As a missionary to Europe I visited Switzerland many times, vacationing and ministering there.  It remains my choice as the most beautiful place on earth.

It is also among the most influential in my life as a Christian and pastoral coach.

The story begins with a chalet in the western Swiss canton of Vaud near the French border.

 

Francis and Edith Schaeffer

Francis Schaeffer was a 20^thcentury American pastor and Reformed theologian known and admired by countless followers of Christ around the world. He is perhaps most respected for his twenty-two books on apologetics, the church, and Christianity’s relationship with culture.  Though written decades ago, these theological works continue to be studied by millions today.  His writing alone make him one of the 20^thcentury’s most influential theologians and Christian philosophers.

But it is not Schaeffer’s writing that most defines his life and legacy: it is the mentorship that he and his wife Edith gave to countless young adults around the world.

 

L’Abri: Shelter

In 1948, Francis and Edith Schaeffer left a successful pastorate in US to become missionaries, moving their family to the Swiss village of Champéry, near the French border in the canton of Valais. Roman Catholic leaders in the area asked the Schaeffers to leave, and so they relocated to Huémoz-sur-Ollon, a village in western Switzerland that was to be their home for many years.

It was in Huémoz that, after much prayer and soul-searching, the Schaeffers resigned their missionary appointment to devote themselves to the mentoring of young adults in the truth of the Christian faith, in the application of Christian truth to all of life (in our life in church and in society), and in the meaning of true spirituality.

In 1955, unfunded, and without any guarantees of success, Francis and Edith Schaeffer founded “L’Abri” (French for shelter), opening their chalet to young adults from around the world.

They founded their new ministry on four governing principles:

To make their financial and material needs known to God alone, in prayer, rather than sending out pleas for money;

To pray God would bring the people of His choice to L’Abri;

To pray God would plan the work and unfold His plan to them (guide and lead) day by day, rather than planning the future in clever or efficient ways in committee meetings.

To pray God would send the workers of His choice to L’Abri, rather than pleading for workers in the usual channels.

By faith, the Schaeffers opened their home and lives to the young adults of the world in the hope that they might find answers to their questions and see a living demonstration of Christian love and service.  The Schaeffers chose the name “L’Abri” for their “retreat” to declare both their mission and desire that their home be a shelter from the pressures of the world, giving young adults a refuge where they could ask questions, seek answers, and find God’s truth in shared journey with others.

Those who stayed with the Schaeffers “jumped in” to daily life at L’Abri, helping with household and garden chores as a way of contributing to the community and its growth, each one investing in the whole and in each other.  Meal times and evenings were devoted to lectures by the Schaeffers and lively discussions by all.

To be sure, some of the Schaeffer’s Swiss neighbors and many of their colleagues around the world thought they had gone off the deep end. The Schaeffers not only had to contend with the launching of a new ministry and  a new approach to ministry, but they had to contend with the opposition of well meaning friends.

 

Did Their Mission Succeed? 

In terms of numbers, nations, and cultures, the Schaeffers succeeded. Young adults came by the thousands from around the world to learn of Christ, to receive Christ, and to go in Christ to their places of service around the world as pastors, doctors, artists, social workers, businessmen, professors, etc.

In terms of forming leaders for the church, they most certainly succeeded. Many Christian leaders cite the influence and mentorship of Francis and Edith Schaeffer in their lives and ministries.  Among the many are Charles Colson, James Dobson, Norman Geisler, Wayne Grudem, D. James Kennedy, C. Everett Koop, Rick and Nancy Pearcey, R. C. Sproul, Cal Thomas, David F. Wells. and my favorite author, Os Guinness.  The list goes on and on.

You can click on this link to read more of the Schaeffers and their mentorship.

So, how did this single Swiss chalet influence come to influence me and what does that influence look like today?  More precisely, how could that chalet influence not just one “someone” but ever increasing circles of “someones” in America and overseas?

 

My Journey

In my college years I discovered the writings of Schaeffer. His ability to take what others called complex and concisely make it clear spoke to my mind; his deep, calm fire for God spoke to my heart.  Books like, “The God Who Is There, “He Is There and He is Not Silent,” and “Joshua and the Flow of Human History,” spoke to me in the early years of my journey with Jesus.  These and other works by Schaeffer have continued to help guide me in my life and ministry in Jesus through the years.

Prior to launching Journey Pastoral Coaching in November 2014, I coached many younger ministers in my roles as a local church pastor, college campus pastor, and missionary. For the past four years it has been my joy and privilege to serve as a full-time pastoral coach – full-time as in I spend my days and many evenings on the phone coaching ministers of all kinds across America and overseas.

I spend my time pastoring.  Even more, I am investing my life in pastoring tremendous ministry leaders. Because of this, I often tell people that I have the greatest “job” in the world.  I only wish that I had more hours in my day and week in order to accept more members into Journey, and so, share more journeys.

 

Our “Chalet” Ministry

When we launched Journey four years ago we had a very clear focus and mission  in mind.  From day one, our focus  has been on young ministers and our mission  has been “to help young ministers build strong for a lifetime of healthy and effective ministry.”

We determined that we would do this at NO COST to the young ministers whom God would lead to Journey. This was not a difficult decision to make. From day one we have been convinced that this is the will of God for Journey and its mission.  We trust Him to supply His call, providing the financial resources we need to carry out the ministry He has given us.

