Finding Purpose - Song of my Life - Kristine van Dooren

Shortly after Thomas and I, had our fourth daughter, we celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary. In retrospect that seems like a short time, but since we had experienced so many different phases together, it seemed like a big accomplishment. I have talked about the radical changes, that took place after we got married, and how we finally found what we were looking for, peace with God. Our first 3 ½...

For today’s podcast I am celebrating 100 “true story” episodes. I am thankful for everything I have learned along the way, including the ability necessary, to do research, write each episode, and then do the voice recording and upload it onto the hosting website. Without my daughter, Debby’s faithful editing, which often includes my old tape recordings, this podcast wouldn’t exist. Besides the reg...

This program from Bibel TV was recorded in Hamburg. Our conversation was about the "Song of my Life", based on my autobiography titled "Das Lied meines Lebens," published in 2007. The interviewer asked some really deep and personal questions. For example: What led me to West Berlin from California when I was 19 years old, and how did I meet my future husband there? Then, how di...

Many times over the years, I have been asked if we actually enjoyed living in a communal situation. In my early episodes, I have talked about all of the wonderful experiences we had, and how God used each place and the people there, to form our characters. I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. Now in the coming episodes I will be sharing how we made the big step into normal life, living as a fa...

After nine months sharing an apartment with the church office and another couple, Thomas set out to find a new home for our family of six. We were under time pressure to move before Naomi started the first grade. We talked with our little girls about this plan and made a prayer list of our needs which included, another part time job for daddy. For me, the biggest issue was that I just had a baby....

So, a new exciting phase, in our lives began with four children. Thomas went out first thing in the morning to the local bakery, to bring us fresh rolls and Nutella, for our celebration breakfast. After the girls were dressed, and I nursed the baby, and they took turns holding the baby, their real life dolly! It was so cute to see Elisabeth, who was almost two, with her baby sister on her lap. Nao...

We had a big decision to make. Should we travel to California six weeks before my due date? By that time, Judy announced that she was also pregnant, and had no desire to travel. She offered to take care of my girls, if we wanted to go. Thomas and I, felt confident that I could handle the flight. But the idea of leaving the children home was our main concern. Since they knew, we would be staying at...

When I look back at my photo album, from those days of leaving the Trudering house, there is something that stands out to me. There were no group photos of a celebration party like, when others had moved away. There are also no pictures of the men, filling up the vans with furniture in the front of the house. This time, we were all leaving, and too busy trying to re-orient ourselves. Most of us Am...

One of my young adult granddaughters, has been listening to my podcast starting at the beginning. I have told her a few stories about when I met her grandfather, but she had some specific questions. So I decided to listen to Episodes 7, 8 and 9 to refresh my mind. I wrote those episodes almost 2 years ago and based them, not only on memories, but with the help of photographs and Thomas’ letters to...

Getting started with this part of our story, I had to think of a verse in the Old Testament that says, “For who has despised the day of small beginnings?” None of us can understand at the moment, what God isdoing, in seemingly insignificant things that happen. For those of us who walk, day by day with Jesus, we learn to see His purposes being accomplished over time. One very important experience I...

After recooperating from jet lag, it was back to work, and our normal schedule at the Trudering house. It was good that Thomas’ friend, John, had also gone to the elder’s conference with us. They both had fresh inspiration and were happy to share their experiences at the next family meeting. The time we had spent with our old friends from Living Waters, had been a reminder, of where we all came fr...

Welcome back everyone! And I would like to say, a special greeting, to my new listeners! Now we had three little girls, joining us on the journey, of becoming a cross cultural family. We had returned for a visit to California after living in Germany for almost 4 years. Though Thomas had grown up in West Berlin, his roots in the Christian faith, had begun in California. Our story continues! After r...

It was springtime, we had just celebrated Thomas’ birthday, and we had another party with the Trudering kids, for Esther who turned three. Thomas’ had made for himself a strict work plan. In his notebook he wrote out his schedule that says; get up at 5:45, prayer at 6:30, breakfast at 7:30, Bible reading at 11:15. Sundays he got up at 6:30, and breakfast in the house started at 7:30. Once we had t...

