Friday, October 22, 2021

Betsie ten Boom: An Uncommon Hero

by Sherri Stewart

Many people recognize the name of Corrie ten Boom because of the movie, The Hiding Place, which tells the story of Corrie and her family who hid Jews in their home during the war. Not so well-known is Corrie’s older sister, Betsie.

Born with pernicious anemia, Betsie knew that she could never have children. So at a young age, she decided she would never marry, and she remained at home with her father and Corrie for most of her life.

Corrie and Betsie were devoted to each other and to their Lord, yet they couldn’t be more different. Ever the risk taker, Corrie loved adventure, while Betsie was more content to be at home. Physically, Corrie was more of a bull in the China shop, while Betsie was slim and elegant. Where Corrie was prone to being emotionally reactive, Betsie accepted the circumstances in her life with calm and contentedness.

It was Betsey who saw God’s hand even in the worst situations. In Ravensbrück, when their barracks was infested with fleas, Betsey praised God for the fleas because the guards left them alone, and they were able to speak freely about the Lord.
 
A Ravensbrück guard was exceptionally cruel to Betsey because, due to her weak state, she lagged behind in the amount of heavy labor she could do. “But Betsie saw where I was looking, and laid a bird-thin hand over the whip mark, ‘Don’t look at it, Corrie. Look at Jesus.’ She drew away her hand; it was sticky with blood.” Even in her weakest state, Betsie tried to stay Corrie’s anger at the guard.
While at Ravensbrück, Betsie had a vision that Corrie and she would be released before the new year. The vision came true. Corrie was released from the camp before Christmas due to a clerical error, and Betsie passed away at the camp at the age of fifty-nine on December 16, 1944.

Betsie said, “We must tell people what we learned here. We must tell them that there is no pit so deep that his love is deeper still. They will listen to us, Corrie, because we have been here.”
 
 
Sherri Stewart loves a clean novel, sprinkled with romance and a strong message that challenges her faith. She spends her working hours with books—either editing others’ manuscripts or writing her own. Her passion is traveling to the settings of her books and sampling the food. She loves the Netherlands, and she’s still learning Dutch, although she doesn’t need to since everyone speaks perfect English. A recent widow, Sherri lives in Orlando with her lazy dog, Lily. She shares recipes, tidbits of the book’s locations, and pix in her newsletter. Subscribe at http://eepurl.com/gZ-mv9
 
"She has the voice of an angel, but the devil is listening."

8 comments:

  1. Thank you for this glimpse at Betsey ten Boom, often overlooked.

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  2. Thanks for sharing - we all must remember that the Lord loves us so very much, regardless of what we are going through.

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  3. I love reading about this family. Thanks for posting!

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  4. I love this family too. I was supposed to go to Haarlem last month, but the Netherlands closed the day we were to arrive due to Covid. Next year!

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  5. What a wonderful post, with the focus on Betsie. Thank you for researching.

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    1. She's a perfect example of Jesus' words: the first shall be last, and the last shall be first.

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