This was a live recording with Jenn Suen Chen, author of "Dim Sum and Faith: How Our Stories Form Our Souls." We talked about story, spirituality, and how our cultural narratives shape who we are and who we’re becoming.

The author's deepest prayer is that the book would serve as a resource for deeper discussion around growing in our relationship in Christ and with one another. Her ultimate desire is that Asian American and Christians globally would experience the love of God in deeper ways through the book.Check out this new book!• Read a free chapter at the publisher's book page https://www.ivpress.com/dim-sum-and-faith• Buy on amazon at https://amzn.to/4lv8PPd - available in print, kindle, and audiobook• Buy at B&N https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dim-sum-and-faith-jenn-suen-chen/1146378006

• Win a free print copy of this book https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/220113507-dim-sum-and-faith (enter by August 19, 2025)

Connect with Jenn Suen Chen:• website https://www.jennsuenchen.com• instagram https://www.instagram.com/jennsuenchen

Jenn Suen Chen was previously on 5 episodes of Erasing Shame @https://erasingshame.com/tag/jenn-suen-chen/

What do you do when you’re adopted into a loving Christian family… but you still feel like a reject?
When you smile in church but go home to a voice in your head saying, “You’re not enough. You were never enough.”

When you’ve been told Jesus loves you, but deep down you believe He couldn’t possibly want someone like you?

That was Andrew Yook’s life.
Loved, but lonely. Surrounded, but unseen. Adopted, but still feeling abandoned.
The emptiness drove him to choices that almost killed him—addiction, shame, self-destruction.
And yet… Jesus came for him right there. In the middle of the mess. In the relapse. In the hopelessness.

This is not a polished, sanitized Christian story.
This is rejection, rage, relapse, rock bottom.
It’s meeting Jesus when you have nothing left to give.

It’s watching Him dig you out of the ashes—not just to save you, but to use your scars to heal someone else.

In this episode, we rip the mask off and talk about:

• What “unwanted” feels like, even in a good home

• Why being told Jesus loves you isn’t enough—you have to meet Him

• Carrying shame you didn’t deserve, and the shame you created

• The lie of “i'm too far gone” and how to kill it

• Why ignoring your mental health will wreck your soul and body too

• How to turn your most shameful chapters into weapons of hope

• The daily fight to shut down the voice that says you’re worthless

If you’ve ever felt like you can’t outrun your past, that you’ll never measure up, or that your pain has disqualified you—listen to this.
Because Andrew’s story is proof:
You’re not too far gone.
You’re not too broken.
You are not alone.

And if all you can manage right now is a whisper, let it be this:
“Jesus, i need You.”
Because the moment you speak it, He’s already on His way.

join our livestream as we celebrate the book launch of “Dim Sum and Faith: How our Stories Form Our Souls”, with author Jenn Suen Chen —on our YouTube channel and on erasingshame.com - the YouTube chat room will be open for your questions or add one here on Spotify beforehand!

Jesus, I’m Still Pouring… But I’m Dry

You’re still showing up.
Still serving.
Still pouring into others…

But inside? You’re dry.
Not just tired—empty.
And wondering, "Jesus… how much longer can I do this?"

In this honest conversation with my pastor, we’re talking about what most people in ministry feel—but few are allowed to say out loud.
This isn’t a polished highlight reel.
It’s raw.
It’s real.
It’s for the ones who feel like they’re running on fumes.

We talk about:

• Leading through spiritual numbness

• Mental health and ministry—what pastors aren’t saying

• The lie that leaders can’t fall apart

• What it means to obey when you feel nothing

• And how grace doesn’t shame you—it meets you in the dry places

Dry doesn’t mean done.
Silence doesn’t mean God is absent.
Jesus never pulls away—it’s us who drift. But He’s still right there, unshaken and unmoved.

🎧 Listen now—because even when you’re empty, Jesus will never be.
Run to the Living Water.
He’s not afraid of your burnout—He’s the One who restores it.
He’s near to the weary, ready to refresh your soul.
You don’t need to be strong—you just need to be honest.

