Specifically, he wants to see his downtown church involved in three areas: education, the environment and the economy.

Joining St. Paul’s in September, he was appointed by Edward Konieczny, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma.

“I take care of preaching, administration, sacraments, teaching and all the day-to-day activities of the church,” said Lindstrom.

After serving a church in Houston for 10 years, he was ready for the move to Oklahoma City. He said the Houston church, which had grown from a congregation of 25 to 800 under his leadership, was established enough now that it could manage a transition to a new rector.

Born in San Diego, Lindstrom began his career in Texas after an injury ended his dreams of being a competitive swimmer.

“I was training for the ’92 Olympics in Barcelona when I hurt my shoulder,” he said. “The injury happened when I was lifting weights. I had surgery and physical therapy, but I never recovered enough to compete again.”

Texas Lutheran offered Lindstrom an academic scholarship. He was a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church until his first year at the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest in Austin, Texas, where he became an Episcopalian.

Now 40, Lindstrom said he has enjoyed getting settled in OKC. His wife, Susan, owns a travel agency. They have two children, both of whom attend Edmond Public Schools.

“I think all students, irrespective of socioeconomic or cultural background, should have the opportunity for a good education,” he said. “It’s important for people to have that opportunity, and we’ll look at ways to get involved.”

He said he also hopes to interest his parish in ecological issues, with the goal of being good stewards of Earth.

The work of the church will include addressing the unemployed, struggling and homeless population of the metro.

“People need adequate jobs, and if they’re unemployed, we’ll look at ways to help them, including partnering with local agencies,” Lindstrom said. “We want to help the homeless transition to housing, and of course, we want to feed people.”

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