Nate Stenholtz: Everyday Hero

Avid reader, consumer of French-pressed coffee, and follower of Jesus, Nate Stenholtz is a great friend whose normal life displays the supernatural work of Someone bigger. Nate was born in 1976 in North Dakota, although his family lived across the border in Wyoming. For most of his life, Nate has lived in Minnesota. Nate’s family is immensely important to him. Inside the church or outside, he lives as a missional Christian in obedience to God. Sharing his life and talents with teenagers and learning from them, Nate is a middle school youth pastor.
Nate is a family man. Marrying Kristin Cave in 1998, Nate firmly says that this event was one of the most important in his entire life. Excitingly, Elise Anastasia Stenholtz entered the world in 2003 with Aubrey Joy Stenholtz following in 2005. Nate adores his two daughters and loves to spend time with them every night by reading stories to them. While Nate’s family spends time together, they especially enjoy experiencing new things together and traveling to new places. In about five years, when the girls are older, Nate and Kristin plan to go on a family mission trip together because they love to travel and also want to further God‘s kingdom. Nate Stenholtz, who is a wonderful father and husband, loves his family and spending time with them.
Nate Stenholtz is no stranger to missions. In Nate’s early teenage years he treated baseball like his god and played constantly. When Nate met Jesus Christ, who changed his life, he was asked to do some difficult things. Asking Nate to quit baseball and go to Russia for a month, Jesus clearly had a different plan for Nate’s life than Nate did. Nate obeyed God. Significantly effecting Nate’s life, the trip to Russia was very important to Nate, and his experiences helped the way he now views the world. Since the mission trip to Russia, Nate has also been to parts of the U.S. and throughout parts of Europe, such as Finland. Nate hopes to return to Russia someday.
Although Nate has traveled to many far places, his mission field is not limited to across the ocean. Loving and serving many in his community, Nate has a heart for helping others and learning from others, especially teenagers.
Because Nate, who is exceedingly friendly and extremely inviting, enjoys interacting with people, he does a fabulous job as middle school youth pastor. Nate’s first youth pastor job was when he was twenty-two and newly married at a small church in Marshall, Minnesota. Throughout the years, Nate has worked at different churches, but now he is the youth pastor at Christ Community Church in Rochester Minnesota. Journeying with students in their relationships with God is Nate’s favorite part of being a youth pastor.
Nate loves his beautiful wife, Kristin, and his two girls, Elise and Aubrey.  Although Nate may seem like a normal man with a regular job as a middle school youth pastor, he is a hero because he unselfishly loves others.