Christian Peterson
Reporter@riverbendnews.org
Jim Hurst was born in 1953 in Dixie County, he grew up in Dixie County except for a small stint where his family live in Lafayette County. He was only two years old, however, ironically he was only three miles away from The Oasis Church, the church he would end up being the pastor of. In 1972, Hurst graduated from Dixie County High School with football scholarships at many different colleges. However, Hurst made a mistake and became involved with drugs after high school. This caused him to give up on college. Yet, things would come to change years later. “It was in April 1977 when I surrendered my life to the Lord Jesus,” Hurst said. Hurst’s father was an ordained minister and preached at Midway Baptist Church as well as many others for 40 years. Six months after his conversion Hurst followed in his father’s footsteps. At first, he mainly preached in the Southern Baptist Church, with some other denominations. However, in 1981 he accepted an invitation to be the pastor at Calvary Temple Assembly of God in Cross City. He served for 26 years before retiring from serving as a pastor.
Four years after his retirement Hurst realized it wasn’t the end of his service and he began pastoring at The Oasis Church of Branford. “The Oasis is a nondenominational, full Gospel church which I love. I always felt the denomination thing was way over emphasized. I love this little church and the people who make it up are really special people with a strong faith and a loving heart.” The church itself has grown from its original 10 members to between 60 and 70 people now. In 2021, they were able to purchase a parsonage for the church. Hurst and his wife, Marion, were overjoyed to be able to live on the church property.
Aside from his normal duties as a pastor, Hurst runs an outreach ministry called Freedom Rally Outreach Tent Ministry. “We do everything we know to reach those who need Jesus and promote unity among the church world. This outreach goes to different locations to minister.” No one involved in the ministry is paid for their time nor do they request offerings underneath the tent. They simply spread the news of the Gospel.
The Oasis Church meets on Sunday mornings at 10:30 a.m. and Wednesday nights at 6:30 p.m. To learn more about The Oasis visit their Facebook page at Oasis Church of Branford 2020. There is a live broadcast of Sunday morning services available there. “The Oasis is a good church with good vision and a strong faith. Not a lot of smoke and mirror stuff, but real. I think you would like it there. Come see us, we’d love to meet you.”