Early Childhood

Let's begin this first post with Dr. Stenhouse's early childhood.  The audio is an interview with him conducted by this author. If you prefer to read the chapter in biography format, you can do so below.

Audio

Download the Podcast  |  Prefer to read the transcript?

Dr. Andrew Stenhouse’s journey began in Detroit, Michigan, where he was born in 1934. His parents, both strong believers and members of the Plymouth Brethren, were of Scottish nationality. His mother worked as a retail store buyer, instilling in young Andrew a foundational lesson on commerce:

"In case you want to be a buyer in a clothing store, the way you make money is by buying correctly and not selling. So it sells itself."

His father worked for General Motors as a spring designer before the family's lives shifted dramatically with the approach of World War II.

Just before the outbreak of the war, the family returned to Britain by boat, taking a considerable risk on the Atlantic crossing amidst the threat of German U-boats. The voyage itself left few distinct impressions on the young boy, save for a memorable moment when a whale collided with the side of the ship.

After returning to England, living north of London, his father stepped into a critical national role, put in charge of all British steel for the war effort. Though life during wartime carried immense pressures, young Andrew occasionally enjoyed trips up to the Midlands of England, driven in a chauffeur-driven car alongside his father.

It was during these turbulent early years in wartime London, at about seven years of age, that Andrew experienced the first of many profound, supernatural encounters that would shape his life. Most nights, family safety meant sheltering under the stairs to avoid shrapnel and falling debris if the house was hit. However, one evening after falling asleep in his bed, Andrew woke to find himself being carried through the bombing zone under the wings of an angel.

The experience was remarkably vivid:

"There I was—I was being carried under the wings of an angel into the bombing zone. And the angel was talking to a partner angel on his left-hand side. And they were laughing and having such a good time dodging the bombs and staying out of the searchlights."

After roughly ten to fifteen minutes, the intensity proved too much for a seven-year-old, and he began to cry. The next thing he knew, he was back in his bed, where his father checked on him after hearing him upset. Andrew recounted what happened, receiving a bewildered look from his father before drifting back to sleep.

The miraculous event repeated itself another night. Once more, he found himself enveloped in the soft, cozy shelter of an angel’s right wing—likely the same companion angel—gliding through the illuminated London night sky while narrowly missing the falling bombs. After another brief journey, he cried out and woke safely back in his bed, prompting his father to check on him once again.

Looking back on these extraordinary beginnings, Andrew understood that his life was defined not by religious ritual, but by a deeply personal relationship with the Heavenly Father. Reflecting on the core of his faith, he often emphasized the profound truth of God's call:

"We're not in a religion, really, we're in a relationship with our Heavenly Father. And He has called each one of us separately to be related to Him. And He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to die on the cross in order that He could take our sins in His body on the tree and make the way for us to have eternal life."

Author's Note: See the next chapter called Later Childhood. You can find my most popular blogs at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe. 

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.  

Later Childhood

We began this series with my previous post on the Early Childhood of Dr. Andrew Stenhouse. In this post, you can listen to the podcast of my interview with him about his later childhood. If you prefer to read the chapter in biography format, you can do so below.

Audio

Download the podcast   |   Prefer to read the transcript?

Wartime brought immense misery and constant disruption to Andrew Stenhouse's early years, yet it also became a backdrop for remarkable displays of faith and divine protection. As the conflict escalated, the family was evacuated north to Scotland to stay near his grandmothers. The journey itself was fraught with danger; the train carrying them came under enemy bombing. Even as a young boy, Andrew possessed a profound, unshakeable trust, attempting to reassure his mother and sister that Jesus would take care of them. Sure enough, neither the engine nor the passenger carriages were hit, and Andrew courageously walked up and down the long corridor of the train, telling fellow passengers, "It's going to be all right. Jesus is with us. He’ll take care of us," right up until they arrived safely in Glasgow.

Upon settling in Scotland, the realities of war remained ever-present. Directly across from where they stayed was the Holy Loch, a key location for British submarine production that made it a frequent target for German bombing raids. Walking to school daily, Andrew and other children witnessed aerial dogfights overhead, with British and German planes clashing and occasionally crashing into the waters of the west coast.

Despite the trauma and destruction unfolding around him, Andrew maintained a close, comforting walk with the Lord. His desire to serve and please God manifested even in small, everyday challenges. Eager to earn a Bible offered by a wonderful visiting Jewish gentleman to any child who could memorize Psalm 1 and Psalm 145, young Andrew took matters into his own hands. Retreating to the Sunday school bathroom to work in peace, he quickly mastered Psalm 1. Psalm 145 proved more demanding, taking him several weeks of diligent effort, but he succeeded. With his earned Bible, he gifted it to his mother, who treasured it as her favorite for the rest of her life.

Faith during these formative years was deeply personal rather than institutional. Andrew’s love for the Lord ran deeper than natural explanations could account for, leading him later in life to take the step of public baptism. Immersed fully in water inside the church, he emerged feeling profoundly changed, recognizing baptism not as a prerequisite for salvation, but as an essential act of obedience that keeps a believer's relationship with the Heavenly Father unhindered.

Sundays also cemented his love for the worship of Christ. During a Sunday school class, a visiting preacher asked the children if any of them had a favorite hymn. Young Andrew eagerly raised his hand and recited the opening lines of William Cowper's classic: "There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emanuel's veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains." Singing those words filled him with an enduring warmth regarding the sacrifice of Jesus.

