The Fourth Watch: A Woman’s Journey

By Norman O. Christianson Scribe

Norman O. Christianson shares how he and his wife, Elizabeth, have spent the last twenty years ministering to women who have suffered from addiction, abuse, or have been jailed—and sometimes all three—in this inspiring and heartfelt book.

Many of the women they have helped have lived in agonizing circumstances and have felt as though there is no way out. While each of their stories are different, each of them also has similarities.

The author also shares his own battle with an addiction to food, which he can trace back to his childhood. Over the years, his own opinion of himself—reinforced by others—stifled him from achieving all that he could.

But walking with the Lord has allowed him to overcome challenges, and by sharing God’s message of salvation with others, he’s helped others find their way out of the darkness.

All proceeds from this book will go directly to a 501(c)(3) corporation to establish and maintain a facility akin to the one described in The Fourth Watch.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Aug 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9798385004362

Norman O. Christianson Scribe

Norman O. Christianson is married to Elizabeth. They have two sons, both of whom are married. He was ordained as a pastor in 1981 and served churches in the Midwest. Together with his wife, who is also an ordained pastor, they operate a ministry that serves women who have endured abuse, battled addiction, and/or have been incarcerated. They have been involved in this ministry for over twenty years. He can be reached at [e-mail].

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Copyright © 2023 Norman O. Christianson, Scribe.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means,

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except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher

make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book

and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

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views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Scripture quotations marked ESV taken from The Holy Bible, English

Standard Version® (ESV®), Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing

ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994,

1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0434-8 (sc)

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0435-5 (hc)

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0436-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023914287

WestBow Press rev. date:  08/28/2023

This book is dedicated to the glory of God. It is the Father who created us in His image and who sees me through His loving eyes so that I can see others through those same loving eyes. It is Jesus who has redeemed us and gives us new life so I can be His instrument in presenting new life to others. It is the Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth about Him and about ourselves.

To my wife and partner in all of life, Elizabeth, who shares life and ministry with me. She has also proofread my manuscript.

To all the girls we’ve loved before, who traveled in and out our door, but not in the way Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson sing those lyrics. It is for three groups of women: those women my wife and I invited into our home to be a part of our family and experience our love, the women we were not able to invite into our home for lack of room, and the women who are yet to come. We have learned a lot from those who have been here. They have helped us grow into better servants to those who will follow them into the ministry God has given to us.

CONTENTS

Foreword

Acknowledgments

Descent into Hell

Introduction

The Pit

Land of Nod

The Loss of Innocence

Ball of Confusion

Confusion

Confusion by Deception

Confusion from a Lack of Knowledge

Confusion from Sensory Overload

Confusion via Different Perspectives

Confusion in Identity Issues

Confusion in Domestic Violence

Confusion in Incarceration

Confusion in the Role of Christians

End the Ball of Confusion

The Fourth Watch

Invitation by Light

The Journey

What Is a Problem?

Identifying the Problem

Applying the Solution

Belonging

Truth Encounter

Trust

Discipline

Reconciliation

Healing

Love

Transformation to Liberation

Interlude

Be Transformed by the Renewal of Her Mind

Adoption Process

The Wilderness

Sight Unseen

Pigs and Poultry Playing Poker

Funding

FOREWORD

Scribe’s Prelude to the Foreword

The foreword to this book is more than a foreword. In my opinion, it should be called the most important part of this book. It is a summary account of the writer’s experience of her healing. She overcame her fear of not being good enough to be accepted as a person. She likely believed that what she had done was who she was. This is a common malady with many people, both women and men, and is reinforced by the world around them. One’s past is the world’s definition of one’s identity. The world is wrong.

No one is perfect, and I will be the first one to admit it. After years and years of running from God, He finally got ahold of me and showed me who He really is. He is a good, just, and oh so very loving Father. Now coming from me, some would ask, Is that really a good thing for you? I mean, since your father’s track record isn’t so great and all? My answer to them is Yes! Because He is the Father of all fathers. He is the greatest Father anyone could ever ask for. He will never fail you. He will never leave your side. He would never betray you, nor would he ever contemplate it.

If you asked me how I felt about God in 2019 or earlier, that answer would have been the farthest from my mind. I gave up running from God in May 2019. Instead of running from Him, I started chasing Him. I was doing OK. Still making irresponsible choices every now and then, but through those same choices, Jesus always found a way to get me back on track to chasing after Him.

One day in March 2020, I met a young man who would introduce me to this author; he calls himself a scribe. It was a little while after we had been introduced that he offered to go through healing prayer appointments with me. Now this man thought he could help me with the little stuff I had told him about my past. I admire the man, and to be quite honest, I was terrified of going and telling him about my past.

