Meet The Pastor
Rev. Rick Hurley
My wife Beth and I, and our five daughters (see pic below) moved to Indiana PA in 2000 from Lafayette IN. I am originally from Wexford, PA north of Pittsburgh, so western PA and IUP were not new to me. Beth and I have enjoyed the thrill of parenting five girls - never a dull moment! We now enjoy our four grandchildren. Squeezing in a visit with our kids is always a welcome activity. Travel, hiking and biking are a few of the things Beth and I enjoy together.
I have a passion to reach the world with the gospel of Christ through the Church. I was drawn to Graystone because of their outreach to IUP, their heart for world missions, their involvement in the community and their commitment to scripture and the Lordship of Christ. These commitments were recently reaffirmed as Graystone left the PCUSA and joined the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.
We find ourselves in a rapidly changing world in which faith is not only pushed to the margins but ridiculed. There is growing hostility around the world against those who openly profess Christ and we stand with our brothers and sisters who face persecution. But I believe that God has called each of us "for such a time as this" to make a difference and not shrink back. What an opportunity we have to show the light of Christ!
The challenges we face are not new. Christians throughout the ages have faced bitter hostility and division. Two books I am reading currently that are helpful to lead through these turbulent times are not contemporary books but are extremely timely. They are both by Augustine of Hippo: "Confessions" and "The City of God." Augustine faced challenges from the crumbling world around him and theological heresy from within. Just as Augustine was drawn to the Bible by children singing "take and read," so I encourage you to find copies of Augustine's works and "take and read."