Looking back on those years, Andrew often reflected on how much the world's spiritual climate shifted in the decades that followed, drifting away from its Creator. His ultimate hope and message remained centered on that very same relationship—urging others to bypass rigid religion and embrace a personal, living connection with the Heavenly Father, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, resting in the simple desire to please Him through all of life's trials.

Author's Note: The next post in this series is Teen Years. You may find the other posts in this series on the Home page. You can find my most popular blogs at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe. 

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.  

Teen Years

In my previous post, we covered Dr. Andrew Stenhouse's Later Childhood. Now in this segment, we'll cover his teen years, when he moved from Scotland to New Zealand and chose a career path.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript?

Covering the years from thirteen through seventeen, Andrew Stenhouse’s teenage years brought monumental transitions—taking him halfway across the globe from the wartime trials of Scotland to the peaceful expanses of New Zealand.

The move was prompted by sheer exhaustion. Following years of relentless wartime labor overseeing all British steel production for the war effort—managing materials for tanks, planes, and springs while traveling constantly between London and the countryside—Andrew's father was deeply fatigued. Because the family had relatives living in New Zealand, the region offered a natural and welcoming haven to escape the lingering trauma of World War II.

The journey to their new home was an adventure in itself, taking the family by ship through the Suez Canal. The voyage held special significance for Andrew's father, who had previously earned a master’s degree from the University of London with a thesis titled "The Source of Water for Israel." Andrew had actively assisted his father with the charts and mapping for the project. Looking out at the landscape during their travels, a young Andrew even urged his father to disembark and see the lands they had mapped firsthand, though his father declined, noting it wasn't possible at the time.

Upon arriving in New Zealand, the family settled into a new chapter. Academically gifted, Andrew had done exceptionally well in Scotland, earning a surprise medal in mathematics. However, the transition between different educational systems and college programs was a distinct challenge for a teenager.

Before diving fully into higher education, Andrew's natural artistic and technical strengths shone early. At age fifteen, he worked in the government's lands and survey department within the mapping section, successfully passing his professional mapping exams. Because of this background—and because his father possessed strong artistic talents and recognized Andrew's gift for cartography—geology felt like a natural trajectory.

Just before turning sixteen, Andrew spent two weeks during a holiday visiting his father, who was then working as a teacher in northern New Zealand. Together, they carefully evaluated various career possibilities. With no other direction quite fitting as well, they settled on geology.

True to his exceptional intellect and drive, Andrew entered Wellington University in Wellington, New Zealand, at just sixteen years old—an unusual age for university admission at the time. To help support his family and pay his way, he attended classes by day and worked after hours as a kitchen helper in a restaurant.

He threw himself wholeheartedly into his studies, majoring in geology as a direct follow-up to his father’s academic work. Yet, as well-laid as these academic plans were, young Andrew was about to experience a profound spiritual pivot. Though he had carefully mapped out his course in cartography and the earth sciences, the Heavenly Father had an entirely different, unexpected calling in store for his future.

Author's Note: The next post in this series is Called to Be a Doctor. You can find the Home page of this blog at this link. You can find my most popular blogs at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe. 

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.  

Called to Be a Doctor

This is an interview with Dr. Andrew Stenhouse, former president of Doulos Missions International, as he tells how he heard the audible voice of the Lord calling him to be a medical doctor at the age of 17. (Note: This was originally recorded in August 2016).

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript?

As seventeen-year-old Andrew Stenhouse settled into his promising university studies in geology and his cartography work in New Zealand, his meticulously planned career path was about to experience a radical, divine redirection.

The turning point came when a Christian friend named Ruth invited him to attend a worship service. Sitting quietly in the pews, Andrew enjoyed the service until a profound spiritual encounter changed the trajectory of his life forever. During the preaching, he heard the audible voice of God speak directly to him from his right side, declaring, "You are going to be a doctor."

Startled, Andrew whispered to Ruth, "Did you hear somebody talk?"

Whispering back, she admonished him, "Shush, Andrew. You don’t talk in church."

"I know," he replied.

Moments later, the voice spoke again with the same clear command. As the reality of the call sank in, his entire body began to shake violently like a rag doll, disrupting the service and causing nearby congregants to pull away in alarm. Realizing that his Creator was moving upon him, Andrew began arguing silently and inwardly with God, pouring out his resistance:

"This is my Creator doing this... I started talking to God and telling Him how I hated the war in London during World War II and the bombs and blood and guts and people not coming back to school. And the one thing I didn’t want to do was be a doctor."

The internal and physical struggle intensified to the point where the shaking grew so severe he feared he might physically die. Fearing for his life, he stopped resisting and fell silent.

Instantly, the shaking stopped. Then, a second voice spoke—not from his right side, but encompassing him from his lower left, as though the Holy Spirit or God was completely surrounding him. This time, it was an unmistakable command: "You will be a doctor."

Surrendered and humbled, Andrew answered, "Yes, Lord, I will be a doctor."

From that exact moment onward, everything else in his life lost its hold. Though he had been raised strictly and knew people would think he was out of his mind—and indeed, everyone he told later thought he was nuts—the divine mandate superseded all else. At seventeen years old, he immediately resigned from his geological survey job and dropped his geology courses.

