A New Creation

A New Creation

Jon Terpstra (Sydney)

Through a failed business, Jon Terpstra, adopted a new identity and lived the high and dangerous life in Sydney thinking that no one knew of his double life, God did and changed it like he never expected.

Jon was born in Holland where he lived until he was 25. He and his wife Marty came to settle in Adelaide in December 1966. They moved to Sydney in 1973. It was there, after a business collapse, that his double life began until God stopped him short; but not before he lost everything including his wife, family, self respect and almost his soul.

He didn't have a good start. Born in 1941, (he jokingly said he started World War II) in the province of Friesland in the coldest and most northern province of Holland, he was a severe asthmatic and was often close to death. His family were from the Reformed church (from the time of Calvin) and Jon would often pray and make bargains that if God could deliver him from his latest asthma attack he would serve him. He generally forgot his promises shortly afterwards. But at age 15 the first miracle in his life occurred. The faithfulness of his father going from hospital to hospital finally resulted in the doctors successfully diagnosing the cause of his asthma to dust allergies and triggered by emotional upsets. He was treated successfully.

"I had a creative flair and at the age of 23 was offered a management position and was one of the youngest creative art directors in Europe at that time. I married a lovely Christian girl, Marty, that I had met in Amsterdam who was also from Friesland. I was trained in Christian schools so I knew of the Bible and memorised catechisms and hymns. I became the head of many things. While I was involved in church and President of two Christian Youth Clubs, we were also regular visitors to the nightclub scene. It was the 1960s and we were changing old traditions.

"Marty got pregnant, we married, and had a lovely daughter Kirsten .She was a great joy to us. But we then had a great drama in our lives. At seven months in Amsterdam she died in a cot death. That was the second major crisis of my life; the first had been my overcoming asthma. Kirsten's death hit us really hard but we knew that she was with the Lord, which gave us comfort."

They decided to migrate to Australia and settled in Adelaide. Marty worked as a hairdresser and Jon in advertising and both did very well for eight years. They had two more daughters; Kerensa now 28 and Kirsten 26, both happily married and have a one year old grandson. "We got our own home and became well known in the advertising world and set up own business. I helped a few people become millionaires and did well myself. My allergy started to play up again because South Australia had severe dust storms and the doctors advised me to move.

We were part of the church and were in a period when we were fostering a number of children, mostly Aboriginal children, and that was very emotional. So we decided to move...we shipped to Sydney." By 1975 they settled in Blacktown and shortly afterwards became successful again using his recently acquired skills in Holland and setting up his own agency. l was working with the Reformed Churches in youth leadership and many other things. I thought I was a pretty good Christian.

"Everything was beautiful, I was working in the promotional design world and had accounts running into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. In 1981 two main clients collapsed It had a domino effect. For three years I fought off court cases but eventually by 1984 we got notice that we had to sell up everything. The sheriff came to the front of our house and ordered us out. We lost everything.

"By that time I was very angry, hated my wife, the girls and the church, but I didn't show it and being a creative guy devised a plan to get back at everyone. I took on another identity and made a new world. It was quite easy. I began working as a freelance art director under a new name. I was playing a double game. Marty didn't know, nor did they at church. I lied to everyone and avoided all my former contacts. I used to sit in church and pity those around me who didn't know how clever I was.

"In 1988 I helped design some books including the Australian Heritage Cookbook which within eight months had sold over a million copies. I moved away from Marty and the family. They didn't know about my double life even then. I was playing around and became known as Don One and Don Two.. Our company became successful worldwide.l enjoyed it. I enjoyed living in the fast lane. I was a member of the rich set around Sydney and many other places in the world. I often shouted free drinks at most of the clubs and hotels. I tipped the doorman and the barman, anyone serving, amounts up to $1000. This went on until 1989.

"I had no inkling that my daughter would catch me out when I was in the mountains at Katoomba with other women. Afterwards I said to my wife, 'So you have discovered me, now you can keep everything' and I walked out. The daughters ran after me calling 'Dad, Dad, Dad...' To my amazement I began to cry. That hurt me and I never thought that I would."

Events began to catch up with Jon as did God's word planted in his heart so many years ago. He kept having scriptual texts come into his mind. He found his business partners were using astrology to guide their decisions on how to handle him. That made him angry.

More importantly he hesitatingly made contact with his estranged wife Marty again. She agreed to go out. She said that she and two other women had been praying for him constantly for seven years because "she didn't want me to go to hell, she wanted me to go to heaven."

They began to build their relationship again. Jon went to a Fusion-run seminar which led to him dealing seriously with God and His Truth. "I knew I had to change my life, but I wasn't sure how."

God did that. Jon found that their business had become a sham with fictitious stock and the company was in a shambles. He knew something was wrong. There was an enormous corporate battle.

"This time I became a real Christian. The amazing thing was that God led me peacefully through the battle in 1990. In 1991 the Company was bankrupt and I was bankrupt again. In a year I was literally reduced from travelling by stretched limo to using a train ticket. During that time I told Marty everything. The lie that I had lived. We went through a very painful time. I didn't realise that it hurt her so much. The Lord kept her sane through that time. I was constantly reminded of my false life.

"I went to another seminar... I asked God for forgiveness. I asked Marty for forgiveness and she gave it.. But another big step forward was when I attended the Emmaus Walk.

"During a session of confession, combined with a Holy Supper, with sixty or so other men, I was almost the last. Most poured out their hearts in many ways and there were lots of tears. But I asked the Lord to forgive my pride and take it away and humble me. I have never cried so much. I learnt that there is no good man under the Sun, except the blessed Lord Jesus.

"I was still hurting... I had a delightful encounter with the love of God through people, I prayed for my youngest daughter, Kirsten, who was still extremely angry with me. I wanted to have my relationship restored with her. My older daughter was not so hard. On the Sunday afternoon I received a number of letters and one was from my daughter, Kirsten. It was so beautiful that I sat down and wept. ..God had answered my prayer before I had even made it. She wanted to see me as soon as I got home.

"I was filled with the Holy Spirit. That has started a chain reaction. I was, and am so happy, that I found it difficult to control myself. I didn't care what people said. It is just that I know the Lord, I know He is real and I know that He has forgiven me, and restored a sinner like me. Amazing Grace! I know I am happy at last.

"God started to heal me in all sorts of ways. All scripture became clear again. I accept His word without question. God has miraculously erased my memories of my illicit relationships. This was the evidence that the power of God really works and removed something right out of my life. It was done His way and gone from my memory.

"God gave me a clear message. He said 'You are mine to do whatever I desire' and I said 'Take me and use me in whatever way you wish'. God wanted me to become bankrupt so that he could fill me with His love and use all that previous energy for his purposes.

"I became a scripture teacher in the High Schools, became part of the Emmaus movement, helped Fusion with Easter marches etc, co-ordinated the Freedom from Hunger campaigns in Sydney West, visited and ministered to prisoners, worked with Parramatta Community Care services, became President of the FGBMFI Hills Chapter, and I teach Church History/Catechism to teenagers in my Church. I currently run a business designing and publishing primarily cookbooks. I also teach Graphic Art at a business college. Marty is still hairdressing in four retirement homes.

"I believe the FGBMFI is an ideal place to bring the gospel. I cannot stop telling people about Jesus and I still do, in aircraft, on the train, in the streets. I will ask if they are a Christian? I tried to make myself into a new identity but God did better than that, He made me into a new creation."

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