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Evidence Not Seen: A Woman's Miraculous Faith in the Jungles of World War II
This is the true story of a young American missionary woman's courage and triumph of faith in the jungles of New Guinea and her four years in a notorious Japanese prison camp. Never to see her husband again, she was forced to sign a confession to a crime she did not commit and face the executioner's sword, only to be miraculously spared.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
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About the author
Darlene Deibler Rose
1 book39 followersDarlene Deibler Rose was a born-again Christian missionary in Papua New Guinea during and after World War II in what would later be the Western Highlands province. Darlene Deibler was the first American woman to enter the Baliem Valley of New Guinea, working there with her first husband Rev. Russell C. Deibler. When WWII broke out, the Deiblers were sent to separate prison camps. Russell died at Pare Pare, but Darlene survived four years in a camp for women at Kampili, where she developed beriberi. She claims her Christian faith sustained her during those years.
After the war Darlene married Jerry Rose and resumed missionary work in New Guinea. After nearly thirty years in New Guinea, they relocated to the Australian outback. She died on February 24, 2004.
After the war Darlene married Jerry Rose and resumed missionary work in New Guinea. After nearly thirty years in New Guinea, they relocated to the Australian outback. She died on February 24, 2004.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,125 reviews
December 3, 2009
my favorite biography. I lost my copy but then found another one for $2 on clearance... little did I know at the time that it was signed!!!
here's what Darlene wrote:
Dear [friend's name:],
May you know and give testimony to the love and greatness of our God!
Without Him, I would not have survived!! But I do thank Him for every thing He allowed in my life ~ it was there I truly came to know Him!
Lovingly
Darlene
Deut 33:12
here's what Darlene wrote:
Dear [friend's name:],
May you know and give testimony to the love and greatness of our God!
Without Him, I would not have survived!! But I do thank Him for every thing He allowed in my life ~ it was there I truly came to know Him!
Lovingly
Darlene
Deut 33:12
February 25, 2017
*takes a deep breath* Wow! Review to come when I am not an emotional wreck and can digest everything I just read!
UPDATED REVIEW:
Wow wow wow! What an amazing story!! Mrs. Rose's writing style is pretty much all description and almost no dialogue (rather normal for an autobiography, I guess), which was somewhat hard to wade through, but I am so glad I didn't put this down! The raw bravery and true courage of Darlene Diebler so humbly portrayed throughout was so incredibly inspiring. That was one thing I really liked about this book; Mrs. Rose was clearly a very humble, self effacing woman, and that was depicted in the writing. I loved how she put the focus on God and others, and not herself. Filled with lovely, heart wrenchingly encouraging nuggets throughout, this is a book that went straight to my heart, and I will not forget it easily! Definitely a must read!
UPDATED REVIEW:
Wow wow wow! What an amazing story!! Mrs. Rose's writing style is pretty much all description and almost no dialogue (rather normal for an autobiography, I guess), which was somewhat hard to wade through, but I am so glad I didn't put this down! The raw bravery and true courage of Darlene Diebler so humbly portrayed throughout was so incredibly inspiring. That was one thing I really liked about this book; Mrs. Rose was clearly a very humble, self effacing woman, and that was depicted in the writing. I loved how she put the focus on God and others, and not herself. Filled with lovely, heart wrenchingly encouraging nuggets throughout, this is a book that went straight to my heart, and I will not forget it easily! Definitely a must read!
November 9, 2021
You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness~Psalm 30:11
After four years as a POW, Darlene Deibler is given a dress and shoes before beginning her trip home. Her story of the ministry she began with her husband in Papua New Guinea (they were truly pioneers) and then her experiences as a POW are simply riveting. What an inspiring story. As a child she felt the call to be a missionary and promised to go wherever God would send her. What followed was a marriage to a man (Russell Deibler) who was a gifted preacher and one whose life was cut short in the Pare Pare. His fellow prisoners lovingly carved a cross for his grave and the inscription read: God kiest de besten. Although Darlene was devastated that they were separated during the last 18 months of their marriage, she was not without hope. Darlene testifies so many times in her book about the ways God's spoke to her by bringing scripture to her mind whenever she was struggling. Time after time, God sustained her in suffering and often provided so much more than she asked. When she was at last home with her family after eight years apart and so many when they could not communicate, she made the following observation: Viewing those eight years from this far side, I marvel at the wisdom and love of our God, Who controls the curtains of the stage on which the drama of our lives is played; His hand draws aside the curtains of events only far enough for us to view one sequence at a time. She wondered if she would have been able to set foot on the ship eight years before. As inscribed on Russell's grave, God knew best. This is one of those books that you put in your own personal library and purchase as gifts for others. Highly recommended!
After four years as a POW, Darlene Deibler is given a dress and shoes before beginning her trip home. Her story of the ministry she began with her husband in Papua New Guinea (they were truly pioneers) and then her experiences as a POW are simply riveting. What an inspiring story. As a child she felt the call to be a missionary and promised to go wherever God would send her. What followed was a marriage to a man (Russell Deibler) who was a gifted preacher and one whose life was cut short in the Pare Pare. His fellow prisoners lovingly carved a cross for his grave and the inscription read: God kiest de besten. Although Darlene was devastated that they were separated during the last 18 months of their marriage, she was not without hope. Darlene testifies so many times in her book about the ways God's spoke to her by bringing scripture to her mind whenever she was struggling. Time after time, God sustained her in suffering and often provided so much more than she asked. When she was at last home with her family after eight years apart and so many when they could not communicate, she made the following observation: Viewing those eight years from this far side, I marvel at the wisdom and love of our God, Who controls the curtains of the stage on which the drama of our lives is played; His hand draws aside the curtains of events only far enough for us to view one sequence at a time. She wondered if she would have been able to set foot on the ship eight years before. As inscribed on Russell's grave, God knew best. This is one of those books that you put in your own personal library and purchase as gifts for others. Highly recommended!
June 9, 2018
"Lassie, whatever you do, be a good soldier for Jesus Christ."