Leaving his familiar surroundings behind, Andrew crossed over to New Zealand’s South Island to begin pre-med studies. The academic hurdle was immense; having focused entirely on languages, mathematics, and geology, he had none of the foundational science background that his peers had spent their entire lives acquiring. Yet, driven by absolute obedience to the call of God, he stepped forward into a medical career he had never wanted, walking straight into the destiny the Heavenly Father had prepared for him.

Author's note: See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. The next post is about his Medical Studies.

A more complete interview about his calling into medicine can be found here at The Voice That Changed Everything and the podcast at this link. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

Medical Studies

In my previous post, we covered how Dr. Andrew Stenhouse was Called to Be a Doctor by God in a very supernatural way. Now in this segment, we'll cover his medical studies, when he resigned from the his geological studies and began his studies to become a medical doctor in obedience to God's call on his life.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript?

Following his life-altering call to medicine, Andrew Stenhouse’s transition was swift and absolute. The very Monday after hearing the voice of God in Wellington, he resigned from his geology courses and the geological survey. Even his exit offered a quiet sign of divine alignment: though he had completed a map for the geology department, they tore it up, telling him he had done it too quickly—confirming that his path there was truly over.

He relocated to the South Island, heading to Dunedin to enter the medical school. Stepping into a rigorous medical program without any background in the sciences—having previously focused only on languages, mathematics, and geology—was a daunting challenge. Yet, the Lord's hand was evident from the start. On his very first day, lacking any acquaintances, students were paired up by default. When the professor in charge of the physics department asked his partner's name, the man replied, "David Stenhouse." When she turned to Andrew, he answered, "Andrew Stenhouse." Out of everyone in New Zealand, the only two Stenhouses randomly paired together happened to be side by side.

Throughout his grueling four years of medical studies, Andrew maintained a strict discipline of honoring the Sabbath, refusing to study on Sundays—a commitment he believed the Heavenly Father faithfully honored.

At the end of his fourth year, Andrew earned a research year grant in experimental virology. A newly arrived professor from Cambridge had brought plant cultures and research ideas with him, and Andrew joined him to pursue a separate degree—a Bachelor of Medical Science—taking a dedicated year for research before returning to complete the standard medical exams at the end of his sixth year.

As part of this fifth-year public-health research, Andrew traveled hundreds of miles north to the remote South Pacific island of Rarotonga in the Cook Islands—a tropical paradise of turquoise waters, white-sand beaches, and grass-roofed huts. Reaching the island required boarding a tiny ship docked so low he had to climb down onto it. Propelled by what seemed like an outboard motor at a modest six or seven knots, the vessel miraculously survived a mini-typhoon with massive waves breaking on board to deliver him safely.

During his four or five months in Rarotonga, Andrew assisted the local surgeon. Beyond his virology work—which included discovering that the island children's immunity to diphtheria came from swimming and rubbing against organisms on the local reefs—he delivered babies and performed surgical repairs. This included traveling to Mangia, a wilder neighboring island where local habits led to some unique medical cases: Andrew frequently found himself sewing up the ears of men who arrived with their ears nearly chewed off by women in local altercations. When it came time to leave, the hospital staff threw an elaborate farewell feast, assigning three nurses to each of the researchers: one to keep their glasses filled with orange juice, one to manage their food, and a third to fan them with a giant fan against the tropical ocean heat.

Following his time in the Cook Islands, Andrew was assigned to Hamilton, New Zealand, to complete his fifth-year clinical placement. (He would later complete his sixth year of medical studies in Christchurch, then his first resident house surgeon year back in Hamilton, and subsequently his second resident house surgeon year in Murupara).

 

In Hamilton, he was assigned to work under a surgeon who had served during the wartime London bombings, creating an immediate bond. Almost immediately, the Lord provided another striking confirmation of Andrew's path. The very first patient they evaluated presented with a mysterious, massive groin mass that baffled the local medical staff. Having encountered the exact same presentation in Rarotonga, Andrew recognized it immediately as a giant lymph node mass caused by a specific regional organism. Furthermore, when he spoke to the patient in the Rarotongan language—and the patient replied in kind—the room was stunned.

Though initially unsettled that a student diagnosed a case he couldn't solve, the surgeon soon warmed up. The very next day, as they consulted with a female patient, Andrew answered a question from the surgeon, prompting the patient to look up and say, "Andrew!"

It was Ruth—the very same Christian friend who had invited him to the Wellington church service years earlier, where he had heard the audible voice of God call him to medicine. Now, hundreds of miles away from where that life-changing moment occurred, their paths crossed again. Meeting Ruth and her family served as a deeply personal reassurance from the Lord. As Andrew reflected, God continually provided small, private confirmations along the way—tokens of faithfulness that proved he was walking precisely where he was meant to be.

Author's note: The next chapter in this story is called Residency. See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org. 

Residency

In my previous post, we covered the Lord's faithfulness that was evident in Dr. Andrew Stenhouse's Medical Studies. Now in this segment, we'll cover the residency that he did after returning from his special assignment to Roratonga in the Cook Islands.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript?

Following his fifth-year placement, Dr. Andrew Stenhouse entered the formal two-year residency phase that immediately follows graduation and medical school capping. For his second-year residency, Andrew felt a distinct call from the Lord to serve in Murupara—a remote bush settlement where no resident doctor was stationed, and the local hospital focused strictly on obstetrics.

