2This collection of stories from personal experiences, sermons, conversations and the impact of many lives whose story has intersected with mine. It is the journey of recognition of who I am in light of the love of God and call of Jesus Christ on my life. What is so important about my story, you might ask? It is important because it is mine, as do all stories belong to the teller. However, the saddness of it is that these personal, powerful pieces of life are not shared enough, and it is in the sharing that we touch lives. Jesus is our example. Throughout my particular story, the people who were most inclined to find their way into my life and ministry were those the church had forgotten, those who were in need of healing from the wounds the church inflicted, or those who could not in good conscience be part of something that was too far beyond the reality they lived within. These are the stories that need told. My hope is that in telling mine, greater stories from those who have remained silent will emerge.