Jennie Lusko is an American author, podcast host, and co-pastor of Fresh Life Church, a multi-site church she leads alongside her husband, Levi Lusko.
Raised in California, she’s best known for co-founding Fresh Life Church in 2007, authoring The Fight to Flourish, and speaking openly about her family’s grief after the death of her daughter, Lenya, in 2012. She and Levi also co-host the Hey! It’s the Luskos podcast.
Jennie Lusko At a Glance
| Personal | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Jennie Lusko |
| Born and raised | California, USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse | Levi Lusko (m. 2004) |
| Children | Alivia, Lenya (deceased, 2012), Daisy, Clover, Lennox |
| Residence | Whitefish, Montana |
| Ministry | |
| Title | Co-pastor |
| Church | Fresh Life Church, Montana |
| Tradition | Charismatic / Evangelical (non-denominational) |
| Church founded | 2007, with Levi Lusko |
| Website | jennielusko.com |
| Career | |
| Books | The Fight to Flourish; The Marriage Devotional (with Levi) |
| Podcast | Hey! It’s the Luskos (co-host with Levi) |
| Net worth | Not publicly disclosed |
Early Life and Background
Jennie Lusko was born and raised in California, where she’s described herself as a West Coast kid who never planned to live anywhere else.
She grew up in church and gave her life to Christ at a young age, developing what she’s called a natural passion for serving and helping people early on.
One detail Jennie has shared repeatedly in interviews stands out: she knew as a young woman that she wanted to marry a pastor one day.
She didn’t know what that life would look like, but she’s said it was a desire she believed God placed in her heart long before she met Levi.
At age 13, Jennie went on a mission trip to Mexico, an experience she’s credited as formative to her faith and her sense of calling toward ministry.
That early exposure to missions work would later draw her into the internship that changed the direction of her life.
How Jennie Met Levi Lusko
Jennie met Levi Lusko while interning in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she had moved to work in a church’s missions department.
Her job was learning how to plan mission trips, and part of the internship’s structure included a commitment not to date for a full year.
Levi was serving in the same church’s youth ministry. Jennie has said the lack of dating pressure actually made their connection easier.
There was no anxiety about whether he liked her, since both of them already knew dating wasn’t on the table that year. By the time the internship ended, it was clear something real had developed between them.
The couple married in 2004. Three years into their marriage, with their first child already born, Levi and Jennie were sitting in the Salt Lake City airport when they both felt God confirming a decision: they were going to plant a church in Montana.
Founding and Leading Fresh Life Church
The church grew quickly. What started as a small gathering expanded into a multi-site church with campuses across Montana, Utah, Wyoming, and Oregon, along with a significant online and broadcast audience.
Jennie has described their founding vision simply: build a safe place where anyone can come worship, hear the Bible taught in plain language, and feel welcomed rather than burdened.
Jennie and Levi Lusko pioneered Fresh Life Church in 2007 in Kalispell, Montana.
Neither of them knew exactly how a small-town church plant would end up reaching people far beyond Montana, but they stepped out anyway, trusting the direction they’d both felt called toward.
While Levi serves as lead pastor, Jennie co-pastors alongside him, with a particular focus on encouraging women in the congregation and reminding them of their God-given purpose and strength.
She’s also developed a reputation for her eye toward hospitality and design, an interest she’s brought into how Fresh Life’s spaces and events feel to newcomers.
[IMAGE: Fresh Life Church campus exterior in Montana]
The Death of Lenya Lusko
On December 20, 2012, five days before Christmas, Jennie and Levi’s five-year-old daughter Lenya died after a sudden, severe asthma attack. The family was at home wrapping Christmas presents when Lenya’s breathing worsened.
An inhaler and nebulizer treatment didn’t help, and by the time paramedics arrived, her heart had stopped. She died in her father’s arms.
Lenya, whose name means “lion” in Russian, had been nicknamed “Lenya Lion” by her parents for her fierce personality and wild, mane-like hair since birth.
She was born September 8, 2007, the same year Fresh Life Church was founded, and was the second of what would become five Lusko children.
The Luskos chose to donate Lenya’s organs after her death. They later learned her corneas had been transplanted into two elderly recipients, restoring sight to both.
It’s a detail Levi has returned to often in his speaking and writing, framing it as a small but real picture of purpose emerging from loss.