Out of all his peers, Andrew was the sole doctor who stepped forward to take the assignment, embarking on a uniquely demanding and formative year. Because he was isolated deep in the bush—with the nearest full obstetrical hospital fifty-five miles away—he found himself handling whatever medical needs arose. With a large population of Māori residents living within a twenty-mile radius, expectant mothers would regularly appear at the clinic day or night, ready to deliver with no prior medical history or risk-assessment records available.

Despite having performed only ten to twelve supervised deliveries during his training, Andrew relied entirely on divine guidance. Supported by experienced local maternity nurses, he managed every complicated delivery successfully and never lost a single baby. Because he routinely administered local anesthetics, the grateful mothers affectionately dubbed him "the painless doctor." The gratitude of the community was so profound that many parents asked if they could name their newborns "Andrew," resulting in a generation of young children running around the bush area carrying his name.

Among the local stories was a humorous recurring incident in the delivery room:

"I’ll give you a story about one of the babies that came out—a beautiful child—and the mother started to cry," Andrew recalled. "And I said, 'What's wrong, dear?'"

"And she said, 'Oh, he's done it again!'"

"And I said, 'What did he do again?'"

"And she said, 'He's given my baby away.' ... Because the hospitals and government gave them about seven dollars or ten dollars a month for every child they have. And he was using the future child's money for betting. So, she was crying because of that—I mean, he cried because of it, too. But I didn’t say anything to him because they were bigger than me."

Beyond obstetrics and minor surgical repairs, Andrew’s duties in Murupara unexpectedly extended into dentistry. Operating out of a small clinic, he treated severe dental issues using a single, heavy-duty pair of extraction pliers dating back to the late 1800s, left behind by a German missionary. Guided intuitively, he learned a simple technique to make a small fracture on the thinnest side of the jawbone so problem teeth would slide out safely. In addition to his primary post, he traveled weekly to run a practice in the nearby town of Kaingaroa—navigating nighttime roadways where logging truck drivers would occasionally speed behind him in an attempt to run him off the road. Through every hazard, his faith remained his shield.

Upon completing his grueling year in Murupara, Andrew transitioned into the registrar phase of his medical career—consisting of two supervisory years following residency. Invited back to the teaching hospital in Dunedin, he applied for a position in the Department of Medicine.

The Lord orchestrated a remarkable advancement. Unbeknownst to Andrew, the chief of the hospital had secretly contacted the chief medical officer in Hamilton to inquire about his reputation, receiving the strict advice: "Don’t put anyone else but Stenhouse in that position." As a result, Andrew bypassed the standard junior registrar entry level and was placed directly into the senior registrar position, working closely under the chief professor of medicine.

The unexpected elevation sparked professional jealousy among peers who had waited years for the role. Some colleagues attempted to burden him further by calling in sick on their on-call days, or citing chronic medical flare-ups to avoid shifts. Yet Andrew maintained his composure, relying on humility and faith rather than defending himself.

As a senior registrar in a major teaching hospital, his responsibilities were immense:

• Supervision: Overseeing all junior doctors and residents on the hospital floors to ensure appropriate patient care and treatment plans.
• Emergency Admissions: Evaluating emergency room admissions to verify that incoming patients were appropriate for the floor and prescribed correct medications.
• Clinical Education: Teaching not only junior residents, but also medical students—frequently instructing individuals who had held medical licenses longer than he had.

Though the workload required working through the night and keeping pace day after day, Andrew deflected all personal credit. Reflecting on how God exalted him after his humble service out in the bush, he continually emphasized that his success was never about his own strength, but about maintaining a willing heart to please the Heavenly Father.

Author's note: The next chapter in this series is Post Graduate Experiences of God's Faithfulness. See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org. 

Post Graduate Experiences

In my previous post, we covered the Lord's faithfulness that was evident in Dr. Andrew Stenhouse's Residency. Now in this segment, we'll cover his post graduate experiences of God's faithfulness.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript?

Dr. Andrew Stenhouse’s postgraduate journey marked a season of extraordinary professional achievement, divine alignment, and global travel.

As he completed his final year as senior registrar to the chief professor of medicine in Dunedin, he faced one of the most rigorous and prestigious hurdles in medical training: the fellowship examinations for the Royal College of Australasian Physicians, covering both Australia and New Zealand. Out of twenty elite candidates who sat for the grueling multi-day exam—which included written papers, pathological specimen identification, and long and short clinical cases—only two passed, resulting in a strict ten-percent pass rate. Andrew was the only candidate from New Zealand to succeed.

His success hinged on a remarkable instance of divine preparation. During the exam's long-case evaluation, Andrew was tasked with diagnosing a rare condition in a patient he had never met. Months prior, the Lord had led him to read and memorize a series of complex, cutting-edge medical cases published across the world in journals like the New England Journal of Medicine. The patient's exact condition happened to be one of the cases he had memorized.

The examining doctor was so astonished by Andrew's precise, instant diagnosis that he suspected Andrew had seen the patient beforehand. After checking with the patient—who confirmed they had never met—the examiner was left stunned. Giving all glory to the Lord, Andrew recognized that his success was entirely the result of following divine instruction to absorb those specific medical texts.

