The Lucky Few: Finding God's Best in the Most Unlikely Places

by Heather Avis, Lysa TerKeurst (Foreword by)

Overview

When life looks radically different than the plan we have for ourselves, it's the lucky few that recognize God's plan is best. That's what adoptive mom Heather Avis learned, and that's the invitation of this book.

As the mother of three adopted children - two with Down syndrome - Heather Avis has learned that it's truly the lucky few who get to live a life like hers, who actually recognize that God's plans are best, even when they seem so radically different from the plans we have for ourselves.

When Heather started her journey into parenthood she never thought it would look like this, never planned to have three adopted children, and certainly never imagined that two of them would have Down syndrome. But like most things God does, once she stepped into the craziness and confusion that comes with the unknown and the unplanned, she realized that they were indeed among the lucky few.

Discover in this book what 70,000+ followers of Heather's hit Instagram account @macymakesmyday already know: the power of faith and family can help us stay strong in the toughest times. This book will also be especially touching to those with adopted family members or children with Down syndrome in their lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780310345466
Publisher:	Zondervan
Publication date:	03/21/2017
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	491,695
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Heather is the author of The Lucky Few and a popular speaker, podcaster, and Instagrammer. She is a wife to her loving and supportive husband, Josh, and mother to Macyn, Truly, and August. They live in Southern California.

Table of Contents

Foreword Lysa TerKeurst 13

Introduction 15

1 This Was Not the Plan 17

2 First Light 33

3 A Scary Yes 49

4 Coming to Grips 67

5 Life in the Shadow of Death 83

6 Pictures and Letters and So Much More 105

7 Witness to a Miracle 121

8 Arms Wide Open 135

9 Love in Action 149

10 God's Got This 163

11 Joy and Heartbreak 183

12 The Lucky Few 199

Acknowledgments 217

Resources 221

About the Author 223

Editorial Reviews

02/20/2017
Avis, founder of the popular Instagram account @macymakesmyday, is the adoptive mom of three young children and wife of Josh Avis, a former director of Fellowship Monrovia in California. She shares how passionate she was about the birth process; she couldn’t wait to join her sister in motherhood. Unfortunately, a rare reaction to a dye caused irreparable harm to Avis’s body, leaving her unable to conceive. The Avises were heartbroken, but didn’t stay in that sorrowful place. They began investigating the adoption process, and, over two short years, they chose to adopt three delightful babies, two of whom have Down syndrome. Avis’s personal story is inspirational, her courage is infectious, and readers will close out this text wondering how they might step out in faith as the Avises did. Avis and her husband live their lives in honest authenticity and humbly give all the credit to Jesus for pointing their hurting hearts to children in need. This touching book is overflowing with somber realities, comic relief, and everyday mothering mishaps. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the task before you, you will find a companion in this book. This book details the incredible adventure of the Avis family as they face some of life’s greatest challenges and turn them into beautiful opportunities. It gives each of us hope in our own journey full of insurmountable odds.

New York Times bestselling author of Blue Like Jaz Donald Miller

Heather is a modern-day superwoman goddess warrior with a heart that is brave and true. She doesn’t pretend parenting is easy or that she hasn’t faced darkness and been broken many times over. But she is honest. She chooses to risk every time. She chooses love every time, and even in the face of great struggle, she has said yes and jumped. Heather’s face showed up for me the moment I was crumbling. I was scared for our daughter, and her words breathed hope right into my trembling soul. This book will make your heart and arms open wide. It may cause your family to grow in numbers or move you to hold close the babies you have—plus ugly cry. It may cause all these things. This book is a testament to the power of a mother’s love.

Lisa Gungor

With profound honesty, Heather Avis describes the bold journey she and Josh took into the world of Down syndrome and adoption—a journey where “joy and sorrow are so perfectly interwoven.” The Lucky Few is a story filled with metaphors of hope: beauty shaped from the shards of broken dreams, stars of light bursting through darkness, fragile heartbeats filling the lonely silence. But beneath the hopeful metaphors are the hard, daily choices to trust God with life-threatening surgeries, with unexpected birth families, with overwhelming feelings of inadequacy, with moments when bravery feels remarkably like “wanting to puke.” I intended to scan this book quickly, but couldn’t. I had to read slowly, in part because the story was so utterly captivating, but equally because God was using Heather’s words to challenge me to be braver, to be more willing to step into the unknown, to be more prayerful and trusting. Thank you, Heather (and amazing husband, Josh!) for living and sharing The Lucky Few.