Darlene Rose's life was amazing and terrible at the same time! Her faith in Jesus Christ was so encouraging to me - she trusted in him even through terrible situations! It makes me wonder if I really trust Him the way I should!
"Yes, come, Lord Jesus, come quickly."
The things she had to go through while she was in the concentration camp was incredible. The diseases, the sicknesses, the deaths; it made me want to hug her and the rest of the prisoners! The worm disease really made me feel ill - it would be such a terrible thing to have!
Eventually Yamaji wearied of counting dead flies, and this, like the Callisthenics class, died a long-waited death.
The part when the prisoners had to catch at least 100 flies each because the Commander Yamaji ordered it was rather humorous but awful! I can't imagine trying to catch that many flies, but Darlene was an expert at catching them by the time she left the prison!
Mevrow Deibler; we really do think you look like a film star."
Darlene helped so many people even when she was ill herself. She was an amazing lady! Everyone loved her so much as well! She and her husband had such an impact on even the soldiers who were completely against them!
"Ruth, look at my hair; it's white!"
Because of the stressful and difficult times, Darlene probably looked and felt older than she actually was. Her hair turned white when she was in her thirties because of all the terrible situations! At the end, she was thinking she was sixty going on a hundred!
This book has a very strong impact in my life - she and her husband were missionaries like me and my family, but went through so much more than we'll ever go through ourselves! When she heard of her husband's death, it broke my heart - Russel was an amazing man! I absolutely loved the part when she was thinking about when she first met him! So sweet! <3
"To part is to die a little."
I totally recommend this book! It is so amazing what the Lord brought Darlene and so many other people through! And afterwards, it was all for the Glory of God!
Darlene Rose's life was amazing and terrible at the same time! Her faith in Jesus Christ was so encouraging to me - she trusted in him even through terrible situations! It makes me wonder if I really trust Him the way I should!
"Yes, come, Lord Jesus, come quickly."
The things she had to go through while she was in the concentration camp was incredible. The diseases, the sicknesses, the deaths; it made me want to hug her and the rest of the prisoners! The worm disease really made me feel ill - it would be such a terrible thing to have!
Eventually Yamaji wearied of counting dead flies, and this, like the Callisthenics class, died a long-waited death.
The part when the prisoners had to catch at least 100 flies each because the Commander Yamaji ordered it was rather humorous but awful! I can't imagine trying to catch that many flies, but Darlene was an expert at catching them by the time she left the prison!
Mevrow Deibler; we really do think you look like a film star."
Darlene helped so many people even when she was ill herself. She was an amazing lady! Everyone loved her so much as well! She and her husband had such an impact on even the soldiers who were completely against them!
"Ruth, look at my hair; it's white!"
Because of the stressful and difficult times, Darlene probably looked and felt older than she actually was. Her hair turned white when she was in her thirties because of all the terrible situations! At the end, she was thinking she was sixty going on a hundred!
This book has a very strong impact in my life - she and her husband were missionaries like me and my family, but went through so much more than we'll ever go through ourselves! When she heard of her husband's death, it broke my heart - Russel was an amazing man! I absolutely loved the part when she was thinking about when she first met him! So sweet! <3
"To part is to die a little."
I totally recommend this book! It is so amazing what the Lord brought Darlene and so many other people through! And afterwards, it was all for the Glory of God!
February 26, 2012
This is one of my favorite books because Mrs. Rose actually shared the Gospel with my grandmother, and I believe that my grandmother came to know the Lord right before she died. I thank God for Mrs. Rose. She has an amazing testimony and her faith had an impact on my family. Truly, God works in mysterious ways :)
December 7, 2024
One of the best books I’ve read in my whole life. Finished it on a flight and had to fight the urge not to sob through the last hundred pages.
Review to come.
Review to come.
July 5, 2024
This is a powerful and true story of Darlene Deibler Rose, a young American Missionary who survived 4 years in a Japanese prison camp in the jungles of New Guinea during WWII. Her faith in Christ, courage, and strength was beautiful, heartbreaking, encouraging, and inspiring! This book sucked me in and I couldn’t stop reading! The messages in this are clear: through even the most difficult, painful, and horrible circumstances God is there walking next to us, he hears our prayers, and even during some of Darlene’s darkest moments nothing was impossible with God. Even amid the storm and the harshness of the Japanese prison camp, Darlene turned to Christ and she still was able to find glimmers of joy which was amazing. This book evokes all of your emotions while pushing and challenging the reader in their own life, it did for me.
I highly encourage and recommend that everyone read this book!✨
I highly encourage and recommend that everyone read this book!✨
May 23, 2024
Read this in 2023 as a family read-aloud for our Missionary Mondays. Absolutely fantastic for our boys to hear the answers to prayer through the most difficult of circumstances. Highly recommend for family reading!🤓
Wow, just wow! This will be a favorite of mine for the rest of my life! Her captivating story made it hard to put this book down. Her courage, faith in God, and answered prayers were such a challenge to my own life! God will never leave me, and no one is beyond God’s love and forgiveness.
Wow, just wow! This will be a favorite of mine for the rest of my life! Her captivating story made it hard to put this book down. Her courage, faith in God, and answered prayers were such a challenge to my own life! God will never leave me, and no one is beyond God’s love and forgiveness.
May 25, 2019
Do you know what I like about this book? Darlene Deibler being Darlene Deibler. I've read the criticisms and they aren't wrong. She does take a paternalistic tone when talking about the natives she worked with and the book is not always the most riveting narrative on the planet. But throughout, you just never know what observation you are going to get with her.
For as much grace as she shows to the Japanese captors who put her through hell as a prisoner of war, she might suddenly name drop someone and be like "Yeah, that woman was a skank who had 3 amazing kids and I have no idea how they turned out amazing with a Mom like her." (Except, she says it in more polite, WW2 language.)
And you would think it would come across as offensive and maybe it does to some. But to me it felt genuine. The personality of the storyteller really shines through. She doesn't white-wash the people she lived with at the POW camps. Some were good parents; some were not. Some could handle the stress; some could not.