Following this achievement, Andrew stepped into an even higher role as chief resident (or senior resident) to the dean of the medical school. In this capacity, he faced a delicate medical situation when the dean’s own daughter fell ill. When Andrew diagnosed a condition requiring surgery, the dean initially disagreed. However, bringing in an older, highly respected chief of surgery confirmed Andrew's exact clinical findings and x-ray interpretation, leading to successful surgery and proving once again the wisdom of the medical principle that a physician should never personally manage the medical care of their own immediate family.

Soon after, Andrew was selected as the first New Zealand recipient of a Wellcome Research Fellowship, opening the door for postgraduate research in experimental virology with a professor in Sheffield, England.

The journey to England was an adventure in its own right. Securing passage on a cargo ship for a nominal fee of two shillings and sixpence, Andrew agreed to serve as the ship's doctor onboard for the crew and ten passengers. The thirty-day voyage from New Zealand around the globe was far from uneventful. Andrew found himself managing serious medical emergencies mid-ocean, including a sailor who dove into an empty ship swimming pool and fractured his neck, a patient with acute appendicitis, and another with a broken bone.

Recognizing that the patients required immediate hospital care, Andrew coordinated with the captain to stop at Curaçao—a Dutch island near the northern South American peninsula. As the ship refueled, Andrew safely transferred his patients into waiting ambulances at the local hospital, returning to the vessel just an hour before departure. The tight turnaround was essential, as the captain was racing to break a speed record transporting a massive cargo of half a million frozen sheep from New Zealand to England.

Upon arriving in Sheffield, Andrew's reputation preceded him. A placement manager in London, having reviewed his credentials, contacted him to offer top-tier positions anywhere in London, noting he had never seen such glowing recommendations for a single candidate. Faithful to his path, Andrew politely declined, choosing instead to honor his commitment to the Sheffield research fellowship.

During his time in Sheffield, Andrew conducted extensive patient, laboratory, and isolation studies on new animal organ cultures, successfully isolating different viruses. His work culminated in writing and publishing two separate papers by himself in the British Medical Journal—an extraordinary feat for a single researcher.

Yet, as doors of opportunity swung wide open across the medical field, Andrew consistently deflected all personal praise. Looking back at the exams, the fellowship, the sea voyage, and the published papers, he steadfastly maintained that his journey was not a testament to his own abilities, but to the unwavering faithfulness of the Father to anyone with a willing heart to please Him.

Author's note: The next chapter in this story is Experiences with the Lord in England. See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org. 

Experiences with the Lord in England

In my previous post, we covered Dr. Andrew Stenhouse's Post Graduate Experiences of God's Faithfulness. Now in this segment, we'll cover his experiences with the Lord in England.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript? 

Following his arrival in England for his postgraduate research, Dr. Andrew Stenhouse faced yet another elite professional hurdle: the membership examinations for London's prestigious Royal College of Physicians. Drawing candidates from all over the world, the examination was fiercely competitive. Over a thousand doctors sat for the test, but only fifty would pass—a demanding five-percent success rate.

On the day of the exam, an arrogant doctor from Oxford went around introducing himself to intimidate other candidates. When he approached Andrew and demanded to know his name, Andrew calmly replied, "It's doesn't matter, because I'm the one that's going to pass." True to his word, Andrew never saw him again after that encounter.

The multi-stage exam lasted all day, comprising written papers, short-case evaluations, electrocardiograms, and radiological analyses. The final portion required entering a room to interview and diagnose a patient with a complex condition under the scrutiny of two senior professors from across Britain. As soon as Andrew stepped in front of the gentleman, the Lord revealed the exact diagnosis to him, making the evaluation straightforward. He passed with flying colors.

Following the exams, Andrew transitioned to the renowned Tropical Medicine School in London, collaborating with a leading professor on advanced virus experiments. During this season, he often spoke with his colleague about the Lord, harboring a quiet conviction that he would one day serve as a missionary—a calling that began to take specific shape toward Afghanistan.

Yet, one of the most remarkable turns of events during his time in London had nothing to do with medicine, but rather with his identity. As Andrew recalled:

"I was coming back from lunch one day, and walking through a large, public park in London, on my way back to the Tropical Medicine School. And I was just minding my own business, walking after lunch, and I heard the voice of the Lord say to me, ‘Look to your right.’ And so I looked to the right, and there was the U.S. Embassy; and I had never noticed it before. And the Lord said to me, ‘Where you were born is important to me.’ And so I said, ‘Lord, you want me to go there?’ And I saw him nod as it were and, ‘Yes.’ So I did a quick ninety-degrees to the right and walked into the Embassy..."

Meeting with a remarkably helpful staff member, Andrew was told that all she needed to formalize his paperwork was his birth certificate. He quickly arranged for his parents to mail a copy from home.

When he returned to the Embassy to drop it off, a serendipitous divine appointment awaited him. That exact day happened to be a scheduled group naturalization ceremony for U.S. citizenship. The assistant told him, "Dr. Stenhouse, just get on the end of the line, and it'll save you coming back."

Standing at the very end of the queue, around age twenty-six, the boy born in Detroit, Michigan, formally took the oath of allegiance to the United States—seamlessly locked into place by divine orchestration. Reflecting on the moment, Andrew saw it as yet another reminder that when a person simply listens and follows the leading of the Spirit, the Lord lovingly handles every detail of their path.

Author's note: The next chapter in Dr. Stenhouse's life is his Experiences of God's Protection in Afghanistan. See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org. 

