Issue link: https://discover.cph.org/i/1505568
Q: Briefly share your journey of becoming a pastor. Is this something you've always wanted to do? How did you discern the call? Are you doing the kind of ministry you thought you would? A: People started telling me that I would be a pastor when I was four years old. I told them no. God tugged at me throughout my freshman year at Concordia University, St. Paul, until I entered the pre-seminary program, but I took a seven-year detour after grad- uating from college. On the final stop of that detour, in Frankfurt, Germany, Pastor Bob Flohrs and Pastor Brent Smith sat me down and informed me that I had the gifts and temperament to be a pastor and I should really go do that. So, after much praying and many conversations with trusted voices, the detour ended and I started classes at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, in 2013. I was not sure if I'd serve domestically or interna- tionally when I started seminary, but I have found the Bay Area to be a good fit that utilizes some of the skills I gained living internationally. Q: What's something about being a pastor that surprised you once you got into a parish setting? A: I spend a lot of time caring for people via email and text messages. However people choose to reach out to me is how I respond to them, which means I craft a lot of pastoral care emails. Q: What would you say to teenage Andy concerning matters of faith or a future career as a pastor? A: Teenage Andy needed to hear that he wasn't alone—that there were other people struggling with his struggles. I would have told myself to be curious and that my voice and my questions mattered. I would have introduced myself much earlier to the paradox of humility and courage. "The task of a pastor is to till the soil, plant, and water. God will give the growth. You're not responsible for the most important part. God is. . . . Let God take care of the rest. " 4 Lutheran Life