Greetings to you dear saints of the most high God!  Whether you are a prayer warrior on behalf of this outreach, a financial supporter, a testifier, a prisoner, or a child of God who subscribes to receive our Quarterly Ministry Updates…we bring good tidings of peace and joy to you this day that the Lord has made!  We hope you are continuing to fight the good fight of faith in whatever trials and testings may come your way, and that your resolve is strong and certain in your desire to be used of the Lord even more than ever before as we live in this day and age. 

With that in mind, much of this ministry update newsletter is about just that from two of our ministry contacts. We begin this writing sharing about a young woman whose testimony we have on our website.  She shares what a blessing her parents were to her in her growing up years as they continually taught her about the ways of God and how to live accordingly.  We then share about another young woman who shares wiith us through email how our testimony website has blessed and encouraged her.  She goes on to share about her mini-version life story.  We pray that the Holy Spirit will bless and/or encourage you now as you read, whatever your need may be at this moment. Thank you and God bless you!  --Norm & Kathleen Rasmussen, Directors

What do people read the most on the Precious Testimonies website?  You may be totally surprised!   Right near the top of writings many have read on this ministry website for quite some time now, is this writing:  Thank You Mom And Dad, You Are The Best!

It is authored by Rebekah Rasmussen, the oldest daughter of my younger brother, Dale Rasmussen.  Rebekah is now into her 20’s, but she wrote the “letter of appreciation” when she was 18.

May we encourage you to read Rebekah's writing, in case you haven’t.  Please observe the first scripture we’ll assume she evidently was “coaxed” or “tutored” to memorize: 

The first Bible verse I memorized, was Colossians 3:20: "Children obey your parents, for this is well pleasing to the Lord."

My parents taught me not only to obey them just because they were my parents, but because it also pleased Jesus when I obeyed. I never forgot this and as I became older my thinking changed from: "If I do this I'll get in trouble," to, "Will doing this please the Lord?"

Then Rebekah follows the above with:  Whenever I did get in trouble, my parents would explain why, and what I did was wrong according to the Word of God. Then after I was spanked or disciplined, somehow, my parents would hold me, love me, and pray with me. This taught me that God was a loving God, and disciplined because He wants us to be our best.

Can you spot the incredible wisdom of what is being said thus far by an 18-year-old girl?  I sure hope so.

Then she addresses in the next paragraph THE VERY THING that Satan absolutely abhors: truth!  Why is that?  Because “truth” exposes lies and deception – the very cloak Satan hides behind and the conduit his demons operate through.

Another thing that I will never forget is my Dad's passion for truth! In our relationship he always wanted me to tell the truth and he would do the same. He always got to the heart of issues and looked at them from God's point of view. He once said that if there was anything he would teach me, it would be to tell the truth, and to get to the heart of the matter. He has passed that passion on to me.

I can assure you her father’s passion for truth was not instilled in him growing up in the fractured and dysfunctional atmosphere he was raised in growing up.  It was something God deposited in him once he became born again, as was any other Godly qualities he may have possessed as a father and a parent.  Rebekah’s mother, Karil, was raised in a stable, Godly home, so much of what she knew as a parent and a mother was instilled in her from her upbringing. 

There are some other very wise disciplines Rebekah was raised with, and you can mediate on them for yourself, asking the Lord to reveal the value of them to you so you can apply them in your own parenting, and/or pass them along to others to apply, if you feel so led. 

The question I would love to have answered is WHO is reading this writing of Rebekahs?  Is it older people who have already raised their children the best way they knew how at the time, and now see areas they fell short in when looking into Rebekah’s mini-diary? 

Is it dads and moms who are looking for knowledge and wisdom in how to raise their children right now … or is it teenagers hungering deep inside to have parents like Rebekah have, yet knowing it most likely is too late to happen for them?

Whoever is doing the reading … I think the high readership of Rebekah’s letter of appreciation for her parents is a message from God to the human race that when we do things God’s way … from God’s Word … with great love and wisdom applied … God’s way always gets the best results!

Easy to say – not always so easy to do … is it?   Yet it is the best way God would have parents raise their children. 

For every 18-year-old who could write a letter of appreciation like Rebekah did, there are most likely thousands who could write a different kind of letter … a letter that would break one’s heart almost. 

Here’s a letter we recently received from another 18-year-old that will almost break your heart, but be SURE to read the ending!

I was just browsing through Google tonight, looking for resources on forgiveness when I came across your Precious Testimonies website and got to read FORGIVEN SEX CRIME OFFENDER (The Robert Swift Story).

I just wanted to tell you how much it blessed me. When I was 14 months old I was burned in a house fire and was not expected to live. I had scars on my face and hands, but was really oblivious to it until, at the age of six, I had an extensive operation done to conceal the most obvious scars. After that I began to notice how people looked at me and I began to realize how different I was.

