My name is Eric Grieb

and this is my story...

I grew up in Salem, Ohio in a devoutly religious family that attended church regularly.  My mom, dad, sister and I sat together in the exact same pew every week. Church was just part of our everyday life. This brought consistency, serenity and a source of commitment to our faith. My parents were also active in the church, leading a program for counseling engaged couples. 

I met my wife Cathy while attending chiropractic school in Atlanta, Georgia. Cathy was the Youth Director for her church at the time. We dated and soon became engaged. Being raised in different church backgrounds, we became challenged with the future of our faith as we began to make our wedding plans. I was faced with a difficult decision as my own church required a commitment to raise my children within that denomination. I could not agree to that commitment without honestly being willing to carry it out and made the difficult decision not to honor the request, knowing it meant that I could no longer actively participate within that church. 
 
Once we married, Cathy and I attended lots of different churches of every denomination throughout Atlanta. We never really found a church that we felt was home. In early 1995, Cathy became pregnant with our first child. We felt this was the time to make the move to my own private practice. Relocating to Wexford, Pennsylvania presented as our best opportunity since my own family lived in this area. We moved to Seven Fields in June, opened our practice in July and Connor was born in October.

In the meantime, Cathy and I began the daunting task of finding a church where we could both be happy. We found ourselves attending churches throughout the area all with their own strengths to offer in our spiritual growth,  none of which felt like home. Cathy went to the mailbox at the office one afternoon and found a postcard of an upcoming series at Orchard Hill Church. She decided this would be the next church we 'checked out'. Orchard Hill was still in the Chapel in the fall of 1995.  As we came into the church it was unlike any church that we had attended in either Georgia or Pennsylvania. As the service started, the lights went down and Joe wound up the band. I slowly leaned over to my wife and whispered in her ear  "you set me up." The presentation of the service was way out of my comfort zone.  The music, drama and message was a contrast to my traditional upbringing. But I had never before heard a spiritual message that had such a practical relevance to daily life. Cathy and I left that service and talked and talked and talked about the application of the message to our own lives.  I still was not ready for such a drastic departure from my traditions. We went to another church or two and then decided to try Orchard Hill again. Again, we were 'wowed'.  We began to attend weekly and soon joined the church.

Cathy gave me some time to become comfortable - then she said "it is time for us to join a small group." I met this with my typical resistance. I had all of the excuses but at Cathy's insistence, we did join a group and it was a great experience. It, once again, exceeded my expectations in friendship and spiritual growth. We have since led our own small group and look forward to starting a new group in the future.
 
The next step for my personal spiritual journey was to join a group of 11 other men in a commitment to meet and study together on a weekly basis. 12 men, meeting weekly for 2 full years. At first, two years felt like such a long time, but I was willing to make the commitment. In reality, the time past so quickly that two of us decided to begin our own group –reaching 10 new men to grow together in our faith. I have learned so much through this experience and I now have two groups of men that I consider brothers.
 
Through weekly teachings, small groups, and my experience in men's ministry I have come to understand that my faith is a personal relationship with God – not rules, regulations and the procedures of a religion.  It is ironic that I was the one who resisted most of what Cathy and I are now involved in. I am thankful for this foundation and grateful for the opportunity to deepen my faith.

God has given me fulfillment in my life. I have a beautiful loving wife and three wonderful children - the ability to help people through my practice - deep, meaningful relationships with my family and friends - and a personal relationship with my God. My name is Eric Grieb and this is my story.