Jessica, a mother of two boys now ages 9 and 12, once found herself trapped in the grip of drug addiction— a path that led to incarceration and the heartbreaking loss of custody of her children. But as she recounts in her moving interview with K-LOVE's Crystal Thornton, God had other plans for her life.
A Childhood That Shaped Her Path
Born in 1982 as the oldest of three children, Jessica grew up too fast. Thrust into an adult role as a child, Jessica carried responsibilities no child should bear.
“I was always hearing how mature I was,” she recalled, “but the things I worried about weren’t childhood matters—they were adult ones.”
(Listen to our entire interview with Jessica Johnson in the podcast below)
Without healthy emotional guidance and living in a home where substance use and unstable relationships were the norm, Jessica found herself seeking identity and worth in all the wrong places. At just 15, she entered a long-term relationship that mirrored the dysfunction she had grown up with. By 18, she was playing house, working, and trying to manage a life she was never equipped to handle.
The Turning Point
The turning point came when she was introduced to opioids at work. What she thought was an ibuprofen turned out to be a Vicodin, and in that one accidental dose, Jessica felt what she described as “wholeness” for the first time. That fleeting sense of peace became a relentless pursuit. When pills ran out, heroin took their place, and within a year, Jessica’s life was consumed by addiction.
She spiraled into homelessness, criminal activity, and desperation. But it was the night she went into labor with her second son—while sleeping in a stolen car with her toddler in the backseat—that everything began to change. Even then, her first instinct wasn’t to go to the hospital. It was to get well—to find drugs. Yet her son survived. “That was a miracle,” Jessica says. “Both of my boys are miracles.”
Even the loss of custody of her children didn’t stop her at first. It would take multiple arrests, repeated detox withdrawals, and moments of complete brokenness before she could hear God’s still, small voice whisper, “Don’t you want rest?”
She felt unworthy to even pray.
But God didn’t stop pursuing her.
A judge—someone with no obligation to see her as anything but an addict—looked at Jessica in court and said, “You’re a good mother. Just put down the drugs.” That unexpected grace lit a spark.
Jessica enrolled in college while still incarcerated. When she was released, she didn’t go back to the streets. Instead, she sought help, reaching out to the few recovery connections she had. With one phone call and 1% phone battery left, she found a bed at a downtown Portland Salvation Army shelter. It wasn’t much—a mat on a floor surrounded by 30 women—but it was the beginning of healing.
From that shelter, Jessica started school, and each Sunday, a Salvation Army bus took her to Moore Street Church. That church became her family. They prayed for her, encouraged her, and celebrated her milestones. The community at Moore Street helped her believe what she had never believed before: She was worthy. She was loved. And God had a plan for her life. It was there a retired Salvation Army captain spoke words that penetrated her heart: "Jesus loves you. You are so special. No matter what you've done, no matter where you've come from, He has called you here for a reason."
Faith That Transforms
When asked about the moment her faith became real, Jessica recalled those Sunday school sessions at the Salvation Army church.
"When that retired captain was telling me how special I was and how Jesus loved me and your debt is paid... I would have visions of an actual courtroom because I had just been in and out of it so much," she explained. "Nothing you could have ever done could take Him away from you."
Building a New Life
Jessica's journey to sobriety involved multiple supports: schooling that gave her a new sense of purpose, a faith-based sober living home, Narcotics Anonymous meetings, and a supportive community.
“Just like addiction is progressive, recovery is also progressive. It might take 6, 7, 8 times to finally get it, but eventually our pain produces surrender, and then our surrender produces all this goodness," she said.
Jessica went on to earn, not just her bachelor's degree but also her master's, accomplishments she hadn't initially planned.
"God placed those opportunities at my feet and then gave me the desires of my heart, which is make a home for my family and a future for my children," she said.
“I was a drug-addicted, hopeless, homeless woman, and God said, ‘No, I’m not done with her yet,’” Jessica says. “If He can do it for me, He can do it for anyone.”
Giving Back
Today, Jessica works in residential treatment and mental health therapy, helping others who stand where she once stood.
"This doesn't feel like work to me," she beams. "I could do this work all day every day because I know that as long as somebody's still breathing, they deserve another chance."
Her sons, whom she describes as having "the biggest hearts," are thriving. Both boys love Jesus and understand the importance of not judging others, a lesson their mother knows all too well.
A Message of Hope
Jessica's message to those feeling hopeless is clear: "Get on your knees and pray and ask for that healing. There's nothing that you could do ever in this world, this sinful, yucky world, that God would turn His back on you ever."
Her story stands as a powerful reminder that with God, no life is beyond redemption. Jessica is now working toward her licensed clinical social work credentials in both Oregon and Washington, dreaming of one day opening a treatment center for women and mothers facing similar struggles.
As K-LOVE continues to share God Stories that inspire and encourage, Jessica Johnson's journey reminds us all that our stories are still being written, and that God specializes in restoring what we thought was lost.
For more inspiring stories of God's transformative work, visit klove.com/news.