Pastor David Celebrated his tenth year of Ordination Anniversary of Ministry in the Carolinas on July 29

Pastor David Nuottila is a second career graduate of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia, South Carolina. He was ordained into the office of Word and Sacrament on July 26, 2008 at Messiah Lutheran Church in Hanahan, SC. Bishop David Donges was the presiding minister for the ordination.
On Sunday, July 27, 2008, Pastor Nuottila began his ministry as Pastor at St. Barnabas Lutheran Church in Charleston, SC. As part of his call to St. Barnabas, Pastor Nuottila also served as the Lutheran Campus Minister at The Citadel. During his time at St. Barnabas, Pastor Nuottila was very active in the community ministering to the large homeless population surrounding the church. Pastor Nuottila also led his congregation in forming a food pantry through which groceries, winter coats, clothing and health kits were made available to those in need. In 2008, Pastor Nuottila also began publishing daily and monthly devotions on his personal blog. This is a ministry that continues, and several of his devotions have been published by Lutheran Digest, The Disciple-Ship, NALC Mission and various Christian blogs around the world.
In September 2009, Pastor Nuottila became a member of the
Steering Committee for a group of pastors and laypersons who opposed the tragic decisions made by the 2009 ELCA Church-Wide Assembly. He served in this capacity for two years, and in December of 2011, resigned from this group and also the South Carolina Synod.
In January of 2012, Pastor Nuottila began his second call at Union Lutheran Church in Salisbury, North Carolina. As a pastor in the newly formed NALC, Pastor Nuottila began working to build the Youth and Men’s ministries for the Carolinas Mission District. During this time, Pastor Nuottila led a series of Youth Retreats for youth groups throughout the Carolinas. He also led his congregation in hosting annual youth events such as the Advent Ball. A highlight in youth ministry is that Pastor Nuottila teamed with Pastor Carl Haynes (Christiana Lutheran Church, Salisbury) to form an all NALC Confirmation Camp Cluster of at least ten congregations at Lutheridge in Arden, NC.
In April of 2013, Pastor Nuottila organized a group of lay volunteers to begin building a Men’s Ministry for the Carolinas Mission District. In February 2014, a gathering of Lutheran Men was held in Gastonia, NC where Carolinas Lutheran Men adopted its provisional constitution and selected a leadership committee. Pastor Nuottila agreed to serve as Chaplain for the group.
During the annual Mission District Convocation in 2015, Pastor Nuottila was runner-up in the voting for Dean of the Carolinas Mission District. With the Rev. Dr. Nathan Yoder elected, Pastor Nuottila was elected to fill Pastor Yoder’s vacated seat on the Mission District Executive Council. In this capacity, Pastor Nuottila became a member of the Carolinas Mission District Missions Committee. He also became a member of the Communications Committee and editor of the Carolinas Mission District website. Pastor Nuottila served two terms on the Executive Council and also as Assistant Dean for the Carolinas Mission District. He continues to chair the Mission Team and Communications committee.
In November, 2017, Pastor Nuottila accepted a call from St. Jacob’s to be their pastor and began his ministry there on December 1st. At the onset of this ministry, Pastor Nuottila began leading Bible studies, teaching confirmation students and making plans for the beginnings of a Discipleship program. In addition, Pastor Nuottila has instituted the beginning of a Children’s Choir program and is busy finding ways in which St. Jacob’s can establish a greater presence within the community.
A hallmark of Pastor Nuottila’s ministry is his ongoing mission work with the Lutheran Church in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Pastor Nuottila began working with fellow NALC pastor Stéphane Kalonji as a missionary to the Congolese cities of Kinshasa, Boma and Matadi. Traveling to Congo every other year, Pastor Nuottila provides theological training for pastors and lay leaders and leads Christian education seminars for Women and youth members of the church. There are two activities in his mission work that are especially gratifying. One such ministry is feeding orphaned children in the care of the Congolese Lutheran Church. The other is to provide funds to “free” babies and mothers who are detained because of unpaid fees.
Currently, Pastor Nuottila is enrolled in a Doctor of Ministry program at St. Paul Lutheran Seminary in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. His goal is to publish a series of articles or a book to be used as a resource for family ministry and pastoral counseling. His anticipated graduation date is the Spring of 2020.