The Rev. David Nelson is the Rector of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church and a native Texan who has spent a lifetime cheering for Houston sports teams—and learning about spiritual resilience along the way. He grew up in Sugar Land, played college baseball, and graduated from Virginia Theological Seminary in 2005. His ministry has taken him from six years of campus ministry in Ohio to twelve years as rector of Christ the King Episcopal Church in Atascocita, before joining St. Andrew’s in 2023.

David is pursuing a Doctor of Ministry at Virginia Theological Seminary, exploring how biblical storytelling transforms when it’s heard rather than read. He is also the author of Why I Would Have Killed Jesus and You Might Have Too: Five Short Stories of Faith, a book that imagines Jesus through the eyes of his enemies. 

When he’s not preaching or writing, David enjoys stand-up comedy, disc golf, and keeping up with his lively household. His wife, the Rev. Beth Anne Nelson, serves as Episcopal campus missioner at Rice University—and somehow runs more miles each week than David believes is humanly possible (about 60!). Their daughters couldn’t be more different: Grace is a future PhD in the making, while Faith is pursuing what she calls a “Party Hard Degree.” The family also shares their home with a tiny but feisty dog named Sugar.