Too Good to be True

I just found out that the amazing 'true' love story of Herman and Roma Rosenblat is a fabrication... I've blogged about this story here and I even received the manuscript from the USA because I was considering to buy the Dutch language rights for our publishing house in Amsterdam. But now I am glad that I decided not to go ahead with this, because this romantic love story turns out to be fake!

At Ark Media we did have a look at the manuscript, but because we are a Christian publishing house, we decided not to translate it - due to a lack of Christian content. I didn't question the story itself and didn't have any doubts about the credibility of this man.

But this is what I just read on the BBC NEWS website - "A US publisher has cancelled publication of a Holocaust memoir after its author revealed that he had made up crucial parts of it. Herman Rosenblat did survive a German concentration camp, but he did not fall in love with a girl who threw him food over the fence, as stated in the book. Instead, he met her on a blind date in New York and married her 50 years ago.
His book, Angel at the Fence, came under public scrutiny after a number of scholars questioned important details. The fabricated story says that when Rosenblat moved to New York after the war he met Roma Radzicki by chance and discovered she was the girl who had thrown apples and bread to him. They fell in love and married.
But some questioned Rosenblat's descriptions of Schlieben - a sub-camp of Buchenwald - and said it was impossible to throw food over the fence there."

To be honest, I do feel disappointed because I did like the story and thought that this was one of those examples that some things in life are just too extraordinary to be deemed 'coincidences'. But this fabricated story really turns out to be 'too good to be true' and it is sad that people are willing to tell and write lies, just to spice things up a bit (and earn some extra money on the side, I guess...).

Pretty Maria

Okay, I am biassed - being her proud father - but I think that everybody will agree with this: Pascalle is a pretty Maria! Click pic to enlarge. Check also this picture Maria & Joseph. More pictures from this year's Christmas celebrations in our church here. All pics © Marcello Geerts

Christmas Service in our Church ON-LINE

This year our church - Meerkerk in Hoofddorp - organized eight Christmas celebrations and approx. 6,000 people attended! Even if you can't understand Dutch, you will probably appreciate listening to the Christmas songs. Just to let you know that the family of God is celebrating the birth of our Lord all over the world. Christmas blessings from the Netherlands to all of you!

WATCH THIS DUTCH CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION ONLINE

Note: there is a full screen option on the menu bar of the player.

Wednesday 24 December - 40 years ago...

Apollo 8, the first manned mission to the Moon, entered lunar orbit on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1968. That evening, the astronauts; Commander Frank Borman, Command Module Pilot Jim Lovell, and Lunar Module Pilot William Anders did a live television broadcast from lunar orbit, in which they showed pictures of the Earth and Moon seen from Apollo 8. Lovell said, "The vast loneliness is awe-inspiring and it makes you realize just what you have back there on Earth." They ended the broadcast with the crew taking turns reading from the book of Genesis.

I would like to add JOHN 1 to this reading and I wish you all a Happy & Blessed Christmas!

A Call to Die

Not a very attractive book title... But I am reading this devotional book/ forty days journal written by David Nasser right now and, although I am only at page 116 (from 350 pages), I think this book conveys an important message. "To live is Christ, and to die is gain..." as Paul puts it in Philippians 1:21. Intense words and thoughts - easy to repeat, hard to live by!
Paul is writing about his desire to depart physcially and be with Jesus. But he was able to think and write like this because he was willing to die spiritually to self. It is so easy to sing: "I surrender all", but it is so difficult to really give everything to God. It's so tempting - and so natural - to keep some areas and 'secret treasures' in our lives where we don't allow God to reign and be LORD! Do you recognize this?

Keeping me humble

Just signed in to a new service called Disqus (a tool for web comments and discussions). Look at the encouraging piece of information they have given me: no friends and zero fans. Well, thank you very much for reminding me and for keeping me humble!

