Sigurd Grindheim

Cand.theol., The Norwegian Lutheran School of Theology

Ph.D., Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

Full-time Instructor, Mekane Yesus Theological Seminary and The Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

I was born and raised in Oslo , Norway, and grew up on goat cheese, cross-country skiing, and Edvard Grieg.

As a teenager, I felt a calling to become a minister of God's word, so I enrolled in seminary and got my cand.theol. degree, which is the requirement for ordination in the Church of Norway. When I was a student, I worked part-time as a freelance journalist, and thus I got to meet many interesting people. My most spectacular assignment was to interview Ariel Sharon.

As Norway has conscription, I was called on after graduation to serve as a chaplain in the Norwegian army. I was sent to the northern part of the country, the land of the midnight sun; except that I was there during the winter, when we don't see the sun at all for three months. For my Christmas service, I chose the text from the gospel of John.

Later, I worked on a Bible translation and a Norwegian Study Bible before I decided to get more education and moved to Deerfield, Illinois. Coming to the States for the first time, I was unable to conceal my enthusiasm, as I associated everything I saw with some movie I knew. When I experienced my first ride on a school bus I said to my fellow passengers: “This is very glamorous.” The other passengers were not so impressed, and it didn't help much that I explained to them that I felt I was now part of “Forrest Gump.” I still enjoy the US, even though my fascination with the school buses has decreased.

After four wonderful years at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, I moved to Birmingham, Alabama, where I would be teaching at Beeson Divinity School. And things kept getting better. Birmingham was the place where I met the love of my life, Melissa. Melissa was just coming back from two years as a missionary in Kenya, where she had learned to appreciate the great sport of soccer. We clicked immediately and got married by her father (Don Minton) and my doctor father (D.A. Carson) on May 22, 2004.

From 2003 to 2006, I have been teaching at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, which I have enjoyed tremendously. When my contract at TEDS expired in 2006 Melissa and I moved to Ethiopia as missionaries with the Norwegian Lutheran Mission.