We’ve been told that if your faith starts falling apart, you’re in danger.
But what if that’s exactly where Jesus shows up?

This isn’t an episode about walking away from God.
It’s about tearing down the fake, the forced, the fear-based religion—
and finding a God who never  asked you to perform in the first place.

In this raw and redemptive conversation, author Alysha Tatiana Lee shares how the breakdown of everything she thought she believed… became the breakthrough that brought her back to the real Jesus.

We talk about:

• Surviving spiritual abuse and reclaiming your voice

• The lies religion teaches us about God—and the truth Jesus reveals

• Why deconstruction doesn’t mean destruction

• And what faith can look like when it’s no longer built on fear

If you’re tired of pretending, tired of shallow answers,
and ready to meet the Jesus who sits with you in the wreckage—This one will wreck you in the best way.

Because sometimes the most sacred thing God can do… is let what’s false fall apart.

Link to Alysha's book: 

https://www.amazon.com/Everything-I-Might-Have-Missed/dp/B0DSTD4GWY

Jesus and Therapy? Yes. You can have both. — with Charles Mortensen

Let’s not sugarcoat it:

Needing help doesn’t mean you’re weak. It means you’re done pretending.

And therapy? It’s not a betrayal of your faith. It’s how some of us finally start to breathe again.

We’ve been told:

• “You just need to pray more.”
• “Therapy is for people who don’t trust God.”
• “If you were really spiritual, you wouldn’t struggle.”

Lies.

Straight-up lies that have kept too many of us silently drowning.

In this raw and honest conversation, licensed therapist and Jesus-loving soul Charles Mortensen pulls back the curtain on what real healing looks like—not just spiritual, but emotional, mental, and rooted in truth.

This episode is for:

• The ones who still show up to church but feel numb inside
• The ones who’ve prayed until their voice cracked but still feel stuck
• The ones who love Jesus but don’t know how to face the wounds they buried

We’re unpacking:

• What therapy can do that church sometimes can’t
• The secret signs someone’s breaking—even when they look “fine”
• How unhealed trauma distorts your view of God

• Why therapy isn’t less spiritual—but often the most Spirit-led thing you can do

• And the moments of breakthrough that change everything

If you’re barely holding it together behind a Sunday smile, this is your wake-up call.

Stop letting shame have the mic.

Stop calling pain “just a phase.”

Stop waiting for healing to happen without stepping into it.

Jesus heals. And sometimes, He uses a therapist’s office to do it.

So press play. Let this episode hit you in the soul.

Because healing isn’t just possible—it’s necessary. It grows us to be the version God intends for us to be.

you don’t have to carry it all alone anymore.

Listen now. Send it to someone who’s been hiding their pain. And start the journey.

Because freedom is calling—and you are not meant to walk towards it alone.

Church is supposed to be a sanctuary.

But what happens when it becomes the place that breaks you?

In this unfiltered and courageous conversation, we're diving into the kind of pain the Church doesn’t like to talk about—church hurt.

We're talking spiritual manipulation, toxic leadership, cult-like control, and the paralyzing guilt that keeps many trapped in pews, afraid to walk away.

Our guest, Simon Andrade—host of the Free and Redeemed Podcast—knows this pain firsthand. He’s walked the road of betrayal masked as ministry, and he’s here to help us face the truth:

You're not crazy.

You’re not weak for leaving.

And Jesus is not the one who hurt you.

If you’ve ever sat in a sanctuary and felt your soul suffocate…

If you’ve ever been told to “just submit” while your spirit screamed for peace…

If you’ve wrestled with the fear that walking away from a church means walking away from God…

This episode is for you.

We’re asking the hard questions—about forgiveness, boundaries, cult-like systems, and the messy journey toward healing. Because freedom doesn’t come from silence. It comes from honesty—and honesty and truth will always lead you closer to Jesus.

We Go Deep On:

Is it just “church hurt” or is it spiritual abuse?

How do you protect your soul without hardening your heart?

Can you love Jesus and take a break from church?

Red flags of modern-day cults that don’t look like cults

Healing when you're still in pain—and learning to trust again

Raw. Honest. Necessary.