And so, Journey offers No Cost coaching to our members.

To be sure, there are practical reasons that support our No Cost coaching principle.  Let me share these reasons with you . . .

 

Reason #1:  Student Loan Debt

Many young ministers and their spouses carry heavy student loan debt from college – the numbers some carry would take your breath away.  Add in the costs of seminary and your heart would stop at the debt load – even though many Bible Colleges and seminaries are lower cost institutions than their secular counterparts.  Student loan debt requires many years to repay.

 

Reason #2:  Entry-level Salaries

Ministers serving in their first and second positions earn little in salary. Many are required to pay all of their Social Security and Medicare tax (15.3% of income) rather than split this cost with their employers as most Americans do. Some churches or ministries provide little or no health insurance to pastors and their young families.  Many young ministers are bi-vocational, working full-time jobs to support their ministries and families. Even with small children in the house, many of the mates also work in order to support themselves in ministry.

 

Reason #3:  New Marriages and Families

Young ministers are marrying and starting families, just establishing themselves in life and ministry.  The expenses of just starting out also add financial burden. I’m sure you remember.

 

The Called and the Crazy

As you can see, the financial situations faced by many young ministers are challenging indeed.  In the natural, it all calls to mind the counsel my pastor gave me when I told him that God had called me to the ministry:  “There are only two kinds of people in the ministry, the called and the crazy.”  He wasn’t only speaking of the low pay most ministers received as he continued, “You’re crazy to be a minister if you’re not called, but you’re crazy not to be a minister if you are called.  If you’re not called, it will undo you; but if you are called, you’ll never be content doing anything else: for us, it’s the will of God at all costs.”

We are left then with a dilemma:  young ministers most need – and most want – pastoral coaching; and yet they are those least able to afford it.

And so again, rather than add to the financial burdens of young ministers, we at Journey seek to lift them by offering coaching at No Cost to our members.

This obviously thrills those who come to us for coaching.  The money they would have spent on coaching can go instead to pay off student loans, provide health insurance for their families, or pay the rent.  Even more importantly, our members are thankful for the opportunity to walk with a pastoral coach – and with a solid group of peer coaches – who provide them the insight, encouragement, challenge, and wisdom they need and want as ministers of the Gospel.

 

“I Don’t Buy In to ‘NO COST’”

To be sure, there are those who raise their eyebrows at what we are doing. They don’t “buy in” to our No Cost approach.

Let me be clear in what I mean by No Cost coaching.  While it is true that our members do not PAY for coaching, they do EARN it.  They earn it by systematically investing themselves in building the Journey coaching community.  They earn coaching by:

Investing in their peers through regular and special peer coaching calls;

Investing in ther peers through resourcing each other AND the Journey coach;

Investing in their peers through encouraging and celebrating them, sharing their struggles, sharing learning and wisdom, praying for them and actively standing by them.

In this way, those who most need and want pastoral coaching, but can least afford it, are able to receive it. And what they have worked to earn, they sincerely appreciate.

How then do we financially sustain Journey so as to provide No Cost coaching? Through the twin sisters of faith and wisdom:  we pray every day, trusting our Heavenly Father to give us this day our daily bread at Journey, touching the hearts of people to support this ministry; and, we walk and work wisely to steward well the resources God has provided us.

To be fair, our approach is not new and we are not the first to make use of it. We walk in the shadows of giants who have shown us the way.  Two of them lived in a Swiss chalet.

 

The View From Our Chalet

We would never compare ourselves or Journey to the Schaeffers or L’Abri. God has used the pastoring, preaching, teaching, writing, films and mentorship of Francis and Edith Schaeffer to change lives around the world. Their influence on the ministry, the church and the world cannot possibly be overstated.

But this is the point:  as you can see, the Schaeffers’ chalet has most definitely influenced my Journey and that of Journey Pastoral Coaching:  from my personal study of Scripture and thinking about the church and the world to Journey’s no cost ministry, to working with fewer rather than with more, we at Journey have learned much from the example of L’Abri.

We are convinced that as we offer pastoral coaching at No Cost to young ministers, they too will become world changers.  Not because of Journey, but because we provide them the space to grow, the tools to build, and a place in which to develop.

The ministry of Francis and Edith Schaeffer at L’Abri has proven the truth of this adage, “You can count the apples on a tree, but who can count the apples in a seed?”  As the fruit of L’Abri continues to multiply around the world even after the Schaeffers have left this world, may God use Journey in some small way to produce similar fruit – to the glory of God, the good of His people, and the salvation of those who are yet separated from Him.

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NOTE: Journey Pastoral Coaching provides pastoral coaching to Millennial ministers.

Saddled with large student debt, just beginning to set up homes and start families, and serving in low paying first and second positions, Millennials are those who most desire but can least afford to pay for pastoral coaching.

So we offer it to them at NO COST: Our members do not PAY for coaching; they EARN it.

We are able to do so through the faithful and generous gifts of friends who want to see young leaders not only enter the ministry, but remain in the ministry. If you or your church would like to help Millennial ministers in 21 US states and 5 nations build strong for a lifetime in ministry, please click here to contact us by email or to support Journey monthly or with your one-time gift. Thank you.

We also invite you to click and subscribe to our twice-monthly blogs at journeypastoralcoaching.com

 

“In the early years when I was becoming a pastor, I needed a pastor.” 

Eugene H. Peterson, The Pastor: A Memoir