David Richardson – Lead Pastor
Thank you for taking the time and having the interest to learn a little more about our church and about me. I am so excited to be serving as the Lead Pastor here at Treasure Coast Presbyterian Church.
Here is a snap shot of my life…I had the spiritual privilege of growing up in the church. My dad was a pastor and, yes, that makes me a preacher's kid. Now, I understand that comes with some negative connotations, but don’t write me off just yet.
I came to faith at a very early age and I understood the truth of the gospel, albeit, at a very elementary level, while very young. I recognized that I was a sinner and I trusted in Jesus to pay the penalty of my sin through faith and repentance.
I continued to grow as a young Christian but, looking back, I realize that I hadn’t developed personal convictions. I seriously started to think through the “why’s” and “what’s” of how I was called to live as a Christian. I came to realize that my heart wasn’t ignited with a deep affection and passion for Jesus. My life as a believer had become very comfortable for me.
Then, during my college years, by the grace of God I began to ask myself some of those probing questions such as, “Why do I believe what I believe?”, “What is all this church/religious stuff for?” and, “Do I really believe it?” As I wrestled through those questions, I became more and more convinced of the truth of the Gospel and I started to develop a real hunger and thirst to understand more of God and His word.
With that said, I had no desire to go into the ministry. And, in fact, my heart was kind of cold to the idea. See, growing up as a preacher's kid we moved around a lot, quite a lot. By the time I was 9 years old I had lived in 6 different states and moved countless times from house to house. Thus, I associated ministry with being uprooted, and ‘uprootedness’ was not what I wanted for myself, or for my family.
But, as the spirit started to soften my heart toward the idea of going into ministry, I recognized that my undergraduate pursuits, ironically, had resulted in the ‘uprootedness’ I so desperately wanted to avoid. Up to that point, I had switched schools 3 times, majors 4 times and was currently in my 5th year with no real end in sight! It was beginning to look like my undergraduate career was turning into exactly that, a “career”.
The Spirit continued to impress upon my heart a call into ministry and by my second senior year I was thoroughly convinced of God’s call on my life. Coupled with the external confirmation from pastors, family and friends, I started to pursue my Masters of Divinity at Knox Theological Seminary in 2005. I graduated with my M.Div. from Knox in 2009 and began the undercare/mentorship at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church under Rev. Tullian Tchividjian. During that time, the late Dr. David Nicholas, former president of Knox Theological Seminary and founding pastor of Spanish River Church, also began pouring into my life and was used mightily in helping me focus my ministry pursuits toward the pastorate.
That is where Treasure Coast PCA comes in. Dr. Nicholas, introduced me to TCPC in January of 2011, only days before he passed on to be with the Lord. My heart for the people of TCPC and Martin County quickly started to expand. By March of 2011, I accepted the call to be the senior pastor at TCPC.
I am passionate about preaching and teaching the Gospel of Grace. I want to see lives transformed by the renewing power of His grace! It is my hope and prayer that I be used to ignite a deep love and affection for Jesus Christ in our community.
