My name is Joel Huffstutler, and I began serving here at FBBC as the associate pastor in 2013. In 2014, the Lord led our former senior pastor to another ministry and the church called me to serve as their senior pastor. I grew up in a home where my parents faithfully taught me the Word of God and took me to Bible-believing churches. When I was five years old, I trusted the Lord Jesus Christ, and I thank the Lord for His keeping power. I don’t know where I would be had He not graciously called me and opened my eyes by the Holy Spirit. My favorite Bible verse is 1 Timothy 1:17, “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.” I am thankful to serve my glorious, eternal King who saved me by His grace and who deserves eternal praise. What a great God we serve!
My greatest blessing after my salvation is my wife Abby. She has been my faithful companion since 1995, and the Lord has graciously given us three daughters, Kate, Valerie and Tessa. I’m thankful for these gifts from the Lord. It is my desire to see them grow up to serve Christ and His people.
As a young man, I believed that I ought to serve in some kind of full-time Christian ministry, and I was privileged to attend Bob Jones University (1995 B.S. Business Education, 1997 M.S. Counseling). After my wife and I served as short-term missionaries in 1997 in North Queensland, Australia, I sensed the Lord’s calling upon my life to Gospel ministry and decided to go to seminary for further preparation. In 2008, I finished a PhD in Theology from the Bob Jones University Seminary. During my years in seminary, I served as as a youth sponsor and teacher at Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Greenville, SC. I am thankful for the investment of my pastors and leaders there in discipling me and preparing me for further ministry. I also served at Gospel Fellowship Association Missions and taught Bible/theology at Bob Jones Academy, a Christian high school connected with Bob Jones University. In 2004 the Lord directed me to serve as the bi-vocational pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Landrum, South Carolina. After serving there for five years, the Lord providentially directed our steps to Wisconsin, where I served briefly as interim pastor of Whitewater Bible Church. In 2010, the Lord led us to Grace Church of Mentor, where I served as a teacher of the Homebuilders class and as the director of Great Lakes Bible Institute. I still consider the pastors and members of Grace Church of Mentor as true fellow workers in the ministry here in Northeast Ohio and am thankful for their emphasis on personal discipleship within the body of Christ.
It is my desire to be a faithful shepherd of our church family here at FBBC (Acts 20:28), remembering that the Holy Spirit placed me here and that the Son of God gave Himself for us and shed His blood to redeem us from our sins. If I can be of any help to you, please call me at 330-975-0287. I would love to explain the Good News of Jesus Christ to you or help you understand more about God through His eternal and inerrant Word. You may also reach me by email at [email protected].