I recently had the honor of interviewing with the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) on “How can a survivor thrive after sexual abuse?” In addition, they’re gifting readers with a free pre-release chapter from my upcoming book! Not Forsaken releases on August 20, and this preview download will give you an idea of what to expect from it.
ERLC: Jenn, your upcoming book tells your story of life after abuse. Could you share briefly about how you came to write the book?
Jennifer: I’d been wanting to write a book for a very long time. My mom encouraged me to write off and on for probably a decade. But really, I think I was still processing so much of what I’d been through, and there were a number of relationships I was working to salvage that I feared would be made more tenuous if I went public with my story. For that matter, I was still trying to figure out exactly what had happened to me.
Having grown up with abuse, abuse was my normal. So sorting out what events were inappropriate or even criminal, and which were more common issues every family dealt with, took a lot of time, maturity, and growth for me. Getting married to a godly man was a major factor in that. I slowly acclimated to being treated in a loving, honorable, and thoughtful manner, and as that became my new normal, I was able to look back at my old normal and realize how abnormal and wrong it had been. But until some distance and objectivity was achieved, I found it very difficult to communicate, let alone write about my experiences.
ERLC: What has been most instrumental in your healing?
