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.  

Early Childhood (Transcript)

Let's begin this first post with Dr. Stenhouse's early childhood. You can listen to the podcast and read the transcript below. If you prefer to read the biography instead of the raw transcript, click here.

Audio

Download the Podcast

Len: This is Len Lacroix, and I'm here tonight with Dr. Andrew Stenhouse. And we're going to begin our first segment of his autobiography, talking about his early childhood.

So, Andrew, I want to welcome you, and it's a pleasure to get this started tonight with you; so, welcome.

Dr. Stenhouse: Len, thank you so much! I do appreciate the opportunity to be with you on your program. 

Len: Yeah!

Dr. Stenhouse: And you know any time you have the opportunity to introduce anybody to the Lord Jesus is such a joy and such a pleasure.

Len: I know. Amen.

Dr. Stenhouse: And I think what I'll do is, because my early childhood was a little con--unusual, I’d like to just outline it for everybody so that they'll understand where I'm sort of coming from, as the Lord works through me and on me.

Len: Yeah! Yeah, that would be great! And I thought it would be really interesting to begin with the time when you were seven years old, and then we can go back to, you know, the beginning.

But just to start with that story about what happened during the war when they were bombing London. Could you tell that to me again, please?

Dr. Stenhouse: Yes. When I was a boy, about seven years old, we were in the middle of the bombing from Germany. And, one evening, I woke up after I had been asleep, and 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.

And I was able to take this for about ten, fifteen minutes, and then it got too much for a seven year old, and I started to cry. 

The next thing I knew, I was back in my bed. And my father came in to me and asked me what was wrong, and I told him what had happened and he gave me a weird look. But, other than that, everything went back—I went back to sleep, and he didn't say much more after that.

Len: Yeah. That would be pretty neat.

Dr. Stenhouse: All that happened--the same—same situation happened again, where I was--found myself under the soft wings of an angel. It was really cozy and nice, and I was being carried under his right wings.

Len: Wow! 

Dr. Stenhouse: And they—it was the same alternative angel, as far as I could tell. And they were taking me in another ride through London and through the lights and through the--just missing the bombs and so on. 

Again, after about ten minutes, I cried, and they took me back, and I then woke up in my bed. And Dad came in again and asked if I was all right.

But most of the nights, we wouldn't be in our beds. We would be under the stairs to rest and in case the house was hit and shrapnel and stuff was coming round. So anyway that's the story of when I was about seven years old.

Len: Now we started off with you at age seven, but take us back to where you were born, and a little bit about your parents’ nationality and—yeah. So back the—back to that place. The year and the…

Dr. Stenhouse:  Ok. Well I was born in Detroit, Michigan. And my mother and father had known each other in Scotland and came over to the United States.

My mother worked in a store as a buyer and always told me, “In case you want to be a buyer in a clothing store the entra--the way you make money is by buying correctly and not selling.” So it sells itself. And that’s all I remember from my mother. 

My dad worked for General Motors and was a spring designer and a quality of steel for the war effort. He was in charge of all of the steel for the war effort and occasionally would take me on a ride up in his car--he didn't have a car, but they had a driver drive it, because we didn't have any extra gasoline to do that. 

So I remember going several times up to the Midlands of England enjoying the time with my father. So that was kind of--

Len: But this was back in Detroit still, right? You were growing up at the beginning in Detroit, right?

Dr. Stenhouse: Yes. And then—oh, I'm sorry! 

Len: Yeah.

Dr. Stenhouse: We came back at the beginning of the war--just before the beginning of the war. And my father was working for General Motors, that’s right. 

Len: Yeah, when you were back in Detroit, he was with General Motors.

Dr. Stenhouse: Yes.

Len: Now what’s your parents’ nationality?

Dr. Stenhouse: My parents’ nationality was Scottish…Great Britain.

Len: Ok. And what was their faith? In other words, what denomination or branch of the faith did they come from?

Dr. Stenhouse: They came from Scotland to Detroit.

Len: Right, I mean--I'm talking about their faith in the Lord. 

Dr. Stenhouse: Oh! I'm sorry, Len!

Len: That’s ok.

Dr. Stenhouse: Well, both of them were believers--strong believers and were members of a Plymouth Brethren collection of believers or church.

Len: Yeah. Ok. And you were born in what year?

Dr. Stenhouse: 1934.

Len: Ok. So tell me a little bit about your—so, you said that you went back to north of London. How did you get over there from the US to England?

Dr. Stenhouse: We went by boat. And the only thing much I remember about the boat is that it was really quite comfortable, and a whale ran into the side of the boat. But that’s—other than that, I remember very little about the boat trip up there. And I remember--

Len: During that era, weren't there German u-boats that were known to attack even civilian liners like that?

Dr. Stenhouse: Yes that's right. And my parents took the risk, because they had to get back to Britain--my father for his work, and my mother to help take care of us two--my sister and I.

Len: And, you know, one of the things that you had talked to me about was our Heavenly Father’s desire for us to have a willing heart. I think that was something that you had said was important.

Dr. Stenhouse: Oh, yes! I think as we go through the very things that happened in my life, that the important thing is to realize that we're not in a religion, really, we're in a relationship with our Heavenly Father.

Len: Absolutely! 

Dr. Stenhouse: 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.

Len: Thank you very much! That was excellent! I really appreciate you sharing that about your birth and early childhood. And we're going to wrap this segment up right now, for today. So thank you very much, Andrew, for joining us! We really appreciate you sharing that today.