Experiences in Afghanistan

In my previous post, we covered Dr. Andrew Stenhouse's Experiences with the Lord in England. Now in this segment, we'll cover his experiences with the Lord in Afghanistan.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript? 

Following his time in London, Dr. Andrew Stenhouse felt a distinct leading in his spirit that his missionary calling was not yet complete. While living in Hawaii on a break, a visiting doctor from California mentioned an urgent need for an intern to serve as a professor of medicine at a new medical school near the Pakistani border in Afghanistan. Recognizing this as a divine appointment, Andrew accepted the call.

His journey into the country began with an immediate provision. As his plane prepared to land in Kabul, an official announcement declared a mandatory five-dollar fee for all visitors. Remembering he lacked the cash, Andrew silently prayed to the Lord, who assured him not to worry. When the collection officer approached, he recognized Andrew's purpose:

"Oh, Dr. Stenhouse, are you coming to help our people?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well, there will be no charge for you."

Out of everyone on the aircraft, Andrew was the only passenger exempted from the fee.

Once settled, Andrew took on the monumental task of establishing the medical program and instructing a large class of over a hundred students hailing from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran. Every morning, he woke early to memorize three to four hours of lecture material without notes. Depending on the room's mood, he relied on trusted student translators to convert his outlines into Farsi, Hindi, or Pakhtu.

Teaching under Islamic rule, however, came with constant intimidation. Every day, a local mullah sat at the back of the classroom holding a drawn sword in its sheath, serving as a silent reminder that Andrew was strictly forbidden from mentioning his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Tensions mounted when students attempted to enforce an unwritten rule that no student—especially under a Christian professor—could ever fail an exam. When a group of students boycotted his dermatology final because they had already failed other tests, Andrew responded by failing everyone who participated in the boycott.

The fallout was swift. The resulting political backlash rippled all the way to Kabul, where the king’s cousin—the president of the Kabul School of Medicine—had also faced trouble for failing students. When the cousin invited Andrew over for a cup of tea, he shared his own frustrations about having been demoted to head the country's Department of Infectious Diseases over similar student discipline issues. Meanwhile, it became clear Andrew's time in the region was drawing to a close.

As hostility escalated, the Lord's supernatural protection became his shield. One evening, noticing that his nightly guard was missing from outside his door, Andrew locked his three exterior doors. Moments later, three students broke through two of those doors and forced their way toward his bedroom. With heavy snow falling outside the window in Kabul, escape was impossible.

"And so, anyway, I said, 'Okay, Father,'" Andrew recalled. "And so, immediately, when they got to my door, they started yelling and screaming and took off running. And I'm sure my angel from heaven had appeared and taken them away."

The very next day, while walking to the bank through the streets of Kabul to wind up his accounts, he was targeted by a hired pickpocket amidst a hostile crowd of students. Filled with righteous indignation, Andrew confronted the man and miraculously hurled him nearly thirty feet through the air—an impossible feat of physical strength orchestrated entirely by his angelic guardian. The pickpocket was caught by a student on the edge of the crowd, completely empty-handed, and the mob quickly dispersed, putting away their drawn knives.

For his safety during his final week in the country, Andrew resided within the secure walls of the U.S. Embassy until they safely flew him out, concluding roughly a year of intense service.

During his tenure, his duties had also extended periodically to a remote mission hospital in northern Afghanistan. Traveling there required flying in a small plane with a Missionary Aviation Fellowship pilot, clearing animals off the dirt landing strip before touching down. This northern outpost provided a valuable training exchange, bringing medical students over from the University of Indiana to work alongside the top students from Andrew's school near Jalalabad.

The return trip from the northern hospital, however, was harrowing. It demanded an extreme, high-stakes takeoff where the plane rolled down the dirt path and shot right off the edge of a cliff. With the nose pointed toward the ground, the aircraft relied entirely on gravity as a temporary substitute for engine-driven acceleration, dropping nearly a thousand feet in a freefall dive before the wings generated enough airspeed to pull out and take flight. This razor-thin margin for error left no room for sudden downdrafts or pilot hesitation, relying on absolute discipline to survive.

Reflecting on his turbulent yet grace-filled year in Afghanistan, Andrew maintained nothing but deep love for the people. Though they lived in darkness, they had seen a true light appear—and though many could not bear it, the Heavenly Father's protection and faithfulness sustained him through every hazard.

Author's note: The next chapter in this series is Divine Healing in US Private Practice. See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org. 

Divine Healing in US Private Practice

In my previous post, we covered Dr. Andrew Stenhouse's Experiences in Afghanistan. Now in this segment, we'll cover his experiences of the Lord healing his patients during his private practice in the USA.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript? 

Returning to the United States carried a deep sense of homecoming for Andrew. As a U.S. citizen born in Detroit, Michigan, he was drawn back to Texas to reconnect with two exceptional Texan surgical colleagues whom he had worked alongside in Afghanistan.

His first appointment brought him to Tyler, east of Dallas, where he joined the Southwest Medical School's regional branch focusing on long-term tuberculosis and chest diseases. Yet, after spending a year there while seeking where the Lord would have him plant his life’s work, Andrew felt a clear leading toward private practice.

