It's hard to believe that
francisschaefferstudies.org is three years old, and that so much has happened in such a short amount of time. Within just three years we were blessed to be able to put on our first mini-conference called
The Francis Schaeffer Centennial honoring Schaeffer's 100th birthday, recorded several live events, taught four Schaeffer semester classes, created our
first documentary (for the Francis Schaeffer Collection at SEBTS), interviewed eight scholars for the
Francis Schaeffer Legacy Project and created over 50 videos. Thousands have visited the web site in both it's early and revised form and we have had over 30,000 views on the blog. Social media, particularly Facebook has really taken off, where the
fan page has 1700+ followers and
the group has over 500 members. Some of our proudest achievements have been ones that are more dear to our heart; historical preservation. We have been blessed to find and recover numerous historical documents and items in our
acquisitions project that have been digitized and shared with other Schaeffer organizations. We can only stand amazed at all that has happened and are so thankful for all that God has provided and the many friends we have met along the way. We are thankful for you all!
In three years our goals have been to accomplish three things:
- To Be a Resource: To be a fan site and resources for the promotion and study of the works of Francis and Edith Schaeffer.
- For the Next Generation: To assist in passing the works of Francis &
Edith Schaeffer to the next generation and make their thought and
teaching more accessible for general inquiry.
- To Provide a Service: To be a service to the Francis Schaeffer and L'Abri community.
Our primary foundations have really been three core principles:
- Honoring Leadership Biblically: To be mindful of the Biblical principle of leadership and the instruction to "Remember
your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the
outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. (Hebrews 13:7
ESV)
- Preserving Legacy: To be careful to be mindful of the legacy of Francis and Edith Schaeffer and preserve their history and message as closely as possible.
- Total Lordship: To effectively communicate the Lordship of Christ in the whole of life, which was the foundational principle of the Schaeffer's message.
Our goals for the coming year are to build on our three goals and stick to our primary motivations. Our list of projects for the future is as full as the list of accomplishments God has allowed. We continue to praise God for His provision, as His hand as been evident in every step of this work. We hope that you will join us in prayer and follow along as we continue to provide this free service.
Dan Guinn
Founder, Francis Schaeffer Studies
