By Joni BoydFriday 17 May 2024Finding HopeInspirational StoriesReading Time: 4 minutes
Jessica Clancy was born into a world of brokenness.
Key points
- ‘The Quest for Family’ takes readers through her life journey from a place of brokenness to a place of spiritual renewal and enlightenment.
- “Through God’s redemption, now I have the family that I never had growing up,” Jessica said.
- “He was my escape,” Jessica says of her relationship with Jesus.
- Hear the full conversation in the listener above or wherever you get your podcasts.
Warning: This episode contains mentions of abuse. Listener discretion is advised. If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, in Australia – call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au.
From a young age, Jessica was physically, sexually and spiritually abused by her parents.
Despite this, Jessica’s faith and determination to find her own family has led her to a successful and happy life, where she now works as a registered dietician, and is happily married with children.
Her debut book, ‘The Quest for Family’ takes readers through her life journey from a place of brokenness to a place of spiritual renewal and enlightenment.
“I believe family is everything,” Jessica said when asked about the title of the book.
“I started my book with some statistics on how family is declining, and I think just looking at [family in] the best light… we have to accept where we are but try to make family wherever we are.
“So, with broken families, broken marriages, there’s a lot of brokenness now but if we can look at the needs of others, then we can help other people and help them feel [like they] belong and secure, even where there may not be a traditional family setting.
“Through God’s redemption, now I have the family that I never had growing up,” Jessica said.
“For myself, I didn’t have family growing up – and people poured into my life – and they were that family for me – so that’s a big part of why I wanted to share my story.
“And through God’s redemption, now I have the family that I never had growing up.”
Having worked as a hairdresser for 18 years; while completing her Bachelor of Science majoring in nutrition, she has worked as a registered dietician since 2008 and is now a dialysis dietician, assisting patients with kidney failure. Jessica overcame huge hurdles to achieve all of this – and to top it all off is now a published author, living in Texas with her husband and their two children.
Jessica was let down by many of the adults in her life and as a result, her childhood involved physical, sexual and spiritual abuse. She was frequently abandoned, berated, and even abused by her mother, and by two out of three stepdads.
And with an astounding 39.6% of Australians aged 16-65+ affected by domestic violence, 32% having experienced physical abuse, and 30.9% impacted by emotional abuse, Jessica’s book is much needed.
Throughout all of this, Jessica vividly remembers having an awareness that she was known by God.
“It was a babysitter that [my mum] left me with and they had a Bible and I remember sitting on the floor and they were reading to me and telling me stories of Jesus and who He was and how good He was and how He could be my friend forever.
“I was like – well I want Him to be with me and I want Him to be in my heart!
“He was my escape,” Jessica says of her relationship with Jesus.
“Of course I was a vulnerable lonely child, I asked Him to come into my heart and I know that Jesus has been with me since then.
“I would say He is somewhat of like an invisible friend, so somebody that I could talk to and be with and see in the nature and see in the beach and the fish and the sky and just always speak to Him.
“He was my escape.”
Jessica’s debut book ‘A Quest for Family’ is Jessica’s memoir of how she survived the brokenness of her life – and how God helped her build the family she never had.
“I am not defined by the things that happened to me,” Jessica wrote in her book.
“I am defined as a child of God.”
Listen to the full episode of Finding Hope in the listener above, or wherever you get your podcasts.
If you need support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit lifeline.org.au. If you have been impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au.
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