I didn’t want to tell him all the ugly, unbelievable, and illegal things I had done. I was hoping that I could suppress my past and move on. After a few months, I finally gave in and set up time for an appointment. What was the harm, right? It was not like I was going to tell him everything.

How wrong was I? The first session was six hours long, and he only asked me one question. Will you tell me about your mother? The floodgates opened, and out came my whole life story. I don’t know why, but there was just something about this man that allowed me to open up and tell him every little thing. Now not everyone is going to be six hours of word-vomit like me. Not everyone needs that. Me, on the other hand, yup: drugs, alcohol, sex outside of marriage, being raped, physical, mental, and emotional abuse, sex with the same gender and multiples at the same time, multiple attempts at suicide, depression, being molested by a family member—the list goes on. When I walked in, my backpack was so weighed down that I could barely wake up in the mornings without something weighing me down.

After going through and completing the healing prayer appointments, I felt like a whole new person. Never in my wildest dream did I believe that I could ever stand tall and unafraid of my past. That day I did. Now the evil one would like you to think that it’s really not possible to be healed of your past, but God is the one who matters. Remember when I said He is a good Father. He is! He has set a place for you, and He has His arms wide open, ready to heal your heart and your mind. He isn’t just a good Father. He is the Mighty Physician and uses His workers, like this scribe, to heal and set free all who ask and are in need.

Blessings,

CBL

Scribe’s Postlude to the Foreword

Her initials are used to protect her identity from those who would judge her for her past acts and not according to who she is. In my thinking, her initials stand for Cheerful Bright Light. She might call it her new identity. If so, she would be wrong. It is the identity she always had. She just did not know it. We unpacked her backpack and filled it with truth. She carries no shame. It is gone. The wounds she endured no longer control her. She is willing to share her story with anyone who needs to hear it. Indeed, she has already done so.

Not all sessions are six hours long, as she said. I chose to allow her to get it out and be done, as I honored her by listening to her share her journey. While I only asked her to tell me about her mother, she systematically answered all of the questions that I use during the assessment process in nearly the exact order I would have asked, had I needed to do so. It remains the only time I only had to ask one question. Each person is an individual and each time I meet with someone, our sessions are tailored to her needs.

Now on to the rest of the book. None of the contents of the rest of this book are from her story. They are from others with whom I have had contact over the years.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My wife, Elizabeth, has been my encourager over the years of our married life. She has evolved with me as we worked together in ministry. In over thirty-six years, she has had only one major obstacle to deal with—and she is still married to it. She is proof that iron sharpens iron (Proverbs 27:17). Our sons and their wives (one per son if you were wondering) have shared my wife and me with those to whom we have ministered.

The prayers and support of our prayer team have lifted us up throughout our shared ministry, including the writing of this book.

I am grateful to all the authors, speakers, and influencers who have poured into my life over the years. I believe they would see the nuggets they deposited in me in this book. Thanks for your input and support.

I have been blessed by the illustrative works on the cover and section titles that were artfully done by All the Works Designs.

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DESCENT INTO HELL

INTRODUCTION

It all starts with me. Narcissist! Narcissist! some might say. They would be wrong. The reason they are wrong will unfold later.

Pondering the stories of the lives of women to whom I have ministered over the years revealed some similarities in my own life. It is not my intention to compare my story with their stories for there is no comparison. Many of the women have lived in agonizing circumstances. Many have felt as if they were condemned to such a life with no way out. Each story is different. Each story has similarities. Each story was lived by an individual with her own background, emotions, and intensity. So I give you my story to point out some of the things I have learned along the way.

Everyone has a past, and I am no exception. There are good parts and bad parts. The important part of everyone’s life is that it is still in front of them. We cannot change the past. We can learn from it, make changes deemed necessary, and live a future we did not believe was possible when we were in the midst of the horrors of our past.

I do not know where or when my story begins. What I do know is that the food addiction I had (also called gluttony) goes back to my childhood. Did I cry out for more food than I needed as an infant? Did my parents shove a bottle in my mouth to keep me quiet? Was there a shortage of food that led me to stuff my face to make sure I got my share? Or was it because of self-centeredness that I ate food so my siblings were not able to get some? All are possible; there is not any childhood memory of any of it other than enjoying eating food and overeating, with a large craving for sweets. Eating for comfort, if only for a moment, was another possibility. I remember feeling rejection in school; I was always the last one to be chosen for an athletic activity. I remember hearing that the other team could have me when it was not their turn to add a player to the team. Agility and blazing speed were not qualities anyone attributed to me.

My size inhibited my social life as I went through my teens and twenties. The rejection in the area of sports had been carried over to other parts of life. It was now my own opinion of myself, reinforced over the years, that stifled me.

I held onto my food addiction for many years, even when my health was in jeopardy. I would cut back for a while before relapsing into my sugar cravings. I was like a prostitute, selling