Weighing his options, he declined a prestigious appointment as the Commissioner of Health for Texas. Another potential opportunity in Lubbock was quickly dismissed when he arrived to survey the city and watched a massive dust storm roll in—interpreting the sudden wall of wind as a clear "no" from the Lord. Finally, he visited Amarillo. The city immediately felt like home. There, he met a senior internal medicine physician looking for someone to take over his practice. Three months later, the beloved doctor retired, passing away peacefully with Andrew holding his hand when the older physician's wife could not be there.

Andrew assumed the practice, stepping into a thirty-year season of private care that he cherished deeply. Beyond practicing conventional internal medicine, his office became a place where medical science and divine healing intersected. Recognizing that physical ailments often carried spiritual roots, Andrew frequently encouraged his believing patients to incorporate daily family communion.

The results were astonishing. When a pastor scheduled for surgery to remove a tumor followed Andrew's guidance to take communion with his wife, a pre-surgical exam revealed the mass had completely vanished, shocking the operating surgeon. In another instance, a patient scheduled for surgery suffered from chronic back and knee pain. Before the operation, he was healed through taking communion and Andrew’s prayer. However, the physical trauma of the subsequent surgery for a separate issue caused the pain to flare back up. When Andrew prayed for him a second time in the hospital, the relief was instantaneous—prompting the joyful patient to race down the hospital hallways pushing an IV pole, playfully telling everyone that if they wanted to get rid of pain, they needed Dr. Stenhouse to pray for them.

On that same remarkable day, Andrew encountered a severe case involving another pastor who presented with a massive, melon-sized tumor protruding from his neck—growing half an inch every week despite aggressive medical treatments. Surrounded by the patient's wife and six board members, Andrew sought the Lord for guidance and received four explicit instructions: Do not touch the tumor; continue seeing the other doctors; tell him how much God loves him (addressing the spiritual burden of guilt and the enemy's lies he had been carrying); and pray for him. 

Andrew gathered the believers in the room, carefully obeying the Lord's instruction not to touch the tumor while reassuring the pastor to continue seeing his other doctors. He spoke of God's profound love—causing the pastor to break down in his arms—and offered a simple prayer of faith. Six to eight weeks later, the patient's private doctor called Andrew with incredible news: the massive melon-sized growth had shrunk down to the size of a small marble. Similar healings followed for patients dealing with conditions ranging from hernias to chronic illnesses.

Whether treating routine internal medicine or witnessing miraculous recoveries, Andrew consistently deflected all personal credit. For thirty years in Amarillo, his practice stood as a testament to what happens when a physician relies not solely on human intellect, but on a willing heart attuned to the guidance of the Father.

Author's note: The next chapter is Dr. Stenhouse's US Medical Practice in the VA Hospital and Hospice. See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org. 

US Medical Practice in the Hospital and Hospice

In my previous post, we covered the divine healing that occurred at various times in Dr. Andrew Stenhouse's US Private Practice that he had for thirty years. Now in this segment, we'll cover his experiences practicing medicine at a VA Hospital and in a hospice in the USA.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript? 

Andrew’s commitment to patient care extended far beyond his private practice. During his career in the United States, he also served as the medical director for a Veterans Administration hospital in Texas. The role held a special place in his heart. Growing up in Britain during World War II, he remembered American servicemen throwing candy from passing cars and tanks, risking everything to help save his homeland. He felt a deep, lifelong debt to honor them.

At the time, the VA healthcare system often carried a reputation for institutionalized, impersonal care. Andrew refused to let that happen under his watch. He made it his mission to ensure that both the veterans and the hospital staff were genuinely cared for. Under his leadership, the facility underwent a radical transformation, becoming recognized not only as the most improved VA hospital in the nation, but soaring into the top five of all hospitals across the United States.

When Andrew traveled to California to accept the national award, other physicians from the top-tier institutions cornered him with a mixture of bewilderment and curiosity.

"Stenhouse," one of them asked, "how did you get into this rarefied atmosphere?"

"It's a matter of caring for your patients and for your staff," Andrew replied.

The doctors looked at him blankly. "What is caring?" they asked, genuinely puzzled.

"You don't know what caring is?" Andrew responded. He explained that medicine was never just about applying clinical techniques to chase good metrics; it was about deeply valuing people—both the sick and those who served them.

That same deep compassion guided Andrew into hospice work toward the latter years of his practice, where he cared for patients navigating the final threshold of life. He always sought to minister to their eternal well-being as diligently as their physical comfort.

One evening, he sat beside a patient who was nearing the end. Andrew spoke with him about his eternal well-being and asked if he had a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus. The man looked at him and said softly, "Well, I don't know how to go about this."

Andrew smiled gently. "Well, you know there's a door; and when you open a door you have to go through it to get through to the other side," he said, tapping his knuckles on the desk to make a sharp knocking sound. "Now, you have to open the door yourself, because the Lord is knocking on your door right now. All you have to do is open it, invite Him in, and thank Him for the work He did on the cross for you, for me, and for everyone."

Early the next morning, Andrew walked back into the hospice room. The patient was sitting up with a wide, radiant smile across his face.

"Are you keeping the door wide open?" Andrew asked.

"Yes, very wide open," the man replied happily. That very night, he passed peacefully into eternity.

Looking back on a lifetime of service—from bush clinics in Murupara and remote strips in Afghanistan to bustling Texas clinics and quiet hospice rooms—Andrew always deflected any personal praise. He often remarked that being called to medicine was a path he never could have imagined as a young man, yet it was an adventure he wouldn't trade for anything in the world. For him, the secret was never about natural talent or professional prestige; it was simply about having a willing heart, remaining obedient to the Father, and letting His compassion flow through a pair of willing hands.