Jesus as the Centre

"Jesus as the centre is only unifying for those who repent. For everyone else he is not a unifying centre, he is a dividing line." - Mark Driscoll (If you have 50 minutes left: listening to this panel discussion is not a waste of your precious time!)

Jason Upton - Dear John (Born)

Lauryn Hill - I Gotta Find Peace Of Mind

Just watch this clip till the end. It's moving, so get your handkerchiefs ready... (thanks to my daughter Sosha for showing this MTV unplugged music video to me)

Caught in the Act

I looked outside the window and saw this cat sitting in our tree... Looks like he has a bad conscience. This food in our tree - some little peanuts and netted fat balls - is intended for birds, but this cat had some other ideas...

Together with all the saints

I'm not the only one starin' at the sun
Afraid of what you'd find if you took a look inside...

Yesterday I copied these words, taken out of (the context of) a U2 song, on this blog. I was looking for some astronomical information about the sun, because I needed a metaphor to describe the loneliness and insignificance of human beings in the light of an eternal God. And the words of this song that I love - Staring at the Sun - came to my mind.

God is a consuming fire. He is so awesomely great that we are completely humbled just by considering his eternal existence, his endless power and the inaccessible light of his being. We can not approach him, because he is completely out of our reach. We can not picture him, because he is totally out of our sight. We can not fully appreciate him, because our minds and souls are not able to comprehend him. We are clueless, helpless, lost. We need a revelation.

We long to be loved. We didn't create this desire, it just welled up in us, consumed us from the inside out and confronted us with our loneliness. Hopefully we have experienced love. Human love - great affection, but always imperfect and often conditional. We want to hear that we are desired, that we belong and that we will not be left alone in the dark. Most of all we need to hear from our Maker that he loves us.

I didn't ask to be born. It just so happened. And I'm one of the lucky ones, because I was raised by loving (albeit imperfect) parents and I have no reasons to complain about the love that I receive right now from the people surrounding me. Don't worry about me, because I'm fine. But I want to be more than fine, I want to be embraced and fully accepted by God.

Aren't we all aching for pure love? We want to reach out to each other and to our Creator, but something is withholding us and this is what it is: The fear of being rejected. What if the ones that you love could have a look inside your heart – just like the U2 lyrics say? Would they still love you, accept you, praise you, admire you? And what about God – who is really able to look straight into the secret chambers of your soul – will he still accept you, love you? I believe that he does.

"It's a wonder God didn't lose his temper and do away with the whole lot of us. Instead, immense in mercy and with an incredible love, he embraced us. He took our sin-dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on his own, with no help from us! Then he picked us up and set us down in highest heaven in company with Jesus, our Messiah. Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and kindness upon us in Christ Jesus. Saving is all his idea, and all his work. All we do is trust him enough to let him do it. It's God's gift from start to finish! We don't play the major role. If we did, we'd probably go around bragging that we'd done the whole thing! No, we neither make nor save ourselves. God does both the making and saving. He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing." (Ephesians 2:3-10 - the Message)

Human love can be close to perfect, but it will always be human. The best we can do is to accept and forgive each other's shortcomings and brokenness. And we can only do this if we dare to be honest and vulnerable ourselves. Face it. We are imperfect and incomplete, we desperately need compensation - each and everyone of us. We need other human beings to guide us, oppose us, confront us, unmask us, heal us. And we also need other people to get a better understanding of our Creator. Together with all the saints, in the company of true followers of Jesus, we will be able to grasp the immeasurable dimensions of Christ's love. We are not the only ones searching for light, love, life. We're staring at the sun together, blinded by its light, vulnerably exposed to its burning power.

If the sun stops shining right now, it will take approximately eight minutes before we will notice this down here on earth because this is the travel time needed for every ray of light from the sun to our planet. But as soon as God pulls the power plug of his love we are gone in an instant. His grace is still supporting us, even if we are not aware of it, even if we don't give him any credit for keeping us alive.