I positively adored how she met her first husband. He fell in love at first sight and was convinced God told him they would get married; she just kept blowing him off!
This is an imperfect book that feels super genuine because of its imperfections. Glad I picked it up.
For as much grace as she shows to the Japanese captors who put her through hell as a prisoner of war, she might suddenly name drop someone and be like "Yeah, that woman was a skank who had 3 amazing kids and I have no idea how they turned out amazing with a Mom like her." (Except, she says it in more polite, WW2 language.)
And you would think it would come across as offensive and maybe it does to some. But to me it felt genuine. The personality of the storyteller really shines through. She doesn't white-wash the people she lived with at the POW camps. Some were good parents; some were not. Some could handle the stress; some could not.
I positively adored how she met her first husband. He fell in love at first sight and was convinced God told him they would get married; she just kept blowing him off!
This is an imperfect book that feels super genuine because of its imperfections. Glad I picked it up.
January 13, 2022
This is an account of a woman missionary, who was captured by the Japanese and sent to a prison camp during the occupation of the Philippines in 1940's. She and her husband, James(?), I read this more than 30 years ago, were rarely in contact since they had been placed in separate camps. The director of the camp hated Christians so he would lie to them saying that the other spouse had said things that were untrue. Darlene knew her husband well enough to see the Camp Director's attempt to emotionally harm her. He was diabolical but she continued to share the love of Christ and tell him she didn't hate him despite his attention and intention to bring her pain.
Her husband didn't survive.
Widowed and freed after the war after several grueling years, she continued to minister and remarried. Her witness is one of the most encouraging stories I have read my entire life or heard. There are some interviews later in life available on youtube. It is worth your time!
Years after, I heard a story, after the war, the Camp Director became a Christian evangelist. He always shared that it was the faith of Ms. Rose always consistent even upon learning of her husband's death that the Director had a hand in, that led to his change of heart! Wow.
Her husband didn't survive.
Widowed and freed after the war after several grueling years, she continued to minister and remarried. Her witness is one of the most encouraging stories I have read my entire life or heard. There are some interviews later in life available on youtube. It is worth your time!
Years after, I heard a story, after the war, the Camp Director became a Christian evangelist. He always shared that it was the faith of Ms. Rose always consistent even upon learning of her husband's death that the Director had a hand in, that led to his change of heart! Wow.
June 2, 2012
From childhood, Darlene had promised the Lord that she would go where ever he wanted her too, that she wanted to be a missionary. How the Lord used her, and where He took her is an incredible story of faith and miracles, and blessings amidst unbelievable hardships.
Evidence Not Seen is the story of Darlene Deibler, who lived, survived, and perhaps in an odd way, thrived in a Japanese prison camp during World War II. It details how she was captured, and many of the day to day occurrences that took place in a camp full of undernourished and overworked women separated from their husbands, brothers, and sons.
It is amazing to read of the many, many miracles which the Lord blessed Darlene with. She thought herself foolish to ask her Heavenly Father for one banana, and yet He gave her 92 bananas as a gift. The camp commander was a horrible, hateful man, and yet Darlene's hope for a bright, eternal future changed him, and he in turn was able to save her. Prayers for healing were answered, and so much more that can only be discovered by reading the book.
I was extremely impressed by this book. It was inspiring to me to be faithful in the little things, and "bloom where you're planted" for that is exactly what Darlene did. It was also an amazing reminder to me to serve others and not myself.
I would highly recommend this book to others!
Evidence Not Seen is the story of Darlene Deibler, who lived, survived, and perhaps in an odd way, thrived in a Japanese prison camp during World War II. It details how she was captured, and many of the day to day occurrences that took place in a camp full of undernourished and overworked women separated from their husbands, brothers, and sons.
It is amazing to read of the many, many miracles which the Lord blessed Darlene with. She thought herself foolish to ask her Heavenly Father for one banana, and yet He gave her 92 bananas as a gift. The camp commander was a horrible, hateful man, and yet Darlene's hope for a bright, eternal future changed him, and he in turn was able to save her. Prayers for healing were answered, and so much more that can only be discovered by reading the book.
I was extremely impressed by this book. It was inspiring to me to be faithful in the little things, and "bloom where you're planted" for that is exactly what Darlene did. It was also an amazing reminder to me to serve others and not myself.
I would highly recommend this book to others!
April 8, 2020
What if you obeyed God and lost everything? Could you praise Him? Could you thank Him? Darlene learned that she could.
I first read this story when I was about 12 or 13. It one of the first Christian biographies that I read that was not written specifically for children. The difference between this first-person recounting of God’s sustaining power through brutal loss and the rather sanitized, and therefore, weakened retelling in those other biographies was stark. The heroine was more flawed and God more glorious.
Darlene not only tells us what she experienced, but she also tells us how God carried her through it. She shares the amazing personal lessons she learned along the way so that we too can learn to rely on God through everything.
While it is delicately written, it also covers some very brutal scenes. I would still recommend it to everyone. I believe it will be a great encouragement in learning to walk with God.
I first read this story when I was about 12 or 13. It one of the first Christian biographies that I read that was not written specifically for children. The difference between this first-person recounting of God’s sustaining power through brutal loss and the rather sanitized, and therefore, weakened retelling in those other biographies was stark. The heroine was more flawed and God more glorious.
Darlene not only tells us what she experienced, but she also tells us how God carried her through it. She shares the amazing personal lessons she learned along the way so that we too can learn to rely on God through everything.
While it is delicately written, it also covers some very brutal scenes. I would still recommend it to everyone. I believe it will be a great encouragement in learning to walk with God.
August 23, 2020
I think I had read this one years ago.
But I felt like I needed to read it again. I knew it would be hard. But I knew I needed the faithful story and testimony of a dear Christian to be rekindled in me. It brought me to tears at certain points.
I just loved how real God became to her, and how she could physically feel His presence time after time. She was so young when all this happned to her and her new husband.