With our official name “Christliche Hausgemeinde,” we had set out on a significant new course. This effected all of us, as we learned together, how to organize a church service for the public. The men had been scouting out locations near the center of Munich. The two main conditions were, that it was affordable and available on Sundays. What they decided on was somewhat amusing; a Taekwondo hall....

In reference, to Naomi’s voice message in the last episode, I realized what an important influence the music had in her young life. She said she was surrounded by a Christian environment. In her memories, it was like we had meetings every night, with singing and worshipping God. In an interview for a Christian TV program Naomi said something similar: “I remember when I was four years old, that my...

This week marks two years, since I uploaded the introduction to the podcast, “Finding Purpose”. I had spent a few weeks, filing on the wording, so that it would represent the "Song of my Life". Then I found, the perfect background music for the podcast, from a song that Naomi had written. I cannot thank Debby enough, for her weekly editing, in the midst of her own busy schedule. And I ne...

First what is clear, in looking back over our lives, is that there are two aspects to life. As the years go by, we are busy with different kinds of daily routines, depending on our jobs, our families and our age. Everything is always changing, the circumstances are temporary. At the same time, there is the spiritual side of life, which is eternal. God is working in our hearts, teaching us importan...

Translation for "Hoffnung in der Trauer" -TV Interview ERF 2007 - “Hof mit Himmel” Welcome back friends! Last week you saw the German interview that was filmed shortly after my autobiography was published. Naomi and I have tried our best to recreate the interview in English. I hadn't seen the film for a long time so it was fun seeing my younger self. This was the first time, I ever did an intervie...

A Christian Talk Show for German TV - 2007 This is an interview for ERF TV - Hof mit Himmel - with Kristine van Dooren This program was filmed shortly after my autobiography, “Das Lied meines Lebens”, was published. The title of the program is, "Sagt mir wo die Blumen sind" - “Where have all the flowers gone?”, in reference to the hippie days. You can watch the video, on my Youtube chann...

No words could describe how happy, Thomas and I, were with our third daughter. Naomi and Esther, were learning to be mommies, to their real- live dolly. They wanted to help with everything, and couldn’t wait for their turn, to sit on the couch and hold her. Pretty soon they had little Elisabeth lined up on their beds, with their dolls playing house. Like I had said in the last episode, I had somew...

As I said in the last episode, I still had the baby blanket on the shelf, representing my last pregnancy. The whole story had continued to hang over our heads, leaving us a bit confused. Confused meaning, we thought, we understood the situation correctly. That’s why I saved the blanket, with the name Samuel, embroidered on it. In Episode 58, I told the bizaare story, of what took place in Nienburg...

What better way to start off our second spring in Munich, than with more parties. One was a wedding, and our little family, had three birthdays coming up. As a fellowship we were really getting good at planning parties, and for the coming months, they would all be happy occasions. And we rejoiced, with Brian and Christine, they had a healthy baby boy, and moved into the downstairs apartment. With...

Steve took one last photo, of Thomas and John, standing on the gangway after unloading the vans. None of them could imagine, what awaited the two families, once their ship was on it's way. At the Gasthof, the evening before they watched the news on TV. It was reported that a big storm was brewing over the Atlantic. Steve’s wife told me years later that the owner of the guest house warned them,...

You have been listening to the stories about my past, and have also heard from a couple of my daughters, and grandchildren. Their lives have been influenced by the important things, that Thomas and I learned, in the first years at the Trudering house. Even my youngest grandchildren, unknowingly, are reaping from the fruit that comes from having parents that love God. Even though they are too young...

Through my weekly stories, you having been getting all the details, about the early years of my life with Thomas. With the addition of the “video conversations”, you can get a tiny glimpse into what my life looks like today. Along with all the unique experiences we had, I think the most important thing, is what goes deeper than the outward events, that were taking place. God was changing our heart...