Lynne Hybels

The Lucky Few is a book about the deep-unto-deep kind of love we have as parents, a love with power over fear. Heather Avis’s voice is a beaming light that infuses me with courage, not because she herself is braver than the rest of us, but because she shows us in this beautiful story that we must put down our expectations and ridiculous bootstrap mentalities, so we can open ourselves to the intimate love God has for us. This book is a beacon for anyone who thinks she can’t do the very thing she must.

author of Wild in the Hollow: On Chasing Desir Amber C. Haines

Oftentimes we see people do courageous acts, like adopt children with special needs, and we assume they are fearless heroes. Heather shows us that courage is actually birthed out of fear and disappointment. You will see yourself in her story and will be inspired to move through your own fears and disappointments in order to live a more courageous life.

founder of Noonday Collection Jessica Honegger

What started as a social hashtag has turned into a movement for the way we look at our lives. In The Lucky Few, Heather Avis shares a story that is honest, raw, hopeful, and deeply inspiring. May we all see the world—and its people—through this beautiful lens.

Rachel Hollis

Heather Avis is a guide for all of us “lucky few” walking in the wilderness. She reveals the exquisite beauty always hiding within the brokenness, the promise that in the darkness God is up to something bright and colorful. Joy is always waiting in the paths we would never choose for ourselves. As I read it, I felt like I was sitting with a good friend over coffee, letting her remind me all over again to notice God’s grace right here in the middle of my own story.

Micha Boyett

The Lucky Few is a beautiful and compelling story about the transformation of fear into hope. As you read about the Avis’s journey, you’ll be inspired to imitate their courageous surrender to the life-changing invitation of Jesus.

host of the VOX Podcast and team leader at VOX Chr Mike Erre

Heather Avis’s words and story exemplify one of the hardest but most beautiful truths in motherhood—that you cannot predict the path on which it will lead you, but if you show up wholeheartedly, willing to be stretched by love, the greatest joy you’ve ever known is guaranteed to light the way. I’m inspired to stir up more areas of “comfortable noes” in my life and see, as Heather has beautifully shown us, how life expands into more grace and joy with a simple yes.

author of the New York Times bestselling memoir Bl Kelle Hampton

The Lucky Few gives a glimpse into the remarkableness of one couple who choose a terrifying yes over an uncomfortable no—over and over again. It is an honest and vulnerable account of determination, not only to see God’s promises come to pass, but also to seek his best for those whom society so often overlooks. Heather’s story calls our attention to the image of God in every person and provides another lens through which to view the world and each person we encounter. By the end, you will see why the Avis family truly are the lucky few—and you just may end up wanting to join their crew as well!

executive producer of The JUSTICE Conference Vickie Reddy

This is a beautiful and honest story about coming to grips with God’s best for your life—especially when society’s expectations clash with your reality. God’s grace in finding perfect children for Heather and Josh Avis and growing in them the courage to become the parents these children need is witness to all of us looking for divine clarity in the midst of seemingly confusing and sometimes devastating circumstances.

president of The JUSTICE Conference Mark Reddy

I absolutely love this book. I love Heather Avis dearly, and her warmth and passion and fierce love come through on every page. This is a story about adoption, about family, about special needs . . . and really, more than anything, it’s a story about faith. I’m so incredibly inspired by the way Heather listens to God’s voice, and as I put down this book, I prayed for more of that kind of faith in my own life.

author of Savor and Present Over Perfect Shauna Niequist

Heather Avis is an inspiration as a mom and as a woman. If I didn’t know her personally, I would wonder if the grace pouring through her words was authentic. But she is the real deal, and her story of love makes me want to be a better mother and a better person.

writer and podcaster Laura Tremaine

When I first met Heather Avis, I was drawn to her family’s story because we share a love for foster care and adoption. But The Lucky Few is about so much more. Heather shows us what it means to seek after the heart of God, and she inspires us to do the same. You’ll want to buy this book for everyone you know.

Andy Stanley

A page turner. A hope giver. A life changer. Lucky are those who read these pages—their hearts will explode with the joy that we all truly get to be the luckiest of all.

author of the New York Times bestsellers The Broke Ann Voskamp

The Lucky Few is a beautiful and compelling story about the transformation of fear into hope. As you read about the Avis’s journey, you’ll be inspired to imitate their courageous surrender to the life-changing invitation of Jesus.

host of the VOXPodcast and team leader at VOX Chri Mike Erre

What started as a social hashtag has turned into a movement for the way we look at our lives. In The Lucky Few, Heather Avis shares a story that is honest, raw, hopeful, and deeply inspiring. May we all see the world---and its people---through this beautiful lens.

author and lifestyle expert (TheChicSite.com) Rachel Hollis

What started as a social hashtag has turned into a movement for the way we look at our lives. In The Lucky Few, Heather Avis shares a story that is honest, raw, hopeful, and deeply inspiring. May we all see the world—and its people—through this beautiful lens.

author and lifestyle expert (The Chic Site.com) Rachel Hollis

A page turner. A hope giver. A life changer. Lucky are those who read these pages---their hearts will explode with the joy that we all truly get to be the luckiest of all.

author of the New York Times bestsellers The Broke –Ann Voskamp

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