"Viewing those eight years from this far side, I marvel at the wisdom and love of our God, Who controls the curtains of the stage on which the drama of our lives is played; His hand draws aside the curtains of events only far enough for us to view one sequence at a time."
But I felt like I needed to read it again. I knew it would be hard. But I knew I needed the faithful story and testimony of a dear Christian to be rekindled in me. It brought me to tears at certain points.
I just loved how real God became to her, and how she could physically feel His presence time after time. She was so young when all this happned to her and her new husband.
"Viewing those eight years from this far side, I marvel at the wisdom and love of our God, Who controls the curtains of the stage on which the drama of our lives is played; His hand draws aside the curtains of events only far enough for us to view one sequence at a time."
February 25, 2015
This is probably my favorite book. It is an amazing true story of a missionary who was caught in the turmoil of World War II. Though she did not "deserve" to be placed in a prison camp, she used this opportunity to grow in faith rather than in bitterness. What stood out most to me was her focus on God.
Many prison camps had instances which are morally wrong. While Darlene Diebler Rose included some of the true facts, she did it discreetly, reflecting the grief that she felt for the sin.
Many prison camps had instances which are morally wrong. While Darlene Diebler Rose included some of the true facts, she did it discreetly, reflecting the grief that she felt for the sin.
March 22, 2019
Only God can write a story like this one.
October 3, 2022
I've been enjoying reading biographies of missionaries and this was highly recommended and clearly well-loved by many people. I can see why! The faith displayed by Deibler Rose while being held as a Japanese Prisoner of War was incredible to read. I was even more in awe to see how God worked in her life during her circumstances in New Guinea. Her story so clearly displays Hebrews 13:5- Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you".
While Deibler Rose's life is certainly worthy of more than the four stars I'm rating this book (and honestly assigning a rating to someone's life story strikes me as odd anyway), the writing style made it hard for me to be truly immersed in the story and I found the pacing/timeline to be a bit wonky. I read this as an audiobook via Hoopla and was also not a fan of the narrator, as it felt like she was yelling even when the volume was lower.
While Deibler Rose's life is certainly worthy of more than the four stars I'm rating this book (and honestly assigning a rating to someone's life story strikes me as odd anyway), the writing style made it hard for me to be truly immersed in the story and I found the pacing/timeline to be a bit wonky. I read this as an audiobook via Hoopla and was also not a fan of the narrator, as it felt like she was yelling even when the volume was lower.
February 21, 2024
O carte plină de durere, nedreptate și totuși, credința în Dumnezeu a sădit în inima oamenilor puterea de a trece peste toate atrocitățile din lagărele și închisorile Japoneze. Dumnezeu a fost, este și o să fie prezent și atunci când îngăduie să trecem prin momente grele.
“De-a lungul anilor, vânturile furtunilor m-au lovit, valuri uriașe au amenințat să mă scufunde sau să mă trântească de pe stânci. Dar știind acum ceea ce nu am știut cu mulți ani în urmă, la fel ca C.H. Spurgeon,
Îi pot mulțumi lui Dumnezeu pentru orice furtună care m-a lovit de Stânca mea, Isus Cristos!”
În curând apare cartea și în limba română la editura Casa Cărții.
Recenzie:
Sincer, este o carte care te mișcă. Găsim aici o femeie plină de o credință autentică. În loc să se oprească asupra ororilor și suferințelor îndurate, ea a insistat asupra bunătății și mângâierii surprinzătoare, care izvorau în inima ei doar prin credința în Dumnezeu.
Autoarea, Darlene Deibler Rose, avea peste douăzeci de ani când ea și soțul ei Russell au mers ca misionari în Pacificul de Sud. Ceea ce a îndurat această tânără și puterea pe care i-a dat-o Dumnezeu ca prizonier în timpul celui de-al Doilea Război Mondial este mai mult decât îmi pot imagina!
Mi se pare incredibil ca după toată suferința îndurată, să ai putere să spui aceste cuvinte comandantului care te supunea la durere: “Poate, Dumnezeu m-a adus în acest loc și de data aceasta să-ți spun că te iubește”.
Asta se întâmplă atunci când credința depășește orice limită omenească, pentru că Dumnezeu ți-a preluat controlul inimii în totalitate. Iar Darleen i-a oferit lui Dumnezeu întreaga ei viață. Doar un om plin de prezența lui Dumnezeu, poate privi cu dragoste spre cel ce i-a făcut rău.
Vă invit să citiți și voi această carte-mărturie. O să vă zidească! Recunosc că nu e ușor de citit fiecare pagină, dar merită!
Dumnezeu este neschimbat! Chiar și în vremurile de liniște, Dumnezeu este la lucru!
“De-a lungul anilor, vânturile furtunilor m-au lovit, valuri uriașe au amenințat să mă scufunde sau să mă trântească de pe stânci. Dar știind acum ceea ce nu am știut cu mulți ani în urmă, la fel ca C.H. Spurgeon,
Îi pot mulțumi lui Dumnezeu pentru orice furtună care m-a lovit de Stânca mea, Isus Cristos!”
În curând apare cartea și în limba română la editura Casa Cărții.
Recenzie:
Sincer, este o carte care te mișcă. Găsim aici o femeie plină de o credință autentică. În loc să se oprească asupra ororilor și suferințelor îndurate, ea a insistat asupra bunătății și mângâierii surprinzătoare, care izvorau în inima ei doar prin credința în Dumnezeu.
Autoarea, Darlene Deibler Rose, avea peste douăzeci de ani când ea și soțul ei Russell au mers ca misionari în Pacificul de Sud. Ceea ce a îndurat această tânără și puterea pe care i-a dat-o Dumnezeu ca prizonier în timpul celui de-al Doilea Război Mondial este mai mult decât îmi pot imagina!
Mi se pare incredibil ca după toată suferința îndurată, să ai putere să spui aceste cuvinte comandantului care te supunea la durere: “Poate, Dumnezeu m-a adus în acest loc și de data aceasta să-ți spun că te iubește”.