"My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God." (Ephesians 3:14-19 - the Message)

Staring at the Sun

I'm not the only one
starin' at the sun
Afraid of what you'd find
if you took a look inside
Not just deaf and dumb
I'm staring at the sun
Not the only one
who's happy to go blind
- 'Staring at the Sun' lyrics U2

Staring at the sun is not a bright idea because it can damage your eyes or even destroy your eyesight completely - "No one is immune to sunlight-related eye disorders. Every person, regardless of their background is susceptible to ocular damage from UV radiation that may lead to impaired vision." Source

But, if you still want to have a closer look at the sun, I can offer you a good alternative that is safe, cheap and 100% up-to-date. Just click here and see for yourself. And if you want to listen to U2 too... Be my guest and watch this eyeblinding (not really) video clip!

Praying for the people of India

Another senseless blood bath - this time in Mombai, India. I really don't see how anybody can achieve anything positive with violent attacks like these. The killers will be killed and the only thing that they will have achieved is more hatred, more suffering and more killings of innocent people. Why? What on earth do they think they are doing? Do these murderers really believe that they are heroes? God will judge them, I'm sure.

There is something terribly wrong with human nature. This is our only hope: we need to follow Somebody who is not fighting-back and who is not calling us to take revenge. I have a clue who He is. We need to change from the inside-out, and that's not just true for terrorists - it's true for all of us!

To you who are ready for the truth, I say this: Love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer for that person. (Jesus in Luke 6, The Message)

Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you've got it in you, get along with everybody. Don't insist on getting even; that's not for you to do. "I'll do the judging," says God. "I'll take care of it." (Paul in his letter to the Romans, Chapter 12, the Message)

Do not starve yourself any longer

"O begin! Fix some part of every day for private exercises…whether you like it or not, read and pray daily. It is for your life; there is no other way; else you will be a trifler all your days…do justice to your own soul; give it time and means to grow. Do not starve yourself any longer. Take up your cross and be a Christian altogether. Then will all the children of God rejoice..." (John Wesley, Letters to Mr. John Trembath, in Works, Vol. 12; page 254. Quoted in 'Three Simple Rules - A Wesleyan Way of Living', by Rueben P. Job)

Got Up Early

Have a look at my photo blog too...

Amazing Pics

Want to know what this is? Have a look here and be amazed...

Dilemma

Today I brought Sosha (daughter, 14) to school. She is recovering from a broken leg and is not able to bike or walk, of course. On my way back home I saw another girl, about the same age, standing next to her bicycle in the pouring rain. We live in a flat area (polder / reclaimed land) and the wind can be very fierce.
I stopped and asked this girl if she needed help. She looked cold and wet and told me that she had to go to her school in Nieuw Vennep, which is a distance of approx. 5 kilometers. I was hesitating. I wanted to help this girl and give her (and her bike) a ride to school, but at the same time I knew that I wouldn't approve when one of my own daugthers accepted this kind of help from a total stranger. I told her that she could make a phone call and ask for permission from her parents, but she had no cell phone on her and didn't want to use mine. I told her that I was willing to help, but that she had to make her own decision about it. She accepted my help and was happy that she arrived a bit earlier, dry and warm at school today!
Still, I don't know if I did the right thing... and I hate the fact that I even have to think about this. Because only a couple of people can't be trusted, it is getting hard to be kind to a girl that needs help. Any thoughts on this? Let me know.

Go to their rescue!

"All who are not on the Rock, are in the sea. Every soldier must go to their rescue!" - William Booth

Obama's victory and Jesse's tears

I did't write about the newly elected president of the United States yet. I know that many of my fellow Christians in the USA were supporting the Republican candidate John McCain, but I am excited about the choice that the majority of the American voters have made and I have high expectations of president Barack Obama. I pray that the change that he has promised to bring, will be a change for good.

