reviewsbyerin | "The Gift of the Unexpected" by Jillian Benfield

I'm the middle of an uncertain season of life, currently living with a bit of "expect the unexpected" mindset as I wait to see how things will unfold. I was drawn to this book, hoping to find encouragement for my journey. I'd never heard of Jillian Benfield before and knew only as much about the book as the back cover told me.

This is the story of Jillian and her husband finding out that their unborn son had Down syndrome. Initially shattered by this news, Jillian shares the transformation that she and her family have gone through to welcome and include Anderson into their family, knowing he is exactly as God created him to be, disabilities and all. At the end of each chapter, Jillian offers prompts for personal growth and reflection on the reader's own journey through unexpected turns of life.

I think this book might have better been suited as a memoir or more geared toward younger people. Jillian writes with honesty about how her life before Anderson was privileged and her mindset was ignorant—those are her words. The privilege and ignorance and charmed life were extremely off-putting and made it hard to look at someone that immature for any kind of guidance. She also talked about her faith deconstruction, and while she always pointed people back to God, the language used was confusing and I would not be able to support the theology she presented. Later she talks about getting into political activism, which was yet another area I found extremely unhelpful for my own life.

I will say that Jillian models growth, and holds the balance of sharing her past with its imperfections without shame while also admitting she was wrong and telling you how she pressed through to a new worldview. That takes a lot of humility and vulnerability.

Though this book was a miss for me, I can see this blessing young readers who come from a similar background to Jillian, or people who have followed Jillian's journey.

I received my copy of the book from the publisher. All thoughts in this review are my own.