Asta se întâmplă atunci când credința depășește orice limită omenească, pentru că Dumnezeu ți-a preluat controlul inimii în totalitate. Iar Darleen i-a oferit lui Dumnezeu întreaga ei viață. Doar un om plin de prezența lui Dumnezeu, poate privi cu dragoste spre cel ce i-a făcut rău.
Vă invit să citiți și voi această carte-mărturie. O să vă zidească! Recunosc că nu e ușor de citit fiecare pagină, dar merită!
Dumnezeu este neschimbat! Chiar și în vremurile de liniște, Dumnezeu este la lucru!
May 30, 2022
This was such an amazing story. Seeing how God made Himself known in her life was so encouraging. No matter how big the struggles and circumstances were, she always had faith in God. It was so convicting to me.
September 3, 2024
Oh my goodness!!!!! This book is absolutely beautiful. I started it almost a year ago and it took me quite a while to get into. The beginning was kind of slow but the farther into it I got the more I loved it. This story is such a clear testament to God’s hand in every part of our lives. The story of Darlene’s faith through all that she suffered is so inspiring. It makes me want to know the Lord as personally as she did and it reminds me that no matter what we go through the Lord is always there with us, guiding and protecting us. I would highly recommend this book to everyone.
“But I will sing of Your power; Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; For You have been my defense And refuge in the day of my trouble.”
Psalms 59:16 NKJV
“But I will sing of Your power; Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; For You have been my defense And refuge in the day of my trouble.”
Psalms 59:16 NKJV
October 2, 2017
I was told a long time ago I should read this book, and even started it once - back several years ago when I was in Indonesia. I left though before I had time to finish the book, so I picked it up again last month and am thankful I did. This story is an extraordinary one about faith, following God no matter what the cost, and how amazing it is when people go through hard times and come out better because of it.
One thing that continually amazed me was how the author kept her senses of humor, adventure, and curiosity, even in the midst of such hardship.
This book has a lot of sadness, but also a lot of glimpses at God's abundant grace, power, and love.
One thing that continually amazed me was how the author kept her senses of humor, adventure, and curiosity, even in the midst of such hardship.
This book has a lot of sadness, but also a lot of glimpses at God's abundant grace, power, and love.
April 29, 2020
Wow this is a hard one for me to review.
There were parts of this book that I would give a 3 star rating - which for me is "good, but I wouldn't read it again or necessarily recommend it". At least not without caveats.
In order to really review the book, you have to review her and her life, right?
Darlene, without a doubt, is full of zeal and truly full of a desire to serve and please the Lord. Her obedience to what she believes God tells her is good. While I have a great respect for what Darlene endured, and while I would not want anyone to ever live through it, I don't believe she lived a life that should be emulated. I found her spirituality to be immature and "fluffy", with nearly every answer to prayer being the most oft recited and common verses in the Bible. Her answers from God were the answers you'd hear in Sunday school, and each issue she worked through seemed only temporarily resolved. I did not much appreciate how her prayers often sounded like accusations, "God... you already took Russell. How can you take (fill in the blank here - it happens quite often) too?"
At one point God's answer to her expected torture actually infuriated me. She says God told her, "Whom I love, I punish." Various members of my family ran into the room as I was listening to this book because I was shouting "no! no! No, no, no!!!!!" PUNISH?!?!?!? It is that very "error" of the church that would lead many to reject Christ entirely. (God does not punish someone with torture by a wicked army who has done nothing wrong. Hey 12:6 - Whom the Lord loves he chastens. Yes. Chastening - a "spanking" - for something you've done wrong. The unjust actions of wicked men taken out on you are not a "spanking" from the Lord. There are a dozen things I can picture God saying - "Child, I will not leave you. You aren't alone." Or "I am sufficient for you." Or "I was unrighteously beaten too. I am no stranger to injustice." Or "Vengeance is mine." Or other things. But NO. God does not PUNISH his saints with torture by a wicked enemy - I do NOT believe she heard that from God.)
Which sort of sums up my position on her and the book.
I respect her zeal for the Lord and her desire to serve Him. I worry about her depth of understanding and her lack of discernment. I truly believe that if people went into the mission field at her level of maturity, 9 out of 10 of them would not have made it. So, I respect her for going and for not turning her back on God. But I believe that had more to do with her personality and character than it had to do with her feet being set upon a rock. I think her reasoning, decision making, answers to prayer, among other things, are a dangerous pattern to follow. (For instance, my husband and I are very happily married. Our dating story though is risky, ignoring advice and wisdom, zealous young love against the world. 9 couples out of 10 who followed our pattern would not have the "happily ever after" that we have found. I do not recommend that people follow our precedent and don't tell our story without that caveat. That's how I feel about Darlene - unfettered zeal for the Lord that is not safe to replicate. From her understanding of scripture to her "love at first sight" courtship.) Thank God He can use us even with our errors for the Kingdom! But our errors can lead others astray.
That said: I do respect her zeal and her willingness to obey what she believes God has told her to do.
I think Darlene and I would have more disagreements than agreements in real life, so I can't say I aspire to be like her or that I would recommend someone look up to her. But I believe she's a saint, earned crowns in Heaven for what service she gave, and I'm certain that we will sit down in Heaven to tell our stories.
***update - the more I think on this book and her life and the example she is setting (purposefully setting!) the more I have problems with it. I have changed my rating from 3 stars to 2, but it’s probably a 1.5. I don’t know. It’s hard to give it much since I think it’s actually more harmful than helpful. PLEASE let’s talk about this if you love it!!
There were parts of this book that I would give a 3 star rating - which for me is "good, but I wouldn't read it again or necessarily recommend it". At least not without caveats.
In order to really review the book, you have to review her and her life, right?