In our country about 90% of the people were 'supporting' Barack Obama, but according to Dutch on-line news bulletin NIS they often have the wrong idea about Obama's views on several important issues:

Obama is against same-sex marriage, but 62 percent of the Dutch believe he is in favour of this. No less than 78 percent wrongly believe that Obama wants to abolish the death penalty, and 90 percent failed to believe that the statement "We will kill Osama bin Laden" was made by Obama. And three-quarters think that Obama wants to reduce the number of American troops in Afghanistan, while in fact he wants to send more troops there.

Another observation... I saw some TV images showing the Rev. Jesse Jackson tearing up, right after he had heard that Barack Obama was elected 44th president of the United States. I think that this emotional reaction says it all. His tears tell the story of the suffering and the joy of the black people and I fully understand his emotional reaction. Asked about the reason for his tears, Rev. Jackson explained the next morning that he was thinking about "...the martyrs and murdered whose blood made last night possible. I could not help think that this was their night." source

Another racial barrier has been removed and finaly a black man has reached the highest elected political office in the world. Race shouldn't be an issue in politics, but in real life it unfortunately often still is. I am happy that the Americans decided to elect an intelligent, eloquent and inspiring new leader, and the fact that he is a black man (well, more or less) is a bonus! Only half a century ago black people were totaly excluded from positions of power in the USA and many other parts of our world, but now Obama shows that this really belongs to the past. I hope and pray that president Barack Obama will be able to inspire people of all colours, faiths and backgrounds, that he will lead his country out of the current economic and politcal crises and that he will make some wise decisions in both domestic and foreign politics. May God bless, guide and protect him.

Church Sign Challenge

Inspired by this blog entry I decided to make my very own fake church sign today - hope you all like it. I challenge you to do the same and leave a comment here with a link to your blog post showing your own virtual church sign with appropriate Bible quotation or funny / thought-provoking text. Have a look here.

Please support Rebecca and School for the Girls

Picture left: Lydia showing our kikoy. Picture right: our daughters Sosha and Pascalle with their beautiful bangles from Kenya.

Some time ago I asked Rebecca Opetsi Alitsi from School for the Girls to give me some more information about her life and work in Kenya. Rebecca left a comment on one of my blog entries and through her own blog I learned a bit more about the good things she's involved in in her home country. Rebecca landed on my blog via Cori's blog.
I just want to tell you that I believe that Rebecca deserves your respect and support, because she is helping girls to earn some money by making beautiful kikoys that can be bought via Rebecca's website.
I did order such a beautiful kikoy and I would like to encourage other bloggers to do the same. Please have a look at Rebecca's website and do read the following information that Rebecca kindly gave me.

I am in Kenya which is my country and I am disabled with spinal cord problem, I am at the Catholic university of Kenya where I am doing social sciences so that I can work with the community, but I live in Kibera which is the biggest slum in Africa and the second in the world and I am handling the girls from the same area who have disabled parents or are disabled themselves. In total we are nine and trying to fund raise for our school fee and as well as to encourage each other.

Kenya is a very beautiful country with many beautiful animals like elephant, lion, cheetah, girrafe and many others. The only problem is poverty whereby children are not able to afford money for their fee and hence drop out of school and engage in bad things like drug abuse and even early parent hood which is very bad for them. And hence I decided to start this project whereby we make the kikoy and sell them so as to fundraise for the girl school fee.

Mushroom

Yes, this pic is very down-to-earth.

Impressions from Texel

Tomorrow we will be back home, but I am sure that I will come back to this beautiful island again! Texel is the largest Wadden isle and the only one belonging to the province North Holland (which is where we live). I have been here twice as a little boy, so it was about time for me to return. The only other Wadden isle that I know from personal experience is Ameland. I would like to visit all the Wadden isles (including the German ones!) to take some more photographs...

Sosha still has pain in her right leg and foot - she wasn't able to do as much as she wanted to, but all in all she had a good time here too. We do hope that she will soon recover completely so that she will be able to play soccer again and join us with all family activities.