Levi processed the experience publicly in his 2015 memoir, Through the Eyes of a Lion, which became a bestseller and was later adapted into a six-part TBN series.
Jennie has spoken alongside him in interviews and podcasts in the years since, often focusing less on the loss itself and more on how grief and faith can coexist without canceling each other out.
She’s said plainly that hurting with hope still hurts, and that healing isn’t the same as moving on.
Books and Writing
Jennie is the author of The Fight to Flourish: Engaging in the Struggle to Cultivate the Life You Were Born to Live, a book that draws directly from her experience of grief after Lenya’s death.
Rather than offering a tidy roadmap to recovery, the book argues that flourishing is something available right where a person is, not a finish line reached only after pain ends.
She also co-authored The Marriage Devotional: 52 Days to Strengthen the Soul of Your Marriage with Levi, a year-long devotional built around the practical lessons they’ve learned over two decades of marriage, including raising a blended household of grief and joy at the same time.
In interviews about the book, Jennie has said the foundation of a strong marriage starts with each spouse’s individual relationship with God, not with trying to make the other person responsible for personal wholeness.
Together, the couple also hosts the Hey! It’s the Luskos podcast, where they talk through marriage, parenting, faith, and the ordinary mess of running a household and a multi-site church at the same time.
Personal Life
Jennie and Levi have five children: Alivia, Lenya (who died in 2012), Daisy, Clover, and Lennox, their only son, born in January 2012. The family lives in Whitefish, Montana, near the church’s original Kalispell roots.
Jennie has spoken about loving interior design and creating spaces that feel warm and welcoming, an interest that shows up in how she approaches both her home and the church’s physical spaces.
She and Levi have also talked about travel as a part of their family rhythm, crediting international trips, including time in Israel, with deepening both their faith and their creative work.
The couple has been candid that their marriage isn’t free of conflict.
In a 2024 interview marking 20 years of marriage, both Luskos pushed back on the idea that they have a perfect relationship, pointing instead to ongoing intentional work, a shared commitment to therapy and counseling when needed, and what they’ve called the simple but often overlooked ingredient of having fun together.
Influence and Public Ministry
Jennie’s public ministry centers on women’s encouragement, marriage, and grief, three areas where her own life experience gives her teaching a particular weight.
She’s appeared on platforms like Focus on the Family, FamilyLife Today, and The Christian Post to talk through how she and Levi rebuilt their marriage and faith after losing a child, often noting that the statistics on marriages surviving child loss aren’t in most couples’ favor.
Her approach leans heavily on naming pain honestly rather than wrapping it in easy religious language.
She’s pushed back publicly on platitudes like “God only takes the best,” choosing instead to describe grief as something that coexists with hope rather than something hope erases.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Jennie Lusko?
Jennie Lusko is an American author and co-pastor of Fresh Life Church in Montana, which she founded with her husband, Levi Lusko, in 2007. She’s known for her book The Fight to Flourish and for speaking publicly about grief after the death of her daughter, Lenya, in 2012.
What happened to Levi Lusko’s daughter?
Levi and Jennie Lusko’s daughter Lenya died on December 20, 2012, at age five, after a sudden and severe asthma attack. She passed away in her father’s arms after paramedics arrived too late to revive her.
How many children does Levi Lusko have?
Levi and Jennie Lusko have five children: Alivia, Lenya (who died in 2012), Daisy, Clover, and their son, Lennox.
What is Jennie Lusko’s maiden name?
Jennie Lusko’s maiden name isn’t consistently or reliably documented across credible sources, and Flicxa won’t publish unverified personal details. She has said publicly that she was born and raised in California.
What book did Jennie Lusko write?
Jennie Lusko wrote The Fight to Flourish: Engaging in the Struggle to Cultivate the Life You Were Born to Live, drawing on her experience of grief and faith after Lenya’s death. She also co-authored The Marriage Devotional with her husband, Levi.
What nationality is Jennie Lusko?
Jennie Lusko is American. She was born and raised in California before relocating to New Mexico for ministry work and later settling in Montana with her husband.
Read Also
- Through the Eyes of a Lion Book Review and Summary
- Fresh Life Church: Complete History, Campuses, and What to Expect
- Skull Church: What It Is and Why Levi Lusko Started It
- The O2 Experience: Levi Lusko’s Early Ministry to Young People
