Contact: Jon Hirst, Prasso Ministries, 719-362-5235, Jhirst@dotheword.org 

GREENVILLE, SC, Feb. 16 /Christian Newswire/ -- As America wraps up the National Marriage Week celebrations that culminated on Valentine's Day, divorce rates are declining significantly. The State of our Unions study produced by the National Marriage Project of the University of Virginia says that the decline is related to the economic downturn. Prasso ministry leader, Laura Baker, challenges couples who are simply waiting until they can afford a divorce to use this time to work on personal issues that will allow their relationships to heal.

"With the economy the way it is, couples may be waiting to get a divorce until they can afford it. This gives them precious time to work on the issues in their lives that make relationships difficult for them. The Prasso materials are a wonderful place to start to get a handle on the things that hold us back from having good and healthy relationships."

The divorce rate fell to 16.9 per 1000 married women in 2008 which is a decline from 17.5 per 1000 in 2007. According to the Wall Street Journal, filings for divorce in the first four months of 2009 in New York City were down by 14% as compared with the same months in 2007. Filings were down by 9% in LA compared with 2007 statistics.

Baker says, "My hope is that this decline in divorce would turn to healing in the lives of many couples. There is hope for relationships if they are put in the hands of an Almighty God."

Prasso Ministries is a non-profit, faith-based discipleship ministry committed to partnering with individuals in their Christian faith journey, helping them to establish wellbeing from a Biblical perspective.

Prasso offers easy-to-access help to anyone throughout the United States interested in finding the hope and victory that comes from knowing God and daily practicing His Word in their lives. Baker recommends getting started by going online to www.myprasso.com and signing up for Prasso Passages, a free daily devotional sent to subscribers' inboxes. For more information about Prasso Ministries, contact Laura Baker at prasso@mindspring.com.