I want to share these panorama pics with you - I took these photographs today during a long walk along the north side of the isle. The first pic has a strange bend in the horizon - it is hard to avoid this with an automated digital photomontage and such a wide angle! Please visit my photoblog if you want to see some more! (Click pics to enlarge)

For those of you who want to find out more about the Waddensea and Wadden isles (Texel, Vlieland, Terschelling, Ameland and Schiermonnikoog) - please click here

Pics from Ecomare, Texel

Visit my photo blog for more pics...

Greetings from Texel

Just an impression from Texel - we are enjoying ourselves here on this beautiful island!

Just to say (almost) everything's okay

Haven't been blogging for a while - just because I am too busy living my life ;-)
This is a busy time of the year with book fairs and many other things to do. I am also involved in alpha in prison ministry and that activity takes some of my time too.
Just an update... Sosha (our eldest daughter) broke her right leg two weeks ago (at the end of her soccer training). She's doing well, but this was a very painful experience and she needs several weeks to recover from it. Her right leg (shinbone and fibula) was broken just above the ankle and the doctor has places a metal plate with some little screws under her skin to re-connect the broken bones.
We will go on a short holiday to the isle of Texel with our family - just as planned. But of course we will take it easy because of Sosha's situation.
Haven't been reading any blogs recently - sorry about that too... Just drop me a line if there's anything I really need to know. Blessings to all of you!

Another shock - this time in Finland

Dear blog friends, please take some time to show the people in Finland that we care about what happened to some of their students. I guess that you've all heard the sad news about another tragic shooting spree at a Finnish school today. A gunman has killed 10 people at a college in the town of Kauhajoki before shooting himself. What is going on in this crazy world of ours?
I feel powerless and angry, but at the same time I know that we are in the midst of a spiritual battle and that God's Light Force is winning this fight against the dark powers of evil - whatever people may think and see right now. Jesus is stronger! Let's pray for the people of Finland and please send some words of encouragement to our blog brother Markus. I have many relatives in Finland and this sad news really resonates with me.
BBC news story.
Heavenbound weblog from Finnish brother / blogger Markus.

We don't like Ike - let's pray for a change!

'We like Ike!' - that was the slogan that once helped President Dwight D. Eisenhower to take the White House by a storm caused by waves of public support in 1952. I am very old - approaching 47 - but far too young to remember this. But as an educated History teacher I've learned my lessons. And I sure hope and pray that the same is true for the American people today - caught in an election with slogans about winds of change, threatened by an economic disaster and beaten up by hurricanes - such as Ike.
My God, what's going on? I live on the other side of the Atlantic - the problems seem so far away. And most American families will live their lives as if nothing serious is happening to them.
Hurricanes have always been there. And our global economy has weathered some storms before. Leaders will rise and fall - nothing's really new - except maybe for the size and the frequency of the disasters and challenges.
In the meantime I am praying for the people of America. For the families that are isolated, for people caught in the winds and the waves. I am a Dutchman and I know about the threat of water, but thanks to God not by personal experience -yet. Let's do what we can and let's ask our Lord to silence the storms once again. And let the body of Christ on this side feel the pain of the body on the other side. My prayers are with you, friends! Trust in the Lord, keep the faith - Jesus is still the Lord of the winds and the waves.

Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. Ephesians 4

This blog entry is my reply to the news here.

Misguided Butterfly

This butterfly landed on the colourful logo on the front side of our office building in Amsterdam. This logo looks like a gigantic flower, the butterfly must have been thinking... This is why I am happy that I always carry my camera with me nowadays!

Click on the pics to enlarge and enjoy the details!

Like a Ship in the Night

Check my new pics on my photo blog...

Click pic to enlarge...

What's wrong with Condoleezza?

