An Answer to a Question

This weekend someone asked me how I became a big fan of Corrie Ten Boom. I gave some generic answer, but wanted to answer it more thoroughly. What better way to do that than the blog?

As I thought about it over the weekend I came up with several interconnected answers:

When did I discover the book The Hiding Place? I don't really know who suggested the book or why I started reading the book, but it became a favorite while I was in college. All I know now is that it is one of my 2 favorite books that I try to re-read every year.

The book appeals to me on many levels. One major appeal is all the childhood and adult stories about, what appears, to be a simple life for Corrie. I love that she remembers certain key times in her life that had an effect on her and how she reacted and dealt with life by remembering these stories, when it was unbearable in a concentration camp. A lot of the stories are seemingly insignificant events in the big picture of her life, but every story relates to how she dealt with the future work that God had prepared for her. The growth through childhood and early adulthood prepared her for her reaction to a very hard time in her life, which ultimately prepared her for her work that she would do after WWII. I think the book does an excellent job of looking at one's past and seeing how God's hand specifically orchestrates everything in a simple life to ultimately prepare one for his ultimate calling.

This book always gives me a better perspective on whatever I am going through in my life. To know that all the small, simple, and boring things that I am learning have a purpose. Now, I probably won't be put in a concentration camp, but the purpose of my life is being orchestrated for the ultimate glory for God even if that is as simple as playing with my son while he pokes and chews his books over and over and over and over until I am going out of my mind. I believe that all the hard things in life are what builds our character and that God uses it for His glory. In the big picture if I am totally doing what God wants me to do with my life I will end up glorifying Him. That is comforting to me.

Another reason I love the book so much is all of the life lessons that one can learn. How to handle big disappointments, how to forgive the unforgivable, how to love, how to follow God when it is hard; all of these lessons are like little treasures all in one book. My favorite story is how Corrie forgave one of her captors when he came up to her when she spoke to a church after WWII was over. Even then she had to lean on God's strength to even shake this man's hand. What a beautiful lesson.

So, why did I use a Corrie Ten Boom quote on my blog? This specific blog is for me to write and remind myself that all of the daily nothings in my life really do help me walk closer with God. Because a lot of Corrie's story is about choices you make for everyday life, I used the quote to remind me of the purpose of this blog. It helps my perspective.