Dawa Jarso

Ready for Everything: The Journey of Pastor Dawa

Dawa Jarso Dawa was born in the zone of Borana, in the great Oromia region of southern Ethiopia. Life in Borana is shaped by wide-open landscapes, cattle-herding communities, and a culture that has learned to live with both hardship and beauty. It is a land where tradition and resilience run deep. It was in this soil—social, cultural, and spiritual—that Dawa’s faith and character were first formed.

As a child, Dawa lived fully in his world. He spent long afternoons kicking a soccer ball on dusty fields, riding his bicycle down village paths, and listening to the songs and stories that carried Oromo identity from one generation to the next. His family belonged to the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus, the largest Lutheran body in the world. But for Dawa, faith was not just a church matter—it was the heartbeat of home.

Every night, his mother gathered the children for devotion. Each one was given a task: a hymn to sing, a passage to read, a reflection to share. For young Dawa, these were more than family exercises; they were the stirrings of something deeper. Often, after devotion, he would slip away into the fields. Under the vast Ethiopian night sky, with only God as his audience, he practiced sermons—explaining Scripture, rehearsing words that one day would take root in pulpits far beyond Borana.

After his mother passed away, Dawa relocated to western Ethiopia, settling in the town of Nedjo in the Oromia region. There, he continued both his high school education and his involvement in church ministry. It was during this time that others began to recognize his spiritual gifts. His peers in the youth group would often encourage him, saying, “Dawa, you should be a preacher.” Inspired by their support, he fully immersed himself in every aspect of church life—singing in the choir, playing the keyboard, participating in drama ministries, and engaging in evangelism. Ministry felt natural to him, as if it had been woven into the fabric of his being. Still, when the opportunity to attend university arose, he initially chose a different direction.

For his college education, Dawa moved to northern Ethiopia to attend Adigrat University, located in the Tigray region, where he pursued a degree in chemical engineering. Over the course of five years, he immersed himself in academic life—studying, conducting experiments, and adapting to the rhythms of city living. Though deeply engaged in his studies, his heart remained tethered to ministry. On campus, he became a prominent leader in the student Christian fellowship, where his commitment to faith and service continued to shine. Fellow students often affirmed his spiritual potential, frequently telling him, “We see in you a calling to preach.

In 2018, God opened a new chapter. Dawa immigrated to San Diego, California—a coastal city as far from Borana as one could imagine. There, in the warmth of the Pacific breeze and among diverse cultures, he discovered the Oromo ministry at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church. Pastor Samuel Kumissa, who led the ministry, welcomed him like family. And once again came the words he had heard since childhood: “Dawa, you should prepare for ministry.”

But Dawa resisted. The first year, no. The second year, no again. He wasn’t ready. He needed to take care of his family first. Yet God’s call persisted. By 2021, he could not deny it any longer. He enrolled in the Ethnic Immigrant Institute of Theology (EIIT) at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.

That same year, Pastor Kumissa accepted another call, leaving the Oromo ministry without its shepherd. The elders turned to Dawa. With trembling hands but a willing heart, he stepped into the role of vicar—shepherding while still learning.

In this season, God gave him another mentor: Pastor Dave Weber, pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church, the host congregation for the Oromo ministry. Week after week, Pastor Weber met with him—teaching, guiding, encouraging. For Dawa, Pastor Weber became more than a professor or supervisor; he became a spiritual father, a model to imitate. “His life and actions matched his teachings,” Dawa recalls. “I could not have made it through without Pastor Dave’s help.”

The journey was not without trials. Family hardships pressed on him, spiritual attacks weighed heavy, and moments of deep discouragement threatened to silence his steps. In those valleys, Dawa often thought of Joseph—betrayed, forgotten, yet never abandoned. Like Joseph, he chose not to blame God but to trust that every trial was shaping him for the calling ahead. At other times, he felt closer to Paul, walking with a thorn in the flesh that refused to leave. Yet even then, he clung to the same promise Paul heard from the Lord: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

And grace has carried him. Earlier this year, Dawa graduated from the EIIT program. Soon he will be ordained as a pastor in the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. But his ordination is not the finish line—it is the launch.

Every Sunday, you will find Dawa standing before his congregation—preaching God’s Word with conviction, leading the worship with joy, and shepherding his flock with the heart of a servant. His ministry does not end when the benediction is spoken. After worship, the congregation lingers together for a time of fellowship. They share food, stories, burdens, and joys. Dawa moves among them, listening, praying, encouraging, and pointing hearts back to Jesus.

But Dawa’s calling stretches beyond Sunday. During the week, he continues to carry the weight of his vocation in a very practical way. To provide for his family and support the work of ministry, he works multiple jobs. And yet, even after long hours of labor, his phone is rarely silent. Members of the church reach out with questions, struggles, or requests for prayer. Dawa responds—visiting the sick, counseling the troubled, discipling the young, comforting the grieving. His ministry flows into homes, hospitals, and workplaces, wherever God’s people need a shepherd’s presence.

Though the demands are heavy, Dawa embraces this life as part of his calling. He lives between two worlds: the daily grind of work and the eternal work of shepherding souls. In both, he testifies that God’s grace sustains him. “The life of a disciple is marked by the cross,” he often explains, echoing what he learned long ago in Mekane Yesus. And yet, with that same faith, he is unstoppable. Nothing will silence the gospel from his lips. “We need to be ready for everything!”

Recognizing the significance of his calling, Pastor Weber and the Pacific Southwest District invited the Lutheran Mission Society San Diego to walk alongside Dawa—to nurture, equip, and encourage him in this next season of leadership. Today, he is not only a missionary to the Oromo community in San Diego, but also a beloved brother in our wider missionary family. Together, we dream of the next generation of Oromo leaders who will follow in his footsteps, carrying forward the mission of Christ.

From the fields of Borana to the churches of San Diego, Dawa’s life tells the same story: that God plants seeds in childhood, waters them through trial, and brings them to fruit in His perfect timing. And through it all, His gospel moves forward—unstoppable.