Orphans Lead the World

I'm reading another amazing book (Where is God When it Hurts? by Phillip Yancy) and this concept of being transformed through hardships and how our circumstances don't stand in the way of God using them for our good and His glory can apply to any phase in life. Read and be encouraged! :)

Ch 11: Other Witnesses Excerpt

“It is by those who have suffered that the world has been advanced.” Leo Tolstoy

In his book Creative Suffering the Swiss physician and counselor Paul Tournier recalls his surprise upon reading an article entitled “Orphans Lead the World.” The article, which appeared in a respected medical journal, surveyed the lives of 300 leaders who had had a great impact on world history. After searching for some common thread, the author discovered that all these leaders had grown up as orphans - either actually, through the death of or separation from parents, or emotionally, as a result of severe childhood deprivation. His list included such names as Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Robespierre, George Washington, Napoleon, Queen Victoria....”

“So, there we are,” writes Tournier, “giving lectures on how important it is for a child’s development to have a father and a mother performing harmoniously together their respective roles towards him. And all at once we find that this is the very thing that those who have been most influential in world history have not had!” 

“...the role of the doctor, nurse, social worker, minister, or loving friend is simply this: to keep the nutcracker of circumstances from destroying, and to help the sufferer see that even the worst hardships open up the potential for growth and development.”