‘Therefore do not worry about tomorrow.’ Matthew 6:34
Cornelia ten Boom was born in Holland on the 15th April 1892, the daughter of a Christian watchmaker. In 1940 during the Second World War, when their country of Holland was occupied by the enemy. Along with her family, she helped to save 800 Jews to escape from the Nazis by hiding them in a small wardrobe closet in their home. Because of betrayal by a neighbour, the family and the hidden Jews were sent to a concentration camp. Their father did not live long there and her sister, Betsie, died just before Connie’s release.
Eventually Corrie went back to the Netherlands and published a book , ‘The Hiding Place’ telling of her experiences. Later she went to California dying there at the age of 91. Her writings are punctuated by her wise sayings, which reflect her Christian feelings.
‘Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.’ A thought that sustained her during her internment.
‘Forgiveness is an act of the will and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.’ This was a forgiveness Corrie had to use when she met her former prison guard after the war and was able, after hesitation, to shake his hand.
‘You can never learn that Christ is all you need, until Christ is all you have.’ and’ ‘worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties the body of its strength today.’