Reverend Dr. David Dahlberg has been elected as the Pacific Southwest District’s new superintendent. Dahlberg succeeds Reverend Mike Skor, who was elected Assistant General Superintendent of The Wesleyan Church in May 2026. Dahlberg brings decades of local church ministry to the assignment, along with a desire to help pastors develop relationships in which they can speak openly and grow together collaboratively.
Dahlberg’s own journey began in a Michigan parsonage. As a teenager, Dahlberg was reluctant to commit to the church, but then began answering questions about God from Kim, a girl who lived down the street and would eventually become his wife. Her curiosity helped turn his own attention toward Jesus. When he was 19 and she was 18, they committed their lives to Christ during a revival led by a Wesleyan evangelist.
“I began preaching two weeks after I was saved, and I’ve never quit,” Dahlberg reflected.
He eventually became pastor of the independent church where he had grown up, serving six years while pursuing pastoral studies through satellite classes offered by Nazarene Bible College. In 1993, he and Kim began serving Wayne Wesleyan Church in Michigan, which later became New Beginnings. After 12 years there, they moved to Arizona to pastor Christian Faith Fellowship in Tucson.
Dahlberg’s move into district leadership comes as Christian Faith Fellowship prepares for a pastoral transition of its own. Several years ago, Dahlberg asked the church board to pray for a future pastor who could serve alongside him and become known to the congregation before assuming leadership.
That prayer eventually led to Reverend Jaron Dahlberg, his nephew. As Jaron grew in his commitment to ministry, Dahlberg and members of the board began to recognize him as a potential successor. Jaron joined the staff as next generation pastor and completed 15 ordination classes in a year before being ordained in The Wesleyan Church.
Dahlberg initially envisioned working alongside Jaron through a transition lasting five to seven years. He later sensed God preparing them for a faster change. As the possibility of district leadership emerged, he kept his board and congregation informed. He hopes to install Jaron as lead pastor following a congregational vote.
At the district level, Dahlberg will build on work begun under Skor, whose tenure included nine new church plants and an increase in salvation decisions. The church health assessment completed under Skor offers a starting point for understanding what each congregation needs and how the district can help.
“Churches can’t be healthy without a healthy pastor,” Dahlberg said.
Within his first three months, he hopes to meet individually with every district pastor, taking time to understand each pastor’s life with God and the obstacles facing their congregations. He plans to review the congregation’s assessment alongside their pastors, learning what changes are already underway and where additional support could help congregations reach toward health.
That support might include a coach or a mentor whose experience could help a pastor take the next step. Dahlberg also wants pastors to become more comfortable seeking help from one another as they face the demands of ministry. “Pastors need each other,” he reflected, hoping to foster a climate in which pastors can approach each other as teammates, with whom they can talk honestly about their lives and churches.
“What I want to build into our pastors in the Pacific Southwest District is a trust in one another, a vulnerability to be open and helpful to one another, and that we can grow together,” he said.
He also plans to adapt the district’s existing Leadership Connections gatherings to include meetings specifically for lead pastors within their geographic zones. He hopes those smaller settings will give pastors room to talk candidly with colleagues they know. The relationships already developed among Arizona pastors offer a foundation he wants to extend throughout the district.
Dahlberg understands that asking people to be vulnerable requires trust in his leadership. He intends to model the openness he hopes pastors will practice with one another, making those conversations a regular part of their shared ministry.
“We have a great culture in this district, and we can continue to collaborate even more! I realize it doesn’t happen overnight,” he said. “It’s going to be some work, but it’s going to be intentional and focused.”
“I believe the PSW District has tremendous potential to multiply churches, strengthen the health of existing congregations, and reach more spiritually lost people with the hope of Jesus,” said Rev. Mike Skor, assistant General Superintendent. “Kiley and I are praying for God’s wisdom and favor for Dave and Kim as we pass the baton of leadership to them, trusting God to guide the district into this next season of ministry and mission.”
For more news about how The Wesleyan Church is impacting lives, churches, and communities, visit wesleyan.org/news.
Rev. Ethan Linder is the pastor of discipleship at College Wesleyan Church in Marion, Indiana.
