Blogger: Rachel Kent
Location: Books & Such main office, Santa Rosa, Calif.
Everyone gets discouraged at some point, but publishing is an industry full of emotional roller coasters. It’s easy to fall into the pit of discouragement as a writer, publisher, editor or agent. A book that comes to mind for me during discouraging times is The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom. This book is the true story of Corrie’s internment in a concentration camp during WWII. She and her family were Christians hiding Jews from the Germans in Amsterdam. She was caught and tortured, but ultimately survived, and her story has touched millions of people. (The movie is good as well! I cry every time I watch it.)
The most amazing thing to me about Corrie’s story is that, even though the circumstances she faced were awful, her attitude, faith, and optimism are what carried her through.
Here are some quotes taken from the book that encourage me:
“Perhaps only when human effort had done it’s best and failed, would God’s power alone be free to work.”
“This is what the past is for! Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives is the perfect preparation for the future that only He can see.”
“Even as the angry vengeful thoughts boiled through me, I saw the sin of them. Jesus Christ had died for this man; was I going to ask for more? Lord Jesus, I prayed, forgive me and help me to forgive him….Jesus, I cannot forgive him. Give me your forgiveness….And so I discovered that it is not on our forgiveness any more than on our goodness that the world’s healing hinges, but on His. When He tells us to love our enemies, He gives along with the command, the love itself.”
“There are no ‘if’s’ in God’s world. And no places that are safer than other places. The center of His will is our only safety–let us pray that we may always know it!”
I figure that if Corrie can have such a faith during that horrible war, I can strive to have faith like that in my day-to-day life. God knows the future. He has a plan, and I don’t need to worry. The discouragement comes when I don’t let go of the worries. If I trust God, I don’t experience that discouragement; instead I’m excited to see what God has in store.
I’m not so good at letting go of the worry, but I keep trying. 🙂 It helps to think about The Hiding Place.
As a matter of fact, it’s time for me to read that book again!
What books have helped encourage you?
Rachel, The Hiding Place may be our family’s all-time favorite book (other than the Bible and study materials, of course.) We quote the part about the fleas all the time.
Have you ever listened to a Dutch reader narrate the book? We love the audio book narrated by Susie Sandager. She also does performances dressed as Corrie. I think you’d love both!
http://www.sandagerpresentations.com/sp/store.php
I love that book! I’m with you, time to go read that book again 🙂
Yes! I read The Hiding Place in college – never forgotten it! Some parts turned my heart inside out! Learing to give thanks for everything (even fleas), praying to forgive the Germans who would need healing after the war & her time of ministry with the persecuted Belivers in Africa- changed my thinking on faith! Realized it’s a privilege to serve God & His people – not just a right. My personal go-to book is “Love Letters From God” by Bonnie Schulter. She’s written personalized letters in God’s voice, touching on a variety of life issues. I read a few pages & I’m reminded that He’s there, He cares & that lifts me every time.
Wow, Rachel, I’ve never read this book, but I’m adding it to my list. The quotes moved me. Too often, I get wrapped up in my own small problems and forget how blessed I am. Thank you.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Sometimes when I’m feeling really discouraged I know I’ve reached the point of too much me and not enough God. Mother Teresa’s book “No Greater Love” reminds me of my “Nothingness” without God and of all the reasons I started writing in the first place.
“Give yourself fully to Jesus, He will use you to accomplish great things on the condition that you believe much more in his love than in your weakness.”
Mother Teresa
Rachel – I must say you have excellent taste in books – I’ve felt the same about all of your book selections this week. 🙂
I just listened to the Hiding Place on Audio CD and it nearly moved me to tears. I have several books I try to read every year — one of the Narnia books, The Last Sin Eater or one of the Mark of the Lion series, and a Lynn Austin book — to remind me of why I’m writing and what I am trying to reach. Those choices also have a deep resonance with my faith and character.
Great series this week! Thank you!
Really appreciate this post, which is encouraging in itself. I’ve heard of Corrie’s story, but haven’t yet read “The Hiding.” Looking forward to it now (along with “Waterfalls” and “The Atonement Child”). 🙂
A book that encouraged me was “Having a Mary Spirit in a Martha World” by Joanna Weaver. It helped me more fully grasp God’s awesome grace and how I’m incapabale of ever truly “doing” enough.
Enjoyed these posts, Rachel!
The Hiding Place is a wonderful book and a great movie. Whenever I am discouraged, I have to admit I turn more to music than books; though my Bible is the first place I look when I need reading material. The 23rd Psalm reminds me that I am never alone, no matter how dark it gets.
My daughter will be reading Corrie ten Boom’s Hiding Place when we get to WWII in our homeschool history study. I want to send her off to college with this kind of example before her.
A little bit different than Rhianna and Brittney Spears and Lindsey Lohan, et al!
Blessings,
Voni
I was just thinking about faith this morning in my car. Faith was always easy for me until I had to use it! Ha. From my experience Corrie’s faith was not amazing in spite of the war and her circumstances, but because of the war and her circumstances. Having trust issues, my faith has been built during hard circumstances, but not until I’ve seen how God was faithful in those circumstances. I built little mental altars through stories to remember what God has done in my life so I remember to count on Him in the midst of current tough times. Thanks for your posts, Rachel!
One that is near and dear to my heart was by Sheila Walsh called, “The Heartache No One Sees.” It was that book that helped me through a critical time in my life.
Yes, I love that book too! My parents named me after Corrie ten Boom. She stayed with my grandparents when she was on a speaking tour in the states (sometime in the ’70s), and my mother met her then. I read the book for the first time in 4th grade, and it was heavy, but very uplifting even when I was little! 🙂
Rachel I can’t begin to explain how much your words have touched me this morning.
“…God knows the future. He has a plan, and I don’t need to worry.”
THANK YOU! How could I forget this? God is so good, and I love it when He can use blogs to touch people’s worlds!
The Hiding Place is such a good book.
And I’ve found the same type of encouragement in most missionary stories.
Chuck Colson’s story about his conversion–Born Again was very good, reminding me that God is powerful to save.
God’s Smuggler was good. It encourages faith.
Voni is right. We need to give our kids these Christian heroes–well actually a God hero who works through frail humans.
Your timing is coincidental. I just listened to the audio book of The Hiding Place with several of my children on the very day of this post. Very powerful. I told them to remember that book whenever they felt something wasn’t fair of wanted to complain.
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