A Preview of "Turn the Page"

This month, I wanted to use this post to highlight a passage from my new book, Turn the Page: For For Every Soul That’s Been Broken but Is Still Beloved. This book has been such a powerful part of my story and is a written display of the Lord's redeeming work in my life. I pray it is an encouraging, truth-filled invitation to begin again, not by forgetting what hurt you, but by letting God meet you in the middle of it.

"I spent years believing I was only as worthy as the last person who walked away. I carried the belief that I was hard to love and grossly unattractive. I tried to measure my value by someone else’s approval, attention, or affection. The words haunted me. I felt like I was wearing a name tag that read “unlovable” or “too broken.” I felt like everyone saw it and believed it as much as I did. That’s the thing about abuse. It doesn’t just hurt in the moment; it leaves a messy residue. They try to rename us, and oftentimes, it works.

I’ll be honest, healing didn’t happen all at once. There wasn’t a single moment when everything “changed.” Instead, it was a thousand little moments when God whispered a different identity over me. He began to show me that I wasn’t what had been done to me, but rather what Christ had done for me. Slowly, I began to question if maybe I wasn’t what they said. Maybe I wasn’t what he said. Maybe I am more than the broken pieces left shattered. It took time to hear God. It took even longer to believe Him. But slowly, the truth began to rise above the lies. I thought I was too far gone and too damaged to be called worthy again, but my Maker never stopped calling me by my real name: Chosen. Beloved. Redeemed.

Healing began the moment I realized that the names thrown at me were not the ones I was created to carry. Truth be told, God isn’t in the business of reusing the world’s labels. He is rewriting, reworking, and renaming us. That’s what God does. He doesn’t just patch up the broken parts; He renames them. Over time, I began to trade in the lies I had believed for the truth of who I am

in Christ. But not all at once, and not without constant struggle.

You see, the enemy had me right where he wanted me, and so did my abuser. Abusers love to see us broken and ashamed because it makes them feel as if they have power, control, and victory over us. Similarly, the enemy loves to see us scared, broken, and hidden in shame. Because when we sit in that space, we tend to run from the presence of God. It’s so easy for our shame to keep us from God’s grace, yet the whole purpose of grace is to cover our shame. In His kindness, God takes off every false label and replaces it with something holy and new.

We’re not the first people the Lord has done this for. In fact, renaming is one of God’s favorite methods of restoration and healing. In Scripture, God repeatedly gives new names to people

He’s about to do something new through. When God is about to call them into something greater, deeper, and more aligned with His heart, He grants a new name. Abram was renamed Abraham,

which means “father of many nations,” before he ever held his own child in his arms. Sarai became Sarah, which means “princess,” an identity rooted in God’s promise, rather than her barrenness (Genesis 17). Jacob, whose name meant deceiver, wrestled with God and was renamed Israel, which means “God contends.” He was no longer defined by his past but by his encounter with the Lord (Genesis 32). Simon, the impulsive fisherman, was renamed Peter, which means “rock.” He wasn’t

renamed for who he was in that moment, but for who Jesus knew He would become (Matthew 16).

Finally, there’s Saul. This was a man who persecuted the church with violence and power. He encountered the risen Christ on a dusty road and was renamed (Acts 13). Christ gave him the name Paul, and he went on to become a humble servant, missionary, and author of much of the New Testament. Each of these people was given labels. They had stories, reputations, sins, shame, and regret. Yet God chose to write more for their stories. And He’s writing more for yours. We don’t have to be defined by what’s done to us or even what’s been done by us. God gives us a new name. Not because we’ve earned it, but because He is redeeming us. Redeeming you.

For so long, I believed I was what they said I was: “too much,” “not enough,” “broken,” “unworthy,” “hard to love.” But slowly and gently, God began to speak different names over me—not ones of shame, but of restoration. I didn’t always hear an audible voice. I heard Him through Scripture, worship, and in quiet moments when I dared to ask, “God, who do you say I am?” I began to hear it: Beloved. Chosen. Beautiful. Intentional. Whole. Mine. It wasn’t instant, and it didn’t always feel true. But the more I pursued God and opened my heart to His voice, the more those new names started to stick.

I started to truly believe the new identity Christ was speaking over me. I wasn’t unwanted—I was handpicked and pursued. I wasn’t broken—I was being made whole. I wasn’t too far gone—I was already brought near. I wasn’t buried in shame—I was washed clean by the blood of Christ. The truth is, you are…

Beloved – Isaiah 43:4

Chosen – John 15:16

Redeemed – Ephesians 1:7

A New Creation – 2 Corinthians 5:17

A Child of God – 1 John 3:1

A Friend of God – John 15:15

Free – John 8:36

Forgiven – Ephesians 1:7

Healed – 1 Peter 2:24

Clean – 1 Corinthians 6:11

Beautifully and Wonderfully Made – Psalm 139:14

God’s Masterpiece – Ephesians 2:10

More than a Conqueror – Romans 8:37

Victorious – 1 Corinthians 15:57

Learning to walk in your God-given name rather than your trauma-given name is not a one-time event. It’s a daily decision. Even after I knew the truth, even after I could recite verses and speak the names God had given me, I still had days when I felt like an imposter wearing a crown too big for my head. I could say, “I’m beloved,” but still feel unwanted. I could read “redeemed” but still remember what I did or what was done to me. That’s the thing about healing … it’s holy, but it’s also

incredibly hard. You have to unlearn years of lies and intentionally replace them with the truth of God’s Word.

For me, healing didn’t come easily. When I was deep in therapy, wrestling with the weight of something called post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), my therapist gave me an assignment. I was stuck, struggling to speak the truth of what had happened to me, unable to piece the fragments together. She gently challenged me: Write your story.

That terrified me. Putting it on paper would make it real … the pain, the confusion, the trauma. It would live outside of me, where I couldn’t pretend it wasn’t there. For weeks, I avoided it. I told myself I wasn’t ready. But eventually, I picked up a journal and started to write. And suddenly, there I was scattered across the pages. Raw. Messy. Wounded. I saw the names I had taken on, names my

abuser had etched into my identity. Names like “unworthy,” “too much,” “used,” “invisible.” I didn’t even realize I had been carrying them until I saw them written down in ink.

But one day, something shifted. I felt the Spirit nudge me to list every label I had accepted as truth. So I did. Then, on the next page of that same journal, I opened my Bible and began writing what God says about me next to each one.

Daughter. Forgiven. Pure. Whole. Valued.

As I wrote these holy names, I began to cross out the lies one by one. And the tears came. Every step toward those true names was a step away from shame. It didn’t always feel like freedom,

but it was. Sometimes, freedom looks like trembling hands holding a pen. Sometimes, it looks like worshiping through tears because, for the first time, you actually believe God isn’t disgusted with

you. It looks like choosing His voice when the old ones still echo. Healing meant refusing to agree with the names my past gave me and finally embracing the names God had spoken over me all

along."

Turn the Page is available by clicking this LINK or by seaching Turn the Page by Jordyn St.John on Amazon and IngramSpark.

May your roots run deep and your faith remain strong! As always, Stay Rooted, my friends! <3