As an adoptee, I’m always
curious to read stories about people who are adopted or parents who adopt
children. That’s why I was excited at
the opportunity to read author Paul J.
Batura’s book Chosen for Greatness – How Adoption Changes the World.
I found Chosen
for Greatness fascinating, interesting and heartening. In this book, Paul tell about the lives of
sixteen famous people who were adopted, including Steve Jobs, Babe Ruth, George
Washington Carver, Scott Hamilton, Leo Tolstoy and more. They come from various walks of life and over
hundreds of years. The chapters are
short, but the reader learns about the adoptee, their pre-adoption circumstances,
birth parents and adoptive parents. Most
fascinating is to see God’s providential hand in the life of each of these
people. In their lives, you can see how
perfectly God brought these orphans to just the right parents.
It was sobering to read
about the difficult circumstance these children were born into. It made me pause and give thanks for the
times we live in. I also saw a resilience
in the human spirit. Children and parents
who could have easily given up, though perhaps wayward for a season, found a
way to persevere and achieve greatness in this life. I found it encouraging to read about parents
who adopted children, made a lifelong commitment and sowed into these young
lives the seeds that God would use to make the children into the men and women
He called and gifted them to be.
Since I’m adopted, I found
it particularly interesting to read about what these adoptees felt about their
adoption and birth parents. Though
sometimes drawn to meet and know their birth parents, they knew their parents were the ones who adopted them, cared for and raised them. Parenthood
is less about blood and more love and commitment.
This book is written from
a Christian perspective. Many of the
people whose story is told were Christians or exposed to the Christian
faith. I appreciated the reminder from
Scripture and the life of the Lord Jesus Christ that adoption is part of God’s
story. For His only begotten Son and for
those whom He has chosen and adopted as His own.
I highly recommend Paul J. Batura’s book Chosen
for Greatness – How Adoption Changes the World. This would be an ideal book for someone who
is adopted, or those who have adopted children or know someone who is
adopted. Or if you just want to read an
interesting book and learn what shapes people’s lives, pick up Chosen
for Greatness.
I would like to thank Regnery Publishing for the opportunity to
read Chosen for Greatness by Paul J. Batura.
I was under no obligation to give a favorable review.
#ChosenForGreatness
