FREE Download - Jan Johnson

Our goals in writing this book are to come along side you who are struggling, to tell you
some stories to help you see yourself, and to walk with you through a process of selfexamination.
Our goal is not to send you into a cycle of endless Christian self-improvement or
to urge you to bash your upbringing. We want to tell the Good News that God is there, not only
for the dynamic Christian, but also for the hurt and the frustrated: "A bruised reed he will not
break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory" (Matt. 12:20).
We want to play a part in removing barriers between you and the people around you so you can
glimpse at the healing that is available to us in the Kingdom of God. We want to clear the path
between you and God so you can relate to Him in a more authentic way.
We have revealed part of our personal journeys here and will continue to tell you about
ourselves and others because we believe that true stories are a powerful tool for change. We
have changed names and camouflaged details at times because we wish to allow enough privacy
to tell the truth, cutting as close to the bone as possible.
Both of us were surprised to find how much our self-protective ways of thinking, feeling
and behaving were rooted in the way we responded to growing up. Even though families do
their best to stay away from the denial, blame, isolation and anger of our culture, nearly every
family is tainted by them. So while we do talk about tendencies in families, we don't bash
parents. All parents carry an incredible load and nobody does the job as they would like.