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Pastor Mike Housholder, Senior Pastor
Pastor Mike arrived at Hope in 1993, called by the ELCA to re-start Lutheran Church of Hope as a new congregation under development. Since that time, Hope has grown from 15 to over 5,000 people in average weekend worship attendance, and has become one of the largest and fastest growing Lutheran congregations in the nation.
Mike has a passion for preaching, teaching and outreach. He has surrounded himself with an exceptionally gifted team of church staff and volunteer leaders, and together they have led Hope through five major building projects, several major local and global outreach efforts, and the development of five distinct worship styles (contemporary celebrations, traditional communion, coffee house simulcast, immersion for postmodern generations, and a satellite ministry in Ankeny called Hope North Branch).
Weekly sermons from Hope are available for download via ITunes podcast, and have quietly built up a massive subscription base around the world. Hope’s services are also broadcast locally Sundays at 11am on Praise 940AM.
Pastor Mike is a Des Moines Business Record “40 under 40” recipient, listed in Outreach Magazine as one of “25 Church Leaders to Watch,” and was a member of the initial “Core Leadership Team” for Alpha USA.
The son of a pastor and elementary school teacher, Mike grew up in Idaho, Montana, and Minnesota before moving to Chicago for his high school years. He graduated from Taft High School (Chicago) in 1982, Concordia College (Moorhead, Minnesota) magna cum laude with a double major in English and Communications in 1986, and Luther Seminary (St. Paul) in 1990. Mike served as pastor of Palestine Lutheran Church in rural Huxley, Iowa from 1990-1993.
Mike has been happily married to his wife, Sally, since 1987. They live in West Des Moines with their three children: Jonathan, Daniel, and Kristin.
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