Our Team

My father was a career U.S. Naval officer, so pick a port and my brothers and I probably grew up there, from the East Coast to the West, including Hawaii and Guam. We did manage to live in the same place during our high school years which was actually here in San Diego; James Madison ‘78, so in a sense I’m a local boy. Through all the changes of location one great constant was The Church. Mostly we attended Lutheran congregations, but there were also Base Chapels and a few Methodist and Presbyterian congregations tossed into the mix. Without a doubt all those people, in all those congregations, over all those years, gave us a strong, anchored sense of community, belonging and faith. They also gave us trust in the marvelous variety of faithful expression and a heart for welcome. It should be no surprise then that my journey to ordained ministry was shared. Both of my brothers, Rev. Jon Christenson and Rev. Grant Christenson, also answered God’s call to become pastors.

I graduated from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, worked at Lutheran Camping of Southern California on Mt. Piños, and Seminary in Berkeley, CA. Before coming to First Lutheran in 2019, I served an internship in South Central Los Angeles and three congregations in Ojai, CA. Springfield, Massachusetts, and Glendale, CA. Those ministries, urban, rural, rich, poor, large and small prepared me well for service here with the wide range of human experience which is First. 

Most of my play time is spent with friends and family, especially the lovely Colleen and our daughter Analiese, just starting her college years in Boston. Bicycle riding is my other passion. I've ridden and toured down the coast of California numerous times, from San Francisco, Seattle, and Portland, from New York City to Minneapolis, as well as tours in Armenia, Denmark, Sweden, and the French Alps. Sometimes, I just ride around Mission Bay. 

It is my sincere hope that you will come visit First Lutheran, so that myself and others in the community can meet you. Peace!