The Secret Room
Corrie ten Boom was a 50-year-old Dutch watchmaker when the Nazis invaded Holland. Her family began hiding Jews in a secret room behind her bedroom wall.
For nearly two years, the ten Booms saved an estimated 800 lives. Then they were betrayed. The Gestapo arrested the entire family. Corrie's father died within ten days. Her sister Betsie died in Ravensbrück concentration camp.
No Pit So Deep
In that camp, Corrie and Betsie held Bible studies in their barracks - the one place guards wouldn't enter because of the fleas. Betsie, even as she weakened, forgave their captors: "There is no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper still."
The Hardest Handshake
After the war, Corrie traveled the world sharing her story. Once, a former Ravensbrück guard approached her after a talk about forgiveness. He extended his hand.
Every fiber of Corrie's being resisted. She couldn't shake his hand. Then she prayed: "Jesus, I cannot forgive this man. Give me your forgiveness."
As she reached out her hand, she felt what she described as an electric current running through her arm. Warmth flooded her heart. The guard was forgiven.
An Act of the Will
"Forgiveness is an act of the will," Corrie later wrote, "and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart."