This isn’t just another podcast.

This is truth that draws us nearer to the heart of Christ.

"He turned my mourning into dancing… and my ashes into beauty."

This episode will leave you speechless—in the best way.

When the unthinkable happened, Ruth Santana’s world shattered. A betrayal that could’ve broken her, but God wasn't done writing her story.Through deep valleys of pain, therapy, and the relentless love of Jesus, Ruth found redemption, restoration… and resurrection.

A marriage on the verge of ending.
A heart learning how to forgive the impossible.
A baby girl—a beautiful chapter in a story only God could rewrite.

In this raw and real conversation, Ruth opens up about:

• Finding out about the affair—and the moment her knees hit the ground

• Learning to trust again when every voice said “walk away”

• The role of therapy, community, and the Holy Spirit in her healing

• Why pain is never wasted when placed in God's hands

• And what she’d say to the ones who are going through betrayal 

Whether you’re walking through betrayal, standing in the ruins of what once was, or hoping for healing—you’re not alone. Ruth's story is proof: God still brings beauty and life out of the ashes.

Tune in now. May this testimony be the first step towards hope and healing.

In this raw and courageous episode, we’re facing one of the hardest topics: narcissistic abuse.

Whether you grew up under the manipulation of a narcissistic parent, felt emotionally hijacked in a romantic relationship, or constantly feel drained by a “friend” who leaves you confused and questioning your worth—this episode is for you.

We’re not just talking psychology—we’re talking spiritual discernment, godly boundaries, and healing that starts deep in the soul.

We’re joined by Jenn Chen, a certified narcissistic abuse specialist who knows what this pain feels like—because she lived it. She’s not just teaching from textbooks—she’s survived the manipulation, the mind games, the spiritual gaslighting. She’s walked through the wreckage and now helps others rise from it too.

In this episode:

🔹 How to tell the difference between immaturity and manipulation—even when they come across as "godly" or "kind"

🔹 What forgiveness really means when it’s not safe to reconnect

🔹 Can narcissists actually change? Or is it all a performance?

🔹 Why therapy isn’t a lack of faith—and how God can meet you in the healing room too

🔹 How to start rebuilding your identity when shame has told you you’re the problem

This one is deep. It’s tender. It’s not about canceling people—it’s about canceling the lies that kept you stuck. Christ-centered clarity, courage, and peace that sets captives free!

If this episode gave you words for your pain or helped you feel less alone, would you consider sharing it with a friend?

You are not crazy. You are not too broken to heal. And you are not alone.

“If Jesus cares about every hair on your head, don’t you think He cares about the wounds in your heart too?”

Let Him walk with you—one session, one prayer, one brave boundary at a time.

Stay rooted. Stay real.

Subscribe & leave a review to help us break more chains together. See you on the next episode! ^.^

• Erasing Shame podcast https://erasingshame.com

This Episode Will Challenge EVERYTHING You Thought You Knew About Forgiveness! We’ve all heard it: “You HAVE to forgive AND reconcile.” But is that really what the Bible says?

If you’ve ever felt pressured to restore a relationship that wasn’t safe… If you’ve struggled with guilt for enforcing boundaries… If you’ve been told, “But that’s your FAMILY, you have to make peace,”—this episode is for YOU.

We’re diving into the TRUTH about biblical forgiveness, debunking harmful misconceptions, and giving you the freedom to heal on God’s terms, not people’s expectations.

We’re honored to welcome Hannah Lee, a 2nd-generation Korean American Christian trauma therapist. As a clinical social worker, mental health advocate, and community mentor based in Los Angeles, CA, Hannah is dedicated to helping individuals heal from deep wounds. She specializes in psychotherapy and brainspotting through her private practice, Hanaro Therapy.

In this episode, Hannah brings her professional expertise and faith-based insights to help us navigate the tension between forgiveness and reconciliation with wisdom and grace.

• Show Notes @ https://erasingshame.com/forgiveness-vs-reconciliation-breaking-free-from-false-expectations-guilt-shame/