The young mother sat on the train, holding her baby girl in her lap. She watched as another baby nearby was receiving attention and admiration from the other passengers on the train. When the passengers turned from the one baby to give attention to hers, they stopped short. What they beheld was a sickly baby, held securely in her arms. Rather than fawning over her baby, the passengers instead said nothing and looked away. The young mother, stung by this obvious favoritism, gazed lovingly at her child and hugged her close. She softly said, “I wouldn’t exchange you for anyone in the whole world, you darling, ugly baby with the beautiful eyes.”

From the very start, unconditional love and security were established in the heart of little Corrie ten Boom. Corrie was born prematurely. The doctor had predicted that she would die. The premie had three older siblings, and her parents had lost one other child already. But the ten Boom family poured all their love and prayers upon this “darling, ugly baby,” and the baby flourished in the warmth of a joyful, God-fearing home.

The name of Jesus was repeated often and with joy in the ten Boom home. The father, Casper ten Boom, always prayed as if Jesus was right there listening. When little Corrie was five years old, she was playing a make-believe game where she was knocking on the door of someone’s house and waiting for them to answer the door. Her mother, observing her daughter at play, came and said to her, “Corrie, I know Someone Who is standing at your door and knocking right now.”

Young Corrie stopped playing and looked at her mother in amazement. Her little heart, as if prepared by the Holy Spirit, was ready for her mother’s next words. “Jesus said that He is standing at the door, and if you invite Him in He will come into your heart,” said Mrs. ten Boom. She then asked, “Would you like to invite Jesus in?”

“Yes, Mama!” Corrie replied earnestly, “I want Jesus in my heart.” At that moment, Jesus became even more real to Corrie, and she came to Christ in faith—a faith that would grow steadily and surely over the many years of her life.

Corrie ten Boom was a busy, happy girl growing up in “the Beje,” the initials of the street where their home was located—Barteljorisstraat (B.J.), a cobblestone street in Holland. Her family was poor financially but rich in family harmony and love for the Lord. 

Her father was a respected watchmaker and loved by all in the community. Papa ten Boom’s first interest in life was sharing the Gospel and the love of Jesus. Once, when money was very low, a customer came with cash in hand to buy an expensive watch. The customer complained about a bad watch he had bought from a younger watchmaker whose father had died, and the son had taken over the business. Mr. ten Boom paused the transaction. He asked to see the bad watch. He made a simple adjustment, and then handed the watch back to the man. “There, that was a very little mistake. It will be fine now.”

Corrie was watching the transaction. She was horrified as she saw her father hand the money back to the man, and then he respectfully bowed to the customer as he left! Next, Papa ten Boom turned to face his daughter. “Corrie,” he quietly said as he saw the confused look on her face, “you know I brought the Gospel at the burial of this young man’s father. What do you think that young man would have said when he heard that one of his good customers had gone to Mr. ten Boom? Do you think that the name of the Lord would be honored?” Then he concluded his lesson. “There is blessed money and cursed money. Trust the Lord. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and He will take care of us.”

From her Godly parents, Corrie ten Boom learned by example what was most important in life. She tucked into her heart many Bible stories and songs that were frequently told and sung in the household. Miss ten Boom also learned to work hard and to be kind and merciful to those less fortunate than herself. 

She had many things to learn. Her older brother, Willem, was very smart and industrious in school. Her older sisters, Betsie and Nollie, were pretty, outgoing, organized, and well-mannered. But Corrie? She was awkward, shy, messy, and full of mischief! Yet, she learned through daily life—and sometimes in hard lessons— to overcome obstacles of character with love for the people God had placed in her life to minister to, serve, and love.

Her father always was teaching her through his encouraging counsel. When times were hard, he often said, “Don’t forget, Corrie—underneath us are the everlasting arms. We won’t fall. God is a dwelling place. We have the promise of security when His arms are beneath us . . . holding us . . . supporting us . . . strengthening us.”

As Miss ten Boom finished school and yearned to make her life useful, she found ways to be a servant to others. Every experience, although she was unaware at the time, was preparing her for the next work that God had for her to do. 

One remarkable area of her work that may not be as widely known was with people who were mentally deficient. She was amazed at how spiritually receptive such people were. They could not understand much. For example, when she tried to show them a constellation of stars in the sky, they replied that the stars were only a bunch of “white beans.” But when it came to things of the Lord, His Spirit could penetrate even the confines of their mental deficiency! Boys and girls with such limited minds could sing entire hymns, speak of Jesus, and gladly open their hearts to Him! Corrie’s father wisely remarked to her one day, “Corrie, what you do among these people is of little importance in the eyes of men, but I’m sure in God’s eyes, it is the most valuable work of all.”

Her mother’s death was a sad blow to the family. She had suffered a stroke, and after that could not say more than a few words and make some limited hand motions. This kind, gentle mother who had cradled Corrie as a sickly baby now received the gentle care of her three daughters for three years before being called home to Heaven. 

Miss ten Boom’s life, with its ups and downs like every family experiences, was a happy one. The love and security of her home and family were unbroken. The great test of faith came during World War II. 

When Germany invaded Holland, Jews shortly thereafter began facing persecution. The Jews in Holland were beginning to be sought out, imprisoned, and killed. The ten Boom family made the dangerous decision to work with the Dutch Resistance (“underground”) and assist the Jewish people. Many know well from the book The Hiding Place, that the ten Boom family was betrayed and the family members arrested. Elderly Papa ten Boom died after ten days in prison. The ten Boom sisters Corrie and Betsie spent the next years in concentration camps, suffering at the cruel hands of the Nazis. Betsie ten Boom died while imprisoned. Willem ten Boom died soon after his release. Of the ten Boom family, only the two daughters, Nollie and Corrie, survived the war.

When Corrie ten Boom, who was then in her fifties, walked away from the concentration camp—released due to a clerical error, which was a miracle!—her whole world was changed. She had no home to go to and no one to turn to. All she had were the everlasting arms of the Lord to lean upon. Through Him, she learned to find security in His eternal faithfulness, even when every other support was crumbling away. 

Miss ten Boom learned to have forgiveness toward those who had treated her cruelly. This great lesson she learned included the famous account of extending her hand to forgive a former Nazi guard from the notorious Ravensbrück concentration camp. Eventually, Miss ten Boom learned to share the Gospel with love and compassion to former Nazis just as she had with boys and girls and the mentally ill in her hometown.

As Corrie ten Boom’s wise, God-fearing father would often say, “When Jesus takes your hand, He keeps you tight. When Jesus keeps you tight, He leads you through life. When Jesus leads you through life, He brings you safely home.”

Sources and Further Reference:

Ten Boom, Corrie, and John and Elizabeth Sherrill. The Hiding Place. Uhrichsville, OH: Barbour Publishing, 1971.

Ten Boom, Corrie. In My Father’s House: The Years Before the Hiding Place. Roseburg, OR: Lighthouse Trails, 2011.