of the country! The family was devastated. They had just gotten settled. However, they trusted God. Through prayer, they trudged around in waist-deep snow, searching for a house. Finally, after 28 days, Edith Schaeffer was pulled
aside by a realtor, and he showed her a house for sale. The Schaeffers had been looking for houses for rent, and the cheapest for rent was half the size of their current house, at twice the price! As the realtor was taking her down the mountain into Huémoz, she had no idea it was for sale. “His reply was to step over to his car, open the door and say, ‘Hop in, I think I might have something that might interest you.’ … ‘Would you mind living in Huémoz?’”1 Even in the selection of a house, God blessed the Schaeffer family in the areas of money and time.
After all of that, God still provides for the Schaeffer family. Even today, 50 years after the founding of L’Abri in Huémoz, God continually blesses them. They have been faithful to God, and he has been faithful to them. As they have had needs, God has provided to fill the places that the needs create. No matter what life threw at them in the past, Franky getting polio, Susan’s Rheumatic fever, or the selection of a house, they were able to get through it by the hands