Austin's Blog

Casper Ten Boom was a Dutch watchmaker living under Nazi rule in Holland during World War II. His home became known as “The Hiding Place” because the Ten Boom family successfully hid over 6,000 Jews during the height of Nazi atrocities. Corrie, his daughter, recounts a story about how her father encouraged her to think about death and God’s grace.

She writes, “At last we heard Father’s footsteps winding up the stairs. It was the best moment of every day when he came up to tuck us in. We never fell asleep until he had arranged the blankets in his special way and laid his hand for a moment on each head. Then we tried not to move even a toe.

But that night, as he stepped through the door, I burst into tears. ‘I need you!’ I sobbed. ‘You can’t die! You can’t!’ Father sat down on the edge of the narrow bed. ‘Corrie,’ he began gently, ‘when you and I go to Amsterdam, when do I give you your ticket?’ I sniffed a few times, considering this. ‘Why, just before we get on the train.’

‘Exactly. And our wise Father in Heaven knows when we’re going to need things too. Don’t run out ahead of Him, Corrie. When the time comes that some of us will have to die, you will look into your heart and find the strength you need—just in time.’”

On February 28, 1944, Casper’s neighbor informed the Nazis that he was hiding Jews. Though they did not find any within the home, he, Corrie, and her sister Betsie were arrested and sent to prison camps, where the elderly father died ten days later. Corrie would recall what her father said, and indeed, God had sustained her during his loss.

How does this relate to child loss? So often, people remark about your strength. The reality is—we are not strong. We are simply sustained by the strength of God. Any strength, might, or power you see is owing to Him and Him alone. This is the hardest loss, and it is no less weighty today than it was when Gabe first went to Heaven, though the rawness has worn off and the rough edges have begun to erode. If you see strength, it is evidence of the truth that God sustains His people.

The Psalmist confesses in Psalm 73:25-26: “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” The reality is that our flesh and heart have failed time and time again, yet God is the rock of our hearts. Whoever gives the grace gets the glory. If we are seen as standing, it is owing to His grace alone. We have been given the ticket and are holding on to it as we ride this train.