A special-needs girl perceived as cursed by Allah gets a second chance at life
Contact: Mike Dworak, 719-867-2768
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., October 20 /Christian Newswire/ -- The first Western adoption from Turkey required more than persistence, patience, and time. It required divine intervention.
In "Emma's Story," authors Bob Sjogren and Stephani Reynolds blend the true story of a couple's ministry to special-needs children with an imaginative look at the spiritual warfare affecting their work.
Considered "cursed" by Allah, special-needs Turkish children often are abandoned by family members and given minimal care in bleak, rundown orphanages. They live wretched lives without comfort, affection, or adequate health care. Many die of starvation and neglect.
Midwesterners Graham and Becky Bates founded Least of These Ministries to help care for these children. On one trip to the orphanage, their daughter Amy was captivated by Emma, a new arrival.
Emma, traumatized by years of neglect and abuse, was placed with her grandparents after witnessing her father kill her mother. Three months later, her grandparents were killed in a massive earthquake. The little girl lay buried in rubble for three days before being rescued.
Amy began the long, frustrating process to adopt Emma, racing against time and government resistance to rescue her before medical neglect claimed her life.
"Emma's Story" contrasts the grim reality of institutionalized neglect with the sacrificial love of Christians called to care for "the least of these." The straightforward account of Emma's rescue is juxtaposed against passages that, similar to a Frank Peretti spiritual thriller, convey the battles being waged on a supernatural level.
"Emma's Story" inspires readers to trust God's behind-the-scenes work on behalf of His people. This remarkable story reminds us that God's love extends to all whom society considers "cursed."
Title: Emma's Story
Author: Bob Sjogren and Stephani Reynolds
Imprint: Authentic
ISBN: 978-1-934068-40-3
Release: June 08
Retail: $12.99
Binding: Trade paper
www.ibsdirect.com/p-794-emmas-story.aspx
Bob Sjogren is president of UnveilinGLORY ministry and has written several books, including "Cat and Dog Theology." Bob and his family reside in Richmond, Virginia. Stephani Reynolds teaches high school English for a homeschool co-op. Newly married, she and her husband also live in Virginia.
About Authentic Publishing
Authentic Publishing publishes scripturally rooted and culturally relevant resources that engage the global community in issues of life, ministry, and evangelism. Authentic Publishing is a division of IBS-STL Global.
