The Love That Matters: Meeting Jesus in the Midst of Terror and Death

A blond-haired, blue-eyed Lutheran man is approached on the streets of Chicago by members of the Latin Kings so he may teach them how to pray, and he does so with grace--this man’s story, one suspects, isn’t going to be a typical one. Life has not been easy for Charles Featherstone. From being bullied by peers and teachers in school, to his refusing to become a bully himself by leaving the armed services, to wandering the world in search of work and finding unexpected hospitality as an outsider nearly everywhere, to witnessing the 9/11 attacks from his nearby office, Featherstone’s story is a tale of survival akin to Jacob’s wrestling the angel at the River Jabbok. It may well leave the reader limping a bit, too, for the encounter with God found in these pages is stark and startling. Truly God’s love knows no bounds and cannot be captured by labels--but as Featherstone’s life attests, that love just might capture you.

Charles H. Featherstone is a former newspaper and wire service reporter, a singer and songwriter, and a graduate of the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. He is currently seeking a call to pastor a church.