As a kid, my family moved a lot, so not long after the operation we moved to a different town.  I was excited to go to a new town and new church - but also very hesitant because of the realization that I had come to know of my being “different.”

To make a long story short, I met a boy that began to "bully" me ... saying cruel things like "Jesus doesn't let ugly people into heaven," and moments of violence, like pushing me down flights of stairs.

Slowly I began to lose what little I already had of my self-worth.  About four months into this, I "accidentally" stumbled upon some hard-core porn sites on our computer.  Don't ask me why I didn't immediately run away screaming or turn it off.  I don't know why.  Don't ask me why I returned to it the next day...and the next. Maybe it was because I could tell the women in the pictures were not concerned about their faces (which is where most of my scars are). I think it made me feel more valuable ... realizing that there was something of worth in my body...as if I still had a chance, you know?  (I was only seven at the time...give me a little credit).

But, also, being a visual person (though I am a girl), what was once the unthinkable became not only common, but addictive ... and by the time I was eight I had spiraled down into deep sexual sin.

If you are already grossed out I'm sorry ... I'm doing my best to be vague...but its about to get worse.

From the age of seven to nine I had found "opportunities" to see X-Rated movies and view the same type of materials through magazines, doing my best to feed the unquenchable flame of lust that had been so early awakened ... all the while my family being oblivious. To say in short - they had NO clue.

My parents were/are Christians, and as a kid I grew up "cutting my teeth on the pews."  So as you can see, I did my best to conceal my "other life."  Shame was a constant overcast in my life, and I was miserable.

Then one day, I was sitting with my mother, and she began talking about how Jesus came into people’s hearts and made them beautiful on the inside.  In a sheer moment of desperation and holy conviction I told her that I didn't care if I was ugly on the outside.  I wanted Jesus to come in and make me beautiful on the inside. That's how I got saved.

I immediately felt the shame lift and (like everyone first does) started thanking Him and making promises to Him I had every intention of keeping (one being never to look at porn again).

Life was good then. When I was ten we moved.  I was a new Christian of three months, and though I was struggling to stay pure, my promises still held true. I think those three months hold the best days of my life.
 

I'm kinda' at a loss of where to go from here.  I guess it just gets real personal to me...

A couple of months after we moved I became "involved" in a sexual relationship with a family member, and as much as I hated him ... I think I hated me more. I could have told him to stop. I could have kicked or screamed, but I didn't, because in my heart I felt like he was doing me a favor. With my low self-image, I took his actions as a (very sinful) complement that he could find any form of physical pleasure in me.

The "relationship" continued for about two and a half years. The first night it happened, I felt immediate shame and guilt, especially since I also took some form of pleasure out of it, and ended up retorting back into my old "lust cycle."  No one knew except me, him, God, and of course, Satan ... and I was sure God had left a long time ago.

After showers, I still felt dirty and believing that I was "used merchandise."  I coped with my shame by shaming myself more (did that make sense?). It was two and a half years of this cycle until one night I was with my best friend, and instead of "choosing" me (which I loved/hated) he chose her to satisfy his sick desire for lust. And man, if looks could have killed that night, he would have been a dead man!  A few weeks after that he came back, but I wouldn't let him touch me and that was the end of that.

Time has passed and a decade has gone by since my first encounter with porn.  I find that the only thing in life that is constant (other than God) is change.  Can I tell you that I never struggle with temptation and (dare I say?) fall???  I could …  but that wouldn't be the truth.

What I wish - with all my heart that I could do - is save other girls from the heartaches of relationships that won’t get them anywhere!  I wish I could show them the unfailing Love of Christ that fills the holes in our hearts … that heals wounds of the past … that touches and breathes life into our very being!

Anyway, again I just want to say thank you for even having this kind of web page up for people like me to see.  Blessings in Christ,
-Eli

Dads and moms – parents to be … do everything you can with God’s help to give your children a home where honesty and transparency is honored and constantly rewarded, and where your children can and are constantly encouraged to open up and talk to you about anything … and I mean anything, without fear or embarrassment of any kind.  Constantly show your children that the Word of God is the final and complete authority for why you make the decisions that you do.  I truly believe God inspired Eli to write what she wrote to be a wakeup call of just how ruthless Satan is in desiring to “contaminate” our children -- God’s children, really, on loan to parents for just a few short years … for roughly 18 years, or thereabouts. 

The type of sexual addiction Eli mentions that then made it easier for Satan to tempt her into fornication is growing at pandemic proportions, saints, especially because it has virtually become “normal” and “accepted” in public schools among our youth.  Yet many Pastors dare not preach about it openly from the pulpit because they know half the congregation will stop coming to church.  Satan absolutely loves it when the “M” word is not talked about between parents and children.  Silence, saints, is not golden, when it comes to this matter.  Parents, when your children are as young as Eli was, prayerfully cultivate an atmosphere of transparency and trust with your children, teaching them that they can come to you and ask you anything about life, and promise them that you will not become angry or critical at them for doing so.  Reward them when they do!  Shower them with accolades.  When that foundation is laid, they will find it much easier to come to you and confess their temptations before Satan gains any foothold in their young life leading to addictive sinful behavior against their holy temple. 