Darlene, without a doubt, is full of zeal and truly full of a desire to serve and please the Lord. Her obedience to what she believes God tells her is good. While I have a great respect for what Darlene endured, and while I would not want anyone to ever live through it, I don't believe she lived a life that should be emulated. I found her spirituality to be immature and "fluffy", with nearly every answer to prayer being the most oft recited and common verses in the Bible. Her answers from God were the answers you'd hear in Sunday school, and each issue she worked through seemed only temporarily resolved. I did not much appreciate how her prayers often sounded like accusations, "God... you already took Russell. How can you take (fill in the blank here - it happens quite often) too?"
At one point God's answer to her expected torture actually infuriated me. She says God told her, "Whom I love, I punish." Various members of my family ran into the room as I was listening to this book because I was shouting "no! no! No, no, no!!!!!" PUNISH?!?!?!? It is that very "error" of the church that would lead many to reject Christ entirely. (God does not punish someone with torture by a wicked army who has done nothing wrong. Hey 12:6 - Whom the Lord loves he chastens. Yes. Chastening - a "spanking" - for something you've done wrong. The unjust actions of wicked men taken out on you are not a "spanking" from the Lord. There are a dozen things I can picture God saying - "Child, I will not leave you. You aren't alone." Or "I am sufficient for you." Or "I was unrighteously beaten too. I am no stranger to injustice." Or "Vengeance is mine." Or other things. But NO. God does not PUNISH his saints with torture by a wicked enemy - I do NOT believe she heard that from God.)
Which sort of sums up my position on her and the book.
I respect her zeal for the Lord and her desire to serve Him. I worry about her depth of understanding and her lack of discernment. I truly believe that if people went into the mission field at her level of maturity, 9 out of 10 of them would not have made it. So, I respect her for going and for not turning her back on God. But I believe that had more to do with her personality and character than it had to do with her feet being set upon a rock. I think her reasoning, decision making, answers to prayer, among other things, are a dangerous pattern to follow. (For instance, my husband and I are very happily married. Our dating story though is risky, ignoring advice and wisdom, zealous young love against the world. 9 couples out of 10 who followed our pattern would not have the "happily ever after" that we have found. I do not recommend that people follow our precedent and don't tell our story without that caveat. That's how I feel about Darlene - unfettered zeal for the Lord that is not safe to replicate. From her understanding of scripture to her "love at first sight" courtship.) Thank God He can use us even with our errors for the Kingdom! But our errors can lead others astray.
That said: I do respect her zeal and her willingness to obey what she believes God has told her to do.
I think Darlene and I would have more disagreements than agreements in real life, so I can't say I aspire to be like her or that I would recommend someone look up to her. But I believe she's a saint, earned crowns in Heaven for what service she gave, and I'm certain that we will sit down in Heaven to tell our stories.
***update - the more I think on this book and her life and the example she is setting (purposefully setting!) the more I have problems with it. I have changed my rating from 3 stars to 2, but it’s probably a 1.5. I don’t know. It’s hard to give it much since I think it’s actually more harmful than helpful. PLEASE let’s talk about this if you love it!!
February 21, 2025
mmmm another good bio. i recommend.
also i need to start memorizing more scripture in case i ever become a pow.
also i need to start memorizing more scripture in case i ever become a pow.
April 3, 2023
This book is a must read!! So good, so raw, so real, and so inspiring! Darlene's faith in the midst of fire is unmatchable. She has an astounding memory - which I'm sure is because of the trauma and pain interlaced with these years of her life. Her trust in Jesus, her love for people and her willingness to lay down her life for the gospel is awe-inspiring. Courage is not the absence of fear though - and Darlene shares her struggles honestly. This isn't an easy read - the torture and suffering in Japanese POW camps was brutal. But totally worth the read - 100% recommend.
April 29, 2020
This was a very difficult review for me to write. I had many thoughts on it, and condensing them into a concise review was not as easy as I thought it would be when I started writing!
I really wanted to love this book. I was so ready for another great biography about a Christian that I could admire and aspire to be like. However, all in all, I found myself with more dislikes than likes in this book. Darlene went through some extremely trying circumstances and lived through some very difficult situations, and no way do I want to detract from that, or say that that was not the case. However, during all this, I found Darlene and her Christianity to be very sincere, very heartfelt, but fairly shallow and fluffy. Her reasoning as to why she was in the concentration camp in the first place, her “love at first sight” whirlwind courtship with her husband, her “call” from God to go to the mission field lacked maturity, and all felt very much like the childish, romanticized version of Christianity we all start out with as children. Her faith did not seem to be on a solid rock of truth and wisdom. It was very much based on what she felt, what thoughts were going through her head at the moment, and the verses she had memorized as a child that she constantly applied to every situation as the answer to her problem at the moment.
I had issue with quite a few things in Darlene’s story, but her prayers, and what she hears as God’s answers to them, are a good representative of what I thought of Darlene herself throughout the entire book.
Every time Darlene starts despairing over something that isn’t working how she wants it to, she lays out the problem to God, and every time (this happens perhaps 20 times in the book) she feels God remind her of different loving, comforting Bible verse that perfectly calms her and brings her peace. Now, I absolutely believe that God comforts us, and that His Word is there to help us when we need it. But I believe that when God speaks, He doesn’t come and tell us what we would have told ourselves. Isaiah 55:8-9: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
The Bible says that God knows what we need before we ask. But often what we need is not what we want to hear. Many, many times in prayer, where I wanted pity and a Bible verse justifying my despair and telling me how God loves me despite it, God came and planted my feet on a solid rock of correction and truth. God telling me He loves me is wonderful, but when the thing that would help me most is telling me I’m doing something wrong, what I hear from God is not something I would have told myself. This never happens to Darlene. God never tells her something she doesn’t want to hear. While I believe that God was with Darlene, and she felt His presence when she prayed, I think much of the time what she “heard” from God was her remembering a verse that she had memorized as a child at Vacation Bible School and attributing it to God’s voice. So many times when what would have helped her immensely was being told, “No, you’re wrong to despair. Shake out of it. Grow up a little,” her “answer” from God is, time and time again, I love you. Instead of the word of God being, “quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart,” what she hears is just… fluff. Very loving, very sweet, very shallow, fluff.
