Ken Evers-Hood has served Tualatin Presbyterian Church just outside of Portland, OR for the last fourteen years. Before that he was the founding pastor of Presbyterian Church of Lake Travis near Austin, TX. Ken received his M.Div from Princeton Theological Seminary and his D.Min from Duke Divinity School. (When he’s feeling honest, though, he’ll tell you he’s learned more about God from his kids than from any classroom.) Ken studied irrationality with the behavioral economist Dan Ariely at Duke, and after he graduated published The Irrational Jesus: Leading the Fully Human Church, and the forthcoming The Irrational David: The Power of Poetic Leadership which should be coming out soon. (Regarding what seems to be an obsession with irrationality Ken says it’s important to teach what you know.) Ken has stayed connected with Duke serving as the spiritual mentor for two doctoral cohorts and is now an adjunct faculty member teaching leadership with Bishop Will Willimon.
When he’s not pastoring, writing, or teaching, Ken is probably standing on a soccer field sideline in Oregon somewhere fantasizing about the sun, or, if he’s lucky, hanging out at the beautiful Oregon coast. He loves music, delights in imperfection, tries to embody robust vulnerability, appreciates anyone who tries to listen well to others, and enjoys dark humor, dark coffee, and dark beer. But, these days, he’s also working on appreciating the light, easy moments more and giving thanks for the seasons where the good days outnumber the hard ones.