Mike Housholder, Senior Pastor

Mike Housholder has served as the senior pastor of Lutheran Church of Hope since its founding on All Saints’ Sunday in 1994. Under his visionary leadership, Hope has grown into a dynamic, multisite, and multigenerational church, now welcoming more than 20,000 worshippers each weekend across seven campuses and eight local sites throughout the Midwest.

Known for his engaging communication style and a heart for outreach, Pastor Mike is the host of the popular Pastor Mike Drop podcast and is a sought-after speaker at church leadership conferences. No matter how large Hope becomes, Mike still sees himself as a mission pastor, leading a church that gives up to half of its annual offerings to outreach partners and actively engages in hunger relief and social justice work in central Iowa and around the world.

Over the years, Mike has been honored with the Alumni Achievement Award from Concordia College, the Des Moines Business Record’s Forty Under 40 award, and induction into the Taft High School Alumni Hall of Fame in his hometown of Chicago. He has also served on the Board of Regents for Wartburg College, and the Advisory Boards for Alpha USA, Meals from the Heartland, and Ruth Harbor.

Mike holds a Bachelor of Arts with honors from Concordia College, double-majoring in English and Communication, and a Master of Divinity from Luther Seminary.

He and his wife, Sally, have been happily married since 1987. They are the proud parents of three grown children —a three-time Emmy Award–winning director, a Lutheran pastor, and an occupational therapist—and six beloved grandchildren. A lifelong sports enthusiast, Mike remains a passionate fan of his hometown teams: the Chicago Cubs, Bears, and Bulls.