As quickly as they can grasp it, explain to them that they most likely will be tempted to sexually explore their bodies, and when these times of temptation come, they are greatly encouraged to come to you, Dad and Mom, and you will pray with them so Satan does not gain a foothold in this area … which can easily happen quietly and silently behind your backs without your ever knowing … leading them into a prison of shame and guilt that can affect their entire lives, not to mention to quality of their marriage someday.  (Sin is forgiven and wounds heal, but “emotional scars” often remain).  Silence is not golden in this area, parents, and parents-to-be.  Openness, honesty and trustworthiness is what is golden, and you can have assurance that the God of Creation will bless you for it.

If parents will mediate on Colossians 3:18-21 and use these instructions to lay the foundation for a Godly marriage and a healthy family, they will be blessed by God in ways they would otherwise not be. 

Colossians 3:21 reads in some popular translations:

Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.  -- NKJV

Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged. -- NIV

Fathers, don't scold your children so much that they become discouraged and quit trying. -- Living Bible

The above scripture incorporates the issue that truly needs to be addressed when talking about a healthy family atmosphere of transparency and honesty and Godly protection from evil for your children, parents.  God is saying in the above scripture:  Dads and Moms ... when you child comes to you with a question or a confession that falls in the line of "taboo" ... and sexual issues and drugs are near the top of the list under "taboo" ... and you react negatively to it, your child most likely will never open up to you about anything private in nature again.  That is exactly what the devil will want to happen, don't you know?!  Knowing this ... you have to be extremely diligent in convincing your children at a very young age that they can open up and talk and ask questions about anything, and when they do ... you will not react negatively in any form or fashion ... but instead ... act positively.   If you don't, you may never get a second chance, and your child will only be the worse off for it, perhaps for life.

Shame - embarrassment - fear (of various sorts) ... are common potential demonic strongholds that are so easily erected in children, parents, when your children have the slightest hint that you will react negatively if they open up to you.  It's no different if you go to your spouse, friend, Pastor or a counselor, dealing with some sexual addiction of your own.  If you have the slightest hint ... and I mean slightest hint ... that the one you are willing to open up to is going to react negatively on you ... you simply aren't going to open up in the first place, (or you most likely never will again to them, nor probably anyone else), which then only gives greater opportunity for demonic spirits to gain an even greater foothold in that area of your life.

Why is it that we as parents don't want to be open and honest with our children if we have given place to sins just like theirs in our younger years, and share about them openly to our children, so they aren't made to feel like "they are the only one this has ever happened to, or they are being tempted with?"  Why is it that we "fear" that if we do tell them about our past "taboo sins," somehow our children won't either "respect us" as much as we want them to, or that we fear they may think they "now have license" to do the very thing we once did?  Again ... we need to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal just how much fear and pride is doing our thinking for us, don't we?  Transparency and honesty and vulnerably is a two-way street, parents --  not just from child to parent.  We earn respect by being honest with our children, parents.  Real honesty requires humility (which is evidence of one who is greatly secure in Christ).  We earn the trust of our children, parents, when we reward our children for being honest with us, rather than giving them the feeling that:  "Boy - you sure were stupid for telling that to your parents, weren't you?!"

You teach an animal to do the tricks you want them to learn by giving them a generous reward.   Children are best taught using the same wisdom, and so are spouses in building a healthy marriage.

In closing, we want to make mention of something that we just don’t want to keep silent about.  God moved us to use Rebekah’s writing for this Ministry Update, but things just weren’t coming together peacefully in the beginning.  Norm prayed that God would make His will made more clearly known regarding how this Ministry Update was to be written, and then Eli’s email came to us from out of nowhere.  When that happened, Norm knew that her email was in direct response to his prayer.  It was the missing “link” to the finalization of this particular Ministry Update!

Thank you Heavenly Father! 

Eli – we also thank you so much for having the courage to be open and frank with us, and allowing us to publish your email/testimony.  We know many will be praying for you from here on out, that God will use you mightily to help advance the Kingdom of God in the lives of other people for His glory.

There are some additional words that Eli wrote that we felt to incorporate as sort of follow-up to the above words she wrote, that you may be interested in reading as well, titled:  Forgiven Yet Sexually Scarred

Rebekah – we also thank you for taking the time to write what you wrote about your parents, your brother and sister, and your upbringing.  Surely God is using it to help other parents and parents-to-one day-be as a precious guide to help in raising children of their own.    

Blessed to be a blessing,

Norm & Kathleen Rasmussen,