Dr. Stenhouse: Thank you, Len!

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 (Transcript)

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 and read the transcript below as you listen. 

Audio

Download the podcast

Len: This is Len Lacroix, and I'm here tonight with Dr. Andrew Stenhouse, and we're going to be talking about his later childhood experiences tonight. So I want to welcome you back, Andrew, to the program. 

Dr. Stenhouse: Yes…

Len: So when you were back in England, being raised there, any other things that you want to talk about, about your Christian upbringing or about any of the wartime experiences?

Dr. Stenhouse: Wartime was a miserable time. Then we were evacuated next to Scotland, where my grandparents lived—my grandmothers. And with this going on, the train that we went on was being bombed. And I tried to reassure my mother and sister that it was going to be all right, that Jesus was going to take care of us. And sure enough, nothing happened to the carriage or to the engine or the train. We got through all right from London to Scotland. 

And I was able to go up and down corridor of this long carriage and tell people, “It's going to be all right. Jesus is with us. He’ll take care of us.” That was the way we did and getting into Glasgow. 

Len: Yeah, very interesting 

Dr. Stenhouse: When I went to school, we would see planes from Germany and planes from England and Scotland, fighting each other as we were going to school… 

Len: Wow. 

Dr. Stenhouse: …Over the waters of the west coast of Scotland. And so, it was quite interesting, and not very nice to see. 

Len: Right. 

Dr. Stenhouse: Ships being bombed and planes falling into the water. And at the time we—it was difficult for me to understand what was going on, in a way. But I was very close to the Lord. He was very close to me, and it was just a joy to do anything in regard to serving Him or in any way pleasing Him. And during this time, we were offered the opportunity to win a Bible by memorizing Psalm 1 and Psalm 145; and a wonderful Jewish gentleman said he would give us a Bible when we were able to do this. And so anyway, being a bit of a bad guy, in a way—no, not a bad guy, but  a guy that wants to do things in a hurry, I went into the bathroom for the Sunday school class and started to learn Psalm 1. So, I can really remember Psalm 1 well. And so, Psalm 145 was a little more difficult and took me several weeks to learn that. And as a result of that, my mother got my Bible. I got a Bible and I gave it to her, and she used it as her favorite Bible for the rest of her life.  

Len: Wow! 

Can you share about how you came to know the Lord?

Dr. Stenhouse: Yes, I’d like to share that. To me, it was a very special thing when I came to know the Lord. It was really earlier in my life that I had a love for Him and a trust in Him and a faith in Him that couldn’t be explained on a natural means. And so, when I came to know the Lord, I didn't get baptized until I was a little later, but then I realized the importance of being baptized, and that was what I did. And, it was such—I can still remember the details of my baptism. It seems to me that a baptism for some is a most important part of their salvation. 

Len: Definitely. 

Dr. Stenhouse: Not that you won't be saved if you don't get baptized, but if you are disobedient to the Lord about baptism, it seems to hold back your religion or relationship with the Father. 

Len: Yeah, it does. So, was it like a baptismal fount or outside in like a lake or river that you were baptized?

Dr. Stenhouse: I was baptized in the church. 

Len: Inside the church?

Dr. Stenhouse: And it was not outside. And I was totally immersed in the water, and came up and felt quite different. It was something very special. 

Len: Yeah, and like you said, there's nothing more important than an individual having a relationship with the Lord. And so…

Dr. Stenhouse: Yes.

Len: So, I really wanted to hear more about that part of your life. Now, you wanted to contrast this with how things are in the world today. Can you say a little bit about that-- about the contrast between having a relationship with the Lord and the way things are in the world and how it's at enmity with the Lord? 

Dr. Stenhouse: Yes, you know, today as you look around the world, the world is not in any way relating itself to the Heavenly Father or to our Creator or our Redeemer or the Holy Spirit. 

Len: Right. 

Dr. Stenhouse: And this is different than it was even fifty, sixty years ago when I was baptized. And my concern today is for everybody to have a relationship, not with religion, but with the Heavenly Father and with His Son the Lord Jesus Christ

Len: Yes. 

Dr. Stenhouse: …And to come into a knowledge of the Holy Spirit through the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Len: Excellent. 

Dr. Stenhouse: So this is the reason really why I would like to just explain a little bit about my life and about the way the Father takes care of us, Jesus takes care of us, and the Holy Spirit takes care of us all through our lives, no matter what we do. We’re not perfect, but if we have a desire to please Him, then that’s what He wants. 

Len: That's right. And I want to ask you about that--if you have a favorite hymn, and that story about your favorite hymn in Sunday school. Can you talk about that a little bit?

Dr. Stenhouse: Well, yes, I was asked during a Sunday school class that we had by a visiting preacher. And he said, "Any of you kids got a favorite hymn?" And of course, I put up my hand and said, "Yes, sir! Yes, sir, I do! ‘There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emanuel's veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.’” And so, we were able to sing that hymn; and I just felt so lovely about the Father and about Jesus shedding His blood for us all.

Len: Hallelujah. Well, that is excellent, and that's going to conclude our second segment on your later childhood, and I want to thank you for sharing these things with me tonight and with our audience, and I look forward to our next talk together, when we talk about your teen years. So until then, thank you very much. And, have a good night, Andrew. 

Dr. Stenhouse: You too, Len. Thank you. I hope it was okay.   

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.