Project Hero participant Jonathan Dade has recently completed work on his first book, an inspiring story about his life experiences and how they led him to faith, spiritual leadership and inner peace.
Why did you write the book?
A publishing consultant moved from Tennessee and started attending my church. He wanted to know more about me after seeing me on TV, and being quoted several times in Austin and local newspapers.
We met for lunch, and during which he caught a glimpse of the story behind the passions in my sermons, the racial and service-related challenges I had to overcome, my two advanced degrees, and finally how a black man could start a messianic congregation in an almost all-white affluent neighborhood. He said, “This would make a great book!”
I was so motivated by his comments and I went home and started the writing process. It took me two months to author a 55,000-word manuscript. He reviewed it and felt the world needed to read this amazing true story.
What has the reaction been to its publication?
Although the book is written as an autobiography, it functions as a mirror; some readers introspectively seek and need change in their lives, while others get upset about what they see peering back at them. My book is the mirror that objectively shows how anyone can become more successful, and an overcomer, if they so choose.
Where can members of our Project Hero family buy your book?
Single copies are available at http://jonathandade.com and on Amazon. We have several discounted packages available on the Jonathan Dade website.
What takeaway do you want readers to get from it?
No matter what adversities or struggles you have encountered, YOU can overcome them all through perseverance!
Will you write another book?
As you will read in my book, I never intended to write this one! So probably not, but we will see.
Do you enjoy writing?
I enjoy speaking much more than I enjoy writing, but when I have the opportunity to transpose my voice into print to help others, I do find it energizing.
Are there any excerpts from the book you want to share with our readers?
The first is that this book is the “true story of how an ordinary black boy, born to a working-class family in Midwestern America, went on to plant a church that within five years became very well respected in an affluent, predominately white community.” (Page 1).
The second is that “By now, I had accepted the fact that I struggled with anxiety, depression, and thoughts of suicide… (but) the media especially highlighted the fact that ‘cycling has been more therapeutic for me than seeing a psychologist,’ which was so true. Being around others who had traded holidays with friends and family to serve our country, or stand watch at faraway duty stations, did more for me than sitting in some chair or popping pills.” (Page 193)
And the third is that “While cycling with Project Hero in Chicago, ABC News reported on the guy who ‘struggled with anxiety now helps those with it’.” (Page 214).
I am honored to be serving in my Church (Messiah Echad) as a Pastor, and on Project Hero Challenges as a Chaplain, which would not have been possible without the life-changing help of Project Hero.
I am always available to the riders, staff and supporters of Project Hero; it does not matter what they are going through, or how they feel about something they have done, I can connect them with Someone who is faithful to forgive, and able to right wrongs.