As I said above, this seems like a small thing. But it is just an example of the naive, perhaps childish way that Darlene thinks about God. As one more example of what I mean, there is one point in the book where she is in a trench during a bomb raid during which her barracks is bombed and set on fire. All of a sudden she hears God tell her, “You borrowed Mrs, Lie’s Bible!” She says, “You’re right Lord, I have no right to let her Bible be burned!” So she quickly runs into their burning barracks, and saves the Bible. A few pages later, we find out that a bomb had landed in the exact spot where she had been lying, and God had saved her life.
I fully believe that God spoke to Darlene and saved her life that day. But do we truly believe that God cared so much about saving a Bible she had borrowed? Of course not. The point is that there were a dozen things God could have said to get someone to run out of the safety of a trench. But God knew the best way to get Darlene to leave the trench was to tell her to do an elementary, (dare I say cheesy?) romanticized, godly task. Some great “saving of the Bible” we might imagine God would ask us to do when we are first learning about God as children, but quickly learn that God is far beyond.
Once again, I do not want to downplay her circumstances. She lived through some terrible situations, and I believe that God was with her during them. I think she was a very sincere Christian who loved God and ended up in Heaven singing and rejoicing and worshiping with all the saints. However, I don’t think her story can be consistently reproduced. She made it through the concentration camp, but we hear almost nothing about her life before the camp, and no specifics after. I don’t know how her Christianity held up in day to day life. The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that she made it through her terrible time in spite of her naivety. I don’t think that any Christian who reads her story could go out and follow her path and get the same results. In fact, I think your average Christian who tried to follow her path would very likely end up in unbelief, confused by her naive, shallow, fluffy view of a God who is anything but.
All in all, I had a lot of issues with it, but I am glad I read it. Darlene made me think and her story brought up lots of conversation and questions and thoughts. However, most likely not for the reasons she had intended.
I really wanted to love this book. I was so ready for another great biography about a Christian that I could admire and aspire to be like. However, all in all, I found myself with more dislikes than likes in this book. Darlene went through some extremely trying circumstances and lived through some very difficult situations, and no way do I want to detract from that, or say that that was not the case. However, during all this, I found Darlene and her Christianity to be very sincere, very heartfelt, but fairly shallow and fluffy. Her reasoning as to why she was in the concentration camp in the first place, her “love at first sight” whirlwind courtship with her husband, her “call” from God to go to the mission field lacked maturity, and all felt very much like the childish, romanticized version of Christianity we all start out with as children. Her faith did not seem to be on a solid rock of truth and wisdom. It was very much based on what she felt, what thoughts were going through her head at the moment, and the verses she had memorized as a child that she constantly applied to every situation as the answer to her problem at the moment.
I had issue with quite a few things in Darlene’s story, but her prayers, and what she hears as God’s answers to them, are a good representative of what I thought of Darlene herself throughout the entire book.
Every time Darlene starts despairing over something that isn’t working how she wants it to, she lays out the problem to God, and every time (this happens perhaps 20 times in the book) she feels God remind her of different loving, comforting Bible verse that perfectly calms her and brings her peace. Now, I absolutely believe that God comforts us, and that His Word is there to help us when we need it. But I believe that when God speaks, He doesn’t come and tell us what we would have told ourselves. Isaiah 55:8-9: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
The Bible says that God knows what we need before we ask. But often what we need is not what we want to hear. Many, many times in prayer, where I wanted pity and a Bible verse justifying my despair and telling me how God loves me despite it, God came and planted my feet on a solid rock of correction and truth. God telling me He loves me is wonderful, but when the thing that would help me most is telling me I’m doing something wrong, what I hear from God is not something I would have told myself. This never happens to Darlene. God never tells her something she doesn’t want to hear. While I believe that God was with Darlene, and she felt His presence when she prayed, I think much of the time what she “heard” from God was her remembering a verse that she had memorized as a child at Vacation Bible School and attributing it to God’s voice. So many times when what would have helped her immensely was being told, “No, you’re wrong to despair. Shake out of it. Grow up a little,” her “answer” from God is, time and time again, I love you. Instead of the word of God being, “quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart,” what she hears is just… fluff. Very loving, very sweet, very shallow, fluff.
As I said above, this seems like a small thing. But it is just an example of the naive, perhaps childish way that Darlene thinks about God. As one more example of what I mean, there is one point in the book where she is in a trench during a bomb raid during which her barracks is bombed and set on fire. All of a sudden she hears God tell her, “You borrowed Mrs, Lie’s Bible!” She says, “You’re right Lord, I have no right to let her Bible be burned!” So she quickly runs into their burning barracks, and saves the Bible. A few pages later, we find out that a bomb had landed in the exact spot where she had been lying, and God had saved her life.
I fully believe that God spoke to Darlene and saved her life that day. But do we truly believe that God cared so much about saving a Bible she had borrowed? Of course not. The point is that there were a dozen things God could have said to get someone to run out of the safety of a trench. But God knew the best way to get Darlene to leave the trench was to tell her to do an elementary, (dare I say cheesy?) romanticized, godly task. Some great “saving of the Bible” we might imagine God would ask us to do when we are first learning about God as children, but quickly learn that God is far beyond.
Once again, I do not want to downplay her circumstances. She lived through some terrible situations, and I believe that God was with her during them. I think she was a very sincere Christian who loved God and ended up in Heaven singing and rejoicing and worshiping with all the saints. However, I don’t think her story can be consistently reproduced. She made it through the concentration camp, but we hear almost nothing about her life before the camp, and no specifics after. I don’t know how her Christianity held up in day to day life. The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that she made it through her terrible time in spite of her naivety. I don’t think that any Christian who reads her story could go out and follow her path and get the same results. In fact, I think your average Christian who tried to follow her path would very likely end up in unbelief, confused by her naive, shallow, fluffy view of a God who is anything but.
