2.5 stars. I thought this book had overall good self help points about how to love yourself again after being hurt, but this felt more like an autobiography to me.

Overall, the book was well written and I did really enjoy it. Thank you for this advance reading copy!

Reading Breaking the Patterns that Break You from Tory Hope Peterson and seeing what she has overcome, as she shares her story, is inspiring. She did a great job of using God’s Word to help her overcome the issues she dealt with some, which were out of her control and some as a result of misunderstanding or as a result of her past. I was hoping there would be more about dealing with different patterns, but this book will be especially helpful to those who have been mistreated by family and/or been in the foster care system. She also shares a great deal on the misconceptions and misunderstandings in healing. Personally, I see and hear a lot of what she was sharing. This is definitely something that needs to be addressed, and she did a wonderful job of pointing those out with Biblical information because she dealt with it personally.

She shares that healing is a lifetime process, which is so true. It isn’t something that happens, and you get over it and move on. It is something that needs to be dealt with and understood before complete healing can come. It is a process. Another great piece she learned is that hurt is not something to be ashamed of or uncomfortable with. Often, in our society, we are not taught that. We’re told to buck it up, get over it.

Part of her process was learning what boundaries from a Christian standpoint, using an example of a home. “This is why, like houses, our hearts need a guard. The guard comes from living close to God and building our lives on Him. This doesn’t mean we are not open to others. We are limited human beings whose hearts are not meant to be exposed to all.”

These questions she brought up are helpful to me:
Does love allow a neighbor to be exploited? Does love endorse God’s beloved falling away from Him? Does love remain silent to sin-to things that are hurting another person? How do we guard our hearts without locking our hearts away? How do we protect ourselves while loving vulnerably as we are meant to as Christians?

This all takes discernment, and she goes into that. I do think sometimes we lack that and forget how important it is also to be discerning in our world and with dealing with others.

There was one thing at the beginning of the book that did bother me a little she kept using the word “Love” for God, and I think that can be confusing and misinterpret who God is when we do that. But that is just maybe my personal hangup.

Other than that, this was a good book that I can see being helpful to many out there.

Family patterns are some of the most difficult things to identify & then deal with in a healthy way. Peterson walks the reader through common myths that people will tell you when you've come from a difficult past. She candidly shares parts of her story but always points to the Gospel with each chapter, highlighting how Jesus dealt with hurting people He encountered while here on earth. Whether you have walked through dark days in your past or you are a member of the Body of Christ who is seeking to be better informed about trauma, this is a helpful book.

Breaking the Patterns that Break You was very insightful. Tori uses her past experiences to help shape this book & point your towards scripture & how Christ is the only one who can help do that.
I do wish there had been more scripture use in the first half of the book. I felt the second half had a decent amount but the first was lacking. Overall though, great book. Very helpful to me as a person & as a foster parent.

Oh this book was one I didn't know I needed so badly. With some hard family things going on, and needing to set boundaries, this book was absolutely phenomenal to help lay that out for me. It was so wonderfully put together to make sense of such a deep topic. Absolutely wonderful.

The contents of this book is inspirational. I almost didn't read it as the proof copy had very distracting formatting. Pray that many will seek God and know his love after reading this book. I was encouraged to look back on my own journey to see how much God has changed in my life as I surrendered to him. And encouraged then to keep going on my journey of healing that feels so incomplete right now.