War Cry - November, 2014 Page 38

The War Cry | NOVEMBER 2014

It was September 1944 when operation Market Garden

took place. Lots of articles have been written about this
allied military operation. Even
a movie about this feat of arms
was produced, called A Bridge

Too Far

. It depicted the

controversy between two

well-known generals, the

American Eisenhower and the

Englishman Montgomery.

Thousands of parachutists of the British

Airborne Division landed at Arnhem in the

Netherlands, but could not be reached by the
allied ground forces. A complete failure.

Some of the English soldiers were shot

while hanging in the air. Many were taken

captive by German troops. Only a small force
managed to save themselves by withdrawing.
Many young people lost their lives there. Reading their
names on the memorial stones in a military cemetery in
nearby Oosterbeek is a moving and emotional experience.

When I visited the cemetery with a friend from England,

he said: "This ground will always remain British property."

In February 1944 I had become a Salvationist in the

small town of Zutphen along the Rhine. I was a teenager
during the war. It was difficult for me to have my home-
land under German rule. Together with my friend Albert

we escaped the German raids by cycling on secret routes
to a friendly farmer in the village of Almen.

In September, German troops passed our family

house with their prisoners of war. A car stopped right
in front of our door and the driver requested drinking

water. My father gave me a
bottle of water and I suddenly

found myself in a German
ambulance with young English
parachutists, their heads covered
in blood and their bodies
mutilated and crippled. It was

an awful sight. Yet it was the desperate, fearful
look in their eyes that shocked me. I passed the
water around to the soldiers who were clearly
thirsty. But I also had to answer their question:

"Please, can you pray for me?" That was the

moment I heard the voice of God, clearly recog-
nizable: "I call you to serve me and mankind."
Right there I answered: "Here am I, Lord, send me."

On the top shelf of my bookcase you can find

a small parcel containing personal papers. Many times
during my career I have grabbed for it to let the story
touch me again -- in times of new challenges, times of
pressure and discomfort, times when I felt desperately
lonely in Russia. But also in times of thankfulness, being
grateful for the special victories because of my faith in God.

No one can take away this notion of my calling. I

have been called by God Himself!

Commissioner R.J. Schurink lives in retirement in the
Netherlands. His appointments included serving as
Commander for Russia and as Territorial Commander for
the Netherlands and Czech Republic.

COMMISSIONER JO SCHURINK

GOD

Called by

SUDDENLY I FOUND

MYSELF IN A GERMAN

AMBULANCE WITH YOUNG

ENGLISH PARACHUTISTS

n the top shelf of
my bookcase you
can fi nd a small

parcel. It contains only a
few sheets of paper. It is
strictly personal. Nobody is
allowed to alter it. Over the
years I have kept it as if it
were the apple of my eye. It
is the history of my calling.