Pastor Carlson has answered the call to serve here at Good Hope as our half-time Pastor beginning January 2023.  Prior to, he was  the pastor at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Temperance since August of 2011. He is originally from East Grand Rapids, Michigan. He has served as a local pastor in multiple pastoral settings since 1989. 

He became an ordained elder within the Central Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church in 1992. He is a graduate of Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary, Northwestern University class of 1990. 

Pastor Carlson has served churches in Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan. He graduated from Grand Valley State Colleges in 1983 with a Bachelors of Business Administration. His undergraduate major was Marketing with a minor emphasis in Public Administration.

Pastor Carlson left the corporate world in 1987 as a product manager for the UARCO corporation.  Pastor Carlson is most happy when he can help churches find a new energy for their ministry in local and international settings.   

Rev. Carlson was the first pastor to exchange pulpits with the Rev. Gift C. Machinga from Mutare Zimbabwe in 1991. This initial exchange mission trip introduced him to African Culture and has shaped his outlook on Pastoral Ministry to the present day. Since that time he has visited Malawi seven additional times. He and his wife have hosted Malawian pastors into their home on three different occasions. He maintains a special friendship with Bishop Smart Y. Msinkhu who he has known since his first visit to Malawi in 1991. 

Pastor Carlson’s passion is to help people understand how they can be part of transforming lives with fresh water wells in the most remote parts of sub-Sahara Africa. He has recently  served as an active member of the Toledo Rotary Club. He has served as a Polio speaker, raising funds to help eliminate the curse of the dreaded Polio Virus. 

He and his wife Patty have recently celebrated their twentieth wedding anniversary.  They are very excited about how they can serve in the Good Hope Lutheran Church community.  Pastor Lew is following in the path of their longtime friend Pastor Dean Beckwith who has been a long time mentor and friend.  He is always open to meeting with anyone who is suffering from grief or those who wish to grow closer to our Lord Jesus Christ.