Rev. Lucretia Hurley-Browning, Assistant Pastor

 

Favorite Bible Verse: Psalm 103:1-2
Bless the Lord O my soul, all that is within me bless His Holy Name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.

Rev. Lucretia Hurley-Browning was appointed Associate Pastor of First Church in June 2007. Lucretia was no stranger to First Church in that she began the Juniper Tree Pastoral Counseling Center in 1997. In April 2012, Lucretia added the position of Minister of Congregational Care to her responsibilities. Lucretia helps lead Sunday worship services, conducts visitations to church members, works with various committees and programming units of the church, and continues to direct and serve as a counselor for Juniper Tree.

Lucretia first felt God tugging at her as a child, though she did not understand it at the time. “I would come home from church, and line up all of my dolls on the bed and preach to them.” Lucretia remained active in her church as a teen, always feeling the importance of loving God and sharing that love.

Later, while enrolled in the Masters of Christian Education program in seminary, Lucretia began to confront the reality that she was experiencing a call to ordained ministry. However, while she continually felt God’s pull on her heart, she struggled with the decision. At the time, she knew only one ordained woman. She did finally give in to God’s calling, and has since experienced, “enormous peace in living out the call on my life by God.”

Lucretia’s career has spanned 30 years as an ordained pastor, and 25 years as a pastoral counselor. She has served as a pastor and/or counselor for United Methodist churches in Virginia, Tennessee and Alaska. She also counseled for a Juvenile Prevention Program in North Carolina, and at the Anchorage Domestic Violence Shelter in Alaska. Lucretia also was an Associate Professor at the Memphis Theological Seminary in Tennessee.

Lucretia has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Christian Education from Pfeiffer College in North Carolina, and a Master’s of Divinity from Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary in Illinois. She also holds a Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology from Memphis University in Tennessee.

Lucretia is married to The Rev. Jim Browning. They are parents to two grown children.

Lucretia’s Vision for her Ministry
I believe that God is calling First United Methodist Church to a vital ministry in this new century:
To be a vibrant and sustainable Christian community in Mechanicsburg.
To help disciple and care for both the churched and the unchurched.
As a church, we must be committed to help persons grow as disciples through worship, education, and service. We are called by God to be a church that is centered upon the gospel and the proclamation of its message. We are called to be diverse and lively, inclusive and flexible, as we strive to share the gospel in ways that are relevant to today’s world. We will seek, visibly and recognizably, to make a difference to our families, our communities, and our society, in the name of Jesus Christ.