I love to hear and read about remarkable answers to prayer. Here is one of my favorites.

Edith and Francis Schaeffer believed they had been led to Switzerland in the mid-1950’s to use their lifestyle and message to show that God truly exists. Yet, they received an official notice that they were being expelled from the country. A few local people had objected to the Schaeffers’ Sunday service and outreach. Others in the village strongly supported the Schaeffers, but the government said the family could stay in Switzerland only if they found a place to live in a different area. When they received the notice, very little time remained before the deadline to leave.

During the last possible day to find a new house to rent, Edith, in tears, realized that only God could provide the place. All the places she and Fran had looked at were either unavailable or too expensive. In the last thirty minutes before she had to go catch the train, a real estate agent, who had ignored them in the past, called to Edith to come with him to see a three-story chalet part-way down the mountain from the ski resort where she had been looking. The place turned out to be ideal, but it was for sale! They didn’t have any money, and besides that, who would buy a house when threatened with expulsion from the country?

After an hour of fervent prayer that evening, Edith startled herself by praying a very unusual and almost presumptuous prayer. She asked that they would receive $1000 by 10 a.m. the next morning if God really wanted them to buy that chalet. That amount, which would be toward a down payment, was really a great deal of money back in 1955.

The next morning, the postman met the Schaeffers on the way to the train. Edith opened a letter from an American couple who had never sent money before. They had enclosed exactly $1000!  Later Mrs. Salisbury told Edith they had prayed for three months about how to spend the unexpected money her husband had received at work. One night they reached the conclusion that it should be sent to the Schaeffers for their work with young people. The couple immediately drove through a rainstorm to mail the letter at the main post office, feeling they shouldn’t wait until the next morning.

Only God could have orchestrated the perfect answer to Edith’s prayer, as the letter had to cross the ocean, be for the exact amount, and arrive at the precise time! I’m also struck by the purpose underlying this answer because the prayer verified the Schaeffers’ path for their life’s ministry.

The photo  of the Dents du Midi in the Swiss Alps shows the mountains that could be seen from their chalet. Thanks to Vladimir Nordmann, who posted the shot on Unsplash.

This answer to prayer and stories of how God worked through the Schaeffers’ new alpine home can be found in L’Abris by Edith Schaeffer. It’s written in English and available on Amazon.