I was expecting a very smart move. John McCain, Republican presidential hopeful, was surely going to surprise us with a brilliant running mate... Condoleezza Rice, of course! But wait a minute... I've just heard that he's now running with Sarah Palin! Sarah Who?
I haven't made up my mind about the US presidential elections yet - don't have to, being a distant Dutchman - but I am honestly impressed by Obama. Don't understand why he didn't select a strong female dance partner for this ball, but maybe he wanted to compensate his lack of experience in foreign affairs by asking an expert in this field (Joe Biden) to join him. Unfortunately Condoleezza wasn't an option for the Democrats... But my goodness, why on earth is John McCain dancing, excuse me, running with Sarah Palin? Okay, she's smart and beautiful, she's a mother at home and a governor in Alaska too. And let's not forget one major qualification: she is pro-life. Let's wait and see. But I still can't believe that McCain didn't ask Condoleezza Rice to become his strong, smart and beautifuly coloured female vice-presidential nominee.

Dutch blog

Yes friends, I'm still bloggin' on. In English, because I like to stay in touch with the rest of the world, but from this day on also in Dutch. My English language skills are okayish, but it's so much easier for me to express myself in my own mother tongue. So, I am making a brand new start today and this time I am betraying my faithful friends at Blogger / Google. I am going to use WordPress for my Dutch blog, but don't worry - I will keep this blog too. VRIJSPRAAK is the name of my Dutch blog - which literally means free speech, but also absolution. This name refers to grace and mercy, of course. Curious? Have a look here - maybe it will make some sense to you...

Let Freedom Ring

"With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day."

Forty-five years ago today, Martin Luther King delivered his famous "I have a dream" speech. What a great example of courage and faith this man still is! Read more here

The beautiful fight and the full reality of grace

I am reading 'The Beautiful Fight' by Gary Thomas. This book is packed with insights and food for thought. In Chapter 8 the author writes about setting our minds on God. He stresses that we are in control of our minds and that our will can be stronger than our emotions and passions - if we allow God's Spirit to guide us.
"Neurologists tell us a startling truth that has major implications for spiritual formation: Our choices and experience shape our brain, both literally and physiologically. What we choose cognitively helps make us into who we are. (...) In a neurological sense, our character is the sum total of the moral decisions we have made. In a theological sense, our behavior and our thinking are interconnected. Here's how the apostle Paul describes it: Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God." (The Beautiful Fight, p. 110)

Another quote that I want to share with you: "I have seen men who don't practice holiness start preaching nothing but grace - forgetting all about real change and transformation. I have also seen men who are deeply convicted about unrepented sin preach with anger and venom, forgetting all about forgiveness and mercy. Both camps miss the totality of God's grace, because they see it from only one side. They are led into either misunderstanding forgiveness, which exalts 'tolerance' over transformation, or misunderstanding God's judgment, which leads only to condemnation. Because their souls have grown weak, their minds can't grasp the full reality of grace that pardons and transforms.
What we do affects how we think. There is no getting around this truth. Right living supports right doctrine; right doctrine helps us to keep living right. We desperately need both." (The Beautiful Fight, page 111)

Panorama Pics II

Click pics to enlarge

These pics are all taken in and around Hoofddorp, Haarlemmermeer - the place where I live with my family, near Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. The panorama pics in the former entry are all taken during our holidays in France. Just let me know what you think!

Panorama Pics

Some pics I made during our holidays in France - using the panorama function of my digital camera Kodak EasyShare Z1012 IS. The camera stitches 3 pictures together. I did not use a tripod. More pics to follow. Click to enlarge!

My rain picture on website national TV!

It rained today. And it rained a lot! I took this picture out of my office window and uploaded it on a website of our national TV-station (NOS) where people from all over the country can place their weather pictures. Some time later I received an e-mail from an editor informing me that she had used my picture on the news front page and their weather report page. How cool is that? Ha, ha.
PS Update August 8 - The pictures are already gone... :-( That's what happens with yesterday's news. But I did make this screen dump...