WELCOME!

It’s a privilege to introduce my non-fiction book, Uncommon Character: 26 Stories Of Ordinary Men And Women Who Did The Extraordinary (originally titled, A Storyteller’s Anthology).  I looked a long time for a book of this nature, and could not find it.  Subsequently, I invested two years writing it based on the material I’d been presenting for a decade in various ministry and instructional venues. It has a simple emphasis on attainable heroic character, presented through story venues.

The stories are true, the protagonists are real, and the themes – dealing with choice, “story”, character, heroism, and change – are universal. Stories have inherent power to transform lives, and the most powerful are those about transformed lives. Here is a collection of 26 just such short stories in a single inspiring anthology. I know you’ll find it a most compelling read and that it will touch your life in many positive and enduring ways.  It was written to be cherished, re-read, and shared over a lifetime. The short stories in this collection were originally presented to audiences orally, but now they are captured for inspirational reading. Each was developed from experience and refined while teaching in elementary schools and high schools, in prisons and recovery centers, in small groups and around campfires, from pulpits and Sunday school basements to boardroom podiums.

As a captivating combination of epic tales, heroic character profiles, and timeless parables, this inspiring anthology is filled with unforgettable people who challenged and changed their world in remarkable and admirable ways.  These are true stories that read better than good fiction. You’ll be introduced to personalities who are living and historical, familiar and unknown, domestic and foreign. Prepare to meet pilots, farmers, missionaries, engineers, martyrs, businessmen, immigrants, presidents, soldiers, writers, and scientists – whose shared motivations become a part of us and our heritage. Together they answer the pertinent questions of our time: What makes a genuine hero? Why is a hero’s life worth understanding? How does a hero personify favorable character?

Each story will find its special place in head and heart – dwelling there to influence the critical choices ahead of us. From Preface to Epilogue, each page advocates making a positive impact on others and mastering the days we are given. Readers depart with an abiding conviction of the real difference one committed life will make. No matter our past or where we find ourselves today, we will be inspired to finish well.

Good lives make a good book and I’ve captured this truth. These are not dusty antiquities but tales told with zest; these are the tales you will long treasure. Search, but you’ll not find another book like this one. Enjoy the dynamic portraits; then share them in family, church, workplace, ministry and educational settings, because that’s how they began, and that’s why they were written.  It’s not only passively alright to re-share my stories; you’re encouraged to actively do so.  It’s one of the reasons I wrote them.

Counsel for the journey and inspiration to finish it well.