Author's note: The next chapter in this series is about Dr. Stenhouse's extensive Credentials: Counting it All Loss. See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org. 

Credentials: Counting it All Loss

In my previous post, we covered Dr. Andrew Stenhouse's experiences practicing medicine at a VA Hospital and in a hospice in the United States. Now in this segment, we'll cover his extensive credentials.

Audio

Download the podcast   |    Prefer to read the transcript? 

Over fifty-five years of medical practice spanning multiple continents, islands, and healthcare systems—from Oceania and Asia to Europe, North America, and Hawaii—Andrew’s career was marked by extraordinary professional achievement. He earned a Bachelor of Medical Science (BSc), a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.B.S.), and a Postgraduate Doctorate of Medicine (MD) from New Zealand. He was awarded the Wellcome Research Fellowship and earned an extensive roster of prestigious board certifications and fellowships, including as a Member and Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (MRACP, FRACP), Member of the Royal College of Physicians in London (MRCP London), Fellow of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), and Fellow of the American College of Physicians (FACP). Furthermore, his academic contributions included sole- and co-authored articles published across seven different medical journals, including two in The British Medical Journal that garnered significant professional citations.

Yet, when looking back on a lifetime of credentials, degrees, and scholarly honors, Andrew viewed them much like the apostle Paul. As Paul wrote in Philippians 3:7–11:

"But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him..."

For Andrew, that sentiment was not merely theological poetry; it became a literal reality. In 2014, a stroke swept away the accumulated medical knowledge of a lifetime from his memory bank. For a brief time, even his own identity was obscured, though that returned. He could no longer step into an office and practice medicine. The Lord made it clear that his clinical career was finished, but that his spiritual ministry to people was far from over.

While the natural medical knowledge vanished, the things of the heart and Spirit remained untouched. The supernatural gifts of healing, wisdom, prophecy, and discernment—along with the deep, foundational fruit of the Spirit—stayed vibrant within him. As Andrew often reflected, everything comes from the Lord, and everything belongs to Him. The letters and titles accumulated after a name will never cross the threshold of eternity.

Reflecting on a lifetime of walking with the Lord, Andrew always deflected any urge toward human pride. He often worried that sharing his accomplishments might seem like he was boasting, deeply wanting to ensure that no one thought more highly of him than what they saw in the Lord's work. His greatest concern was simply to remain obedient, trusting the Father to handle the details, whether in a peaceful clinic or a busy mission field. As it was often reflected in his conversations, any true good seen in his life was simply Christ at work, while his own mistakes remained his alone.

In the end, all those impressive acronyms—MD, M.B.B.S., BSc, MRACP, FRACP, MRCP(UK), LSHTM, FACP—take up lines on a page, but they pale in comparison to what matters eternally. As often discussed regarding his life and ministry, the only title that truly counts is the quiet reality described in Acts 4:13 regarding Peter and John: being ordinary people who had simply been with Jesus (or "BWJ," as it came to be affectionately summarized).

His ultimate hope in sharing his life story was simple: that anyone reading it might come to know Christ personally. As he frequently reminded those around him, every person is individually created by the Heavenly Father—down to the very hairs on their head being numbered—and loved so deeply that Christ was sent to the cross in our place. To find true life, a person simply needs to lay down their own ways, open the door of their heart, and give themselves fully to the Lord Jesus.

_________________________

Dr. Andrew C. Stenhouse's credentials (by the grace of God) listed below:

Academic degrees earned

Bachelor of Medical Science (BSc)

Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.B.S.: an international medical degree equivalent to an M.D. in the U.S. system, also abbreviated as M.B.) from New Zealand

Post Graduate Doctorate of Medicine from New Zealand (MD)

Fellowship awarded 

Wellcome Research Fellowship

Post Graduate Awards

Member of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (MRACP)

Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (FRACP)

Member of Royal College of Physicians in London (MRCP London)

Fellow of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (FLSHTM)

Fellow of the American College of Physicians (FACP)

Board certifications

Australasia: Member of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (MRACP)

England: Member of Royal College of Physicians in London (MRCP London)

Medical Licensure 

Texas State Medical License 1973-2015

Years in practice 

55 years in the field of Family Practice and Internal Medicine, including 30 years in private practice.

Continents and islands served on 

Oceania, Asia, Europe, North America, and Hawaii

Languages

French (most proficient), German (spoken), Latin (understood), Rarotongan, Arabic (a little), Hebrew (began learning), and Fijian.

Published Works

Several medical articles that he either co-authored or solely authored were published in seven different medical journals, including two of his own articles published by the British Medical Journal. (see full list at Medical Articles Published). Some of these articles have received many citations by other authors.

Ministries Served

Doulos Missions International (DMI) President & Chairman of the Board 2007-2015

Current DMI Board Member (2021)

Dr. Andrew C. Stenhouse, MD, M.B.B.S., BSc, MRACP, FRACP, MRCP(UK), LSHTM, FACP.

_________________________

Author's note: Our dear brother Andrew transitioned to his heavenly home in glory on September 15th, 2021 at the age of 87. You can read more about that amazing experience in my article called Homegoing.

See the Home page of this blog for more podcasts on the life of Dr. Stenhouse. You may access my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master. Now I'd like to ask a very important question.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.