All in all, I had a lot of issues with it, but I am glad I read it. Darlene made me think and her story brought up lots of conversation and questions and thoughts. However, most likely not for the reasons she had intended.
August 4, 2020
What a joyful book! Darlene Deibler is a woman of ironclad faith. Widowed in her early twenties, she spent four years as a POW under the Japanese during WWII. She went through unimaginable hell, but turned to God again and again with absolute trust in His love. This book is like the story of Job—not because it makes it seem like we have nothing we can complain about in comparison, but because it shows us the One we should all go to with our troubles, no matter how big or small.
One of the biggest things that struck me is how much trauma and agony and heartbreak God put Darlene through, and how much He loved her. It's fairly easy for me to see how God works all things together for good for those who love Him, but I forget that He works all things together for good because He loves them. Truly, what a great God!
One of the biggest things that struck me is how much trauma and agony and heartbreak God put Darlene through, and how much He loved her. It's fairly easy for me to see how God works all things together for good for those who love Him, but I forget that He works all things together for good because He loves them. Truly, what a great God!
June 28, 2023
“How many times had I come to the Lord in these past years, in such agony of grief, fear, pain, and loneliness and all I could say was: Jesus”.
Darlene’s commitment to making the Word her foundation is refreshing and inspiring constantly throughout this book. The countless verses that anchor her through horrific trials are a convicting reminder of where our eyes need to be fixed when storms come. Our lives could just be testimonies of God’s commitment to work all things together for good.
Such a refreshing read
Darlene’s commitment to making the Word her foundation is refreshing and inspiring constantly throughout this book. The countless verses that anchor her through horrific trials are a convicting reminder of where our eyes need to be fixed when storms come. Our lives could just be testimonies of God’s commitment to work all things together for good.
Such a refreshing read
October 13, 2024
LOVED this. What a beautiful testimony of one missionary’s life who lived 4 years as a POW during WWII. I wept and I rejoiced with Darlene through the ups and (many) downs of her story. It felt like a mix of “A Hiding Place” (except in the South Pacific) and the story of Elisabeth Elliot. But more than anything it pointed to God’s sustaining grace and great mercy and providence in the midst of horrible conditions, torture, and tragedy. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
June 25, 2023
If you read this book, make sure to grab a box of tissues because wowza, Darlene’s complete trust and admiration for the Lord is incredibly moving. Her life is a beautiful example of how to follow God, in whichever direction He leads you in, because He is the only thing you need. It was also a reminder of the undeniable truth that He loves His children and desires to provide for them with an unfathomable extravagance.
June 22, 2024
This book was...so moving and powerful. I feel like some of the memoirs and biographies of great missionaries or POWs etc. I am very inspired and blown away by their faith and courage, but this one of Darlene Deibler...I don't know if I've ever empathized and felt like I could imagine so vividly being in their shoes. Perhaps it was that she was younger or that the whole book and her whole experience was both so relatable while being so entirely foreign and a level of faith and trust I can't even imagine.
I think almost every time I turned it on for a long drive at some point during the drive I would find a tear or two coming to my eyes just listening, sometimes for joy, sometimes for empathizing with her sorrow or pain. It felt almost like a dear older lady was telling me a long, hard, but infinitely beautiful story of the Lord's faithfulness to her and His presence in circumstances and trials I can't even imagine. It was so good. I think just the vividness and tangibleness of her prayer life as I listened left such an impact, even if I can't quite put my finger on what about it.
I might not hand this story to my younger sister, but I think that's mostly to do with how squeamish I know she'd be at the descriptions of the conditions at times, including bodily fluids and parasites and diseases, since even though very despicable things happened, such as with women being taken advantage of, they were described tactfully. Some torture was described clearly but not graphically. I think I'd say at least 13 and up or maybe a little more depending on maturity, and take heed if you're easily grossed out by descriptions of vomit and other bodily fluids. But it's probably worth it.
This book was so beautiful and made my heart throb. It might beat The Hiding Place, for me, which is saying a lot because that book holds a pretty special spot in my heart.
I think almost every time I turned it on for a long drive at some point during the drive I would find a tear or two coming to my eyes just listening, sometimes for joy, sometimes for empathizing with her sorrow or pain. It felt almost like a dear older lady was telling me a long, hard, but infinitely beautiful story of the Lord's faithfulness to her and His presence in circumstances and trials I can't even imagine. It was so good. I think just the vividness and tangibleness of her prayer life as I listened left such an impact, even if I can't quite put my finger on what about it.
I might not hand this story to my younger sister, but I think that's mostly to do with how squeamish I know she'd be at the descriptions of the conditions at times, including bodily fluids and parasites and diseases, since even though very despicable things happened, such as with women being taken advantage of, they were described tactfully. Some torture was described clearly but not graphically. I think I'd say at least 13 and up or maybe a little more depending on maturity, and take heed if you're easily grossed out by descriptions of vomit and other bodily fluids. But it's probably worth it.
This book was so beautiful and made my heart throb. It might beat The Hiding Place, for me, which is saying a lot because that book holds a pretty special spot in my heart.
July 29, 2011
this is a wonderful book. i first heard darlene diebler rose when i was about 10 years old at a week of missionary speakers at our church. if she had spoken all night we'd have all stayed all night to listen. her life was filled with god's presence. we heard of a baby coming back to life in the arms of his praying father. we heard a miracle involving life-sustaining bananas. and so much more. i grew up and never heard of her again, until i was listening to focus on the family and heard a missionary being interviewed by dr. dobson. she was being interviewed about a book she had just written. in a very short time - a matter of minutes, i knew this was the same woman i had heard all those years before. i was so excited. i ordered the book immediately and was thrilled to read some stories i remembered from her speaking, and many more i had never heard before. i got her address from focus on the family and wrote to her. she wrote back. she was pretty advanced in age by this time, but she was still doing mission work, this time in the australian outback. i begged her to write one more book, as there were some stories that weren't included in the last book, but i think she was too busy doing God's work to stop and write about it. i wish i could afford to buy this book for everyone i know. it's a book you will never forget.
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