ConseCrate

When I think of the term “renaissance man” I think of John Stevens. A renaissance man is someone with many talents and areas of knowledge and John fits that definition.

I met John about 25 years ago through his brother, Chris. I had been traveling in a music ministry group with Chris and he is still a dear friend. One day when Chris and I were living in the Twin Cities he told me his brother was coming to town and so we all went out for coffee. At the time, John was in seminary just like I was, so we had lots in common to talk about. Through the years we have stayed in touch through Chris and through social media.

John has always impressed me with his creative nature, his good humor, and openness to sharing his talents & the things that he loves. He writes haiku prayers daily that he shares with several facebook groups. He also has an extremely popular youtube channel where he shares children’s sermon ideas for EVERY Sunday for both the narrative and revised common lectionary. https://dskidsermons.com/

John has authored several books – my personal favorite is Seventeen Syllables of Grace (find it here: https://amzn.to/3Pb9zJj).

He is a magician. Yes, you read that right – a magician. He often will teach magic tricks that pastors can use in their children’s sermons and he performs in magic shows in his home area of Portland and online.

His full-time gig is that of pastor. For twenty-some years he has been a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He currently serves Zion Lutheran Church in Oregon City, Oregon (www.zionlutheranelca.org)

Oh, and in the midst of all these pursuits (plus his roles as devoted dad & husband) he roasts coffee! He has a beautiful side-hustle called Pastor John’s Blessed Beans. You can order coffee from him anytime through his facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/103766440455274

In February of 2021 ConseCrate featured a bag of John’s coffee and it was SO popular that we asked him to do a special roast for us this year. He came up with a delicious blend for us. All organic and ethically sourced, we are so glad John let us share his delicious coffee once again. Enjoy the Ruah blend from Pastor John’s Blessed Beans!!

Subscribe to Consecrate today and every month receive a box curated for just for ministers and often featuring the wonderful creations of other ministers like John. http://consecrate.cratejoy.com