Skip to main content

A cold day with a simple message of hope.

I headed off quite early with the goal of going to see Corrie Ten Boom’s house in Haarlem before coming back for the 2pm intercession set at the Tabernacle of the Nations (the prayer room). I arrived in Haarlem around 10am and went looking for the house. In cold rain and wind I walked towards the centre in hope of finding this house that is famous as the house where Corrie and her family hid Jews during the Second World War from the Germans. I found the house, but I also discovered that the next English tour was not for another hour and a half (and it’s the kind of set up where you can only go in with a guide).


Cold and wet I decided to walk around in search of a cafe I could use the internet in (some cafes offer free WiFi). Not the best of ideas as I ended up walking around for a while getting colder and colder and finally a wee bit lost. But then I recognised a street and made my way towards the centre again. I found a cafe which offered coffee and homemade apple pie and sat there. It was so nice to get inside! And the cake and coffee tasted incredible.

As I was strolling around I think I must have accidentally wandered into the Red Light District of Haarlem. There were the red lights and empty “windows” in some hidden alleyways, ironically right next to a church. In Amsterdam the Red Light District is in close proximity to Oude Kerk, which is known as the oldest church in Amsterdam. A bit of an in-your-face statement if you ask me. It’s so sad. The church needs to wake up to the reality that there are women who are working as sex workers, and that many of them are not there voluntarily and many want out.


I did make it to the tour of the house and was so encouraged and inspired by the story of Corrie and Betsy and their love for God and people. The main message was: there is no pit so deep that God’s love isn’t deeper still. Simple and true! And it brings hope, no matter what situation you’re in.

Then I hopped on the train back to Amsterdam, grabbed a sausage roll at HEMA and went to the prayer room for the rest of the day.

Popular posts from this blog

Packing...again.

I just folded the last load of laundry and I’m almost packed. Off to the airport at 5am tomorrow morning, heading off to Amsterdam. I’m excited, a bit nervous, and wondering what it’ll be like. It’s been a good week at home with lots of quality time with family, especially the little nieces and nephew. I’m glad I’ll see them in April again. Well, not much to write and packing to be done and a bit of sleep would probably be a good idea too. Next time I write it’ll be from Amsterdam....

Snapshots of life...

Life. What is life anyway? And what does it mean to live life to the full? A little reflection there. One thing I do know is that I am alive and that the days seem to pass by quicker then I would like them to. The month of July has literally flown by... I can’t believe this weekend it’ll already be August. Where did July go? It’s been an eventful month. Last week was my birthday and I felt very loved and valued. Going for a Brazilian BBQ with some friends in a week or so and I am very excited!! I really hope it’s authentic and good, or I think I will most certainly be a tad disappointed. I also got given a car, almost on the day of my birthday. A good friend of mine got given another car and so she gave me her old one. It took a week and a bit for the garage to fix it up and pass it in the inspection, and getting it licensed in my name and getting insurance wasn’t totally straightforward, but I now have it. And it feels so freeing and lovely when I’m driving my own car!!! It’s a golden...

Tired.

Today I've been really really tired all day. I guess it's part of life and also part of getting ready to leave. Today I dragged myself out of bed, and had a cup of tea to get going. And when the mum we were taking to see her son in prison wasn't in, the morning went doing bits and pieces. This afternoon we were at the bussterminal to see the streetkids. It was a good time I guess, but the group of kids there at the moment are really just so lost. Totally drugged, dirty, and don't really care about anything. It's like they've lost all innocence. When I got back I looked through a few past reports getting them ready to do the monthly overview of the kids we've met this month. I felt really sad. One kid said her dream was that her mum would stop drinking, another girl told of a stepfather who molested her and her sisters, and another boy told of how his dad would hit his sister. And I am left with the question of: where is the hope and future for these kids? So...