I was born on January 17, 1980 in Naaldwijk, Holland. I grew up as the eldest child in a large family of fifteen children. My God-fearing parents were not involved in the church because of their objections to the preaching, but they read sermons at home. Twice on Sunday my father would read a sermon from the Church Fathers and the Puritans (Hugo Binning, Ralph and Ebenezer Erskine, etc.). It was a blessing to have parents that taught me the Bible from my youth, parents that lived the Christian life before us.

As a family we went through many trials that shaped me into the person I now am. My father had his own horticultural business which eventually went bankrupt. Shortly afterwards, my one-year old brother Albert drowned in the vicinity of our home. These events left deep tracks in my life. As a family we went through ups and downs, but it was a time when I clearly experienced the guidance and wonderful care of the Lord. He is the same yesterday, today and forever!

My upbringing and the events in our family kept me from a life in the world. I have never led a worldly life in the sense that I was totally absorbed in sin. Nevertheless, it was a long time before I could personally testify that Jesus Christ was my Lord and Savior. This was partly due to the one-sideness with which I was raised. Doctrinally, the teaching agreed with the Bible, but no one ever took me by the hand in a practical sense to teach me how I could be saved. Assurance of faith was something that seemed impossible. This lasted until I visited a youth meeting of Heartcry Netherlands along with my current husband Jacques. That evening, faith broke through in my heart and I knew for sure that Jesus did not only die and rise again for others, but also for me.

For years my prayer had been that I would come to know a God-fearing man with whom I could serve the Lord in ministry. In 2004, Jacques and I were married. Together we went through a whole process of spiritual growth. We also underwent believer’s baptism together in September 2010. After our first baby was born, I quit my job as a nurse in order to give myself fully to my children. Now we have three healthy boys – Levi, Boaz, and Jesse. My great desire is that our child-rearing will contribute to shaping them into men of God. As a family, we are members of and serve in the Baptist church in our hometown of Alblasserdam. Jacques speaks there regularly and I am involved in the children’s work.

As a family, we have recently come into a special situation for which we have prayed for some time. We wanted to devote ourselves full-time to the work of the Lord. We now have that opportunity and we believe that the Lord will richly provide for all our needs. Glory to the Lamb!