Ministerial Staff

Senior Pastor

Rev. Samuel James Doyle is a husband, father, brother, uncle, pastor, and follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. He and his wife, Erika reside in Winston-Salem, North Carolina where he currently serves as the Senior Pastor at the First Baptist Church of Winston-Salem on Highland Avenue.

Rev. Doyle is the son of Rev. Seth and Mrs. Theresa Doyle. He was raised in Bay City and is a proud 2003 graduate of Buena Vista High School in Saginaw, Michigan. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Saginaw Valley State University, and a Master of Divinity from Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary in Waco, Texas. 

In his family and church upbringing, Pastor Doyle was trained up to be unapologetically Christian, unashamedly African American, and an advocate of education, community, and accountability. He submitted to the gospel ministry on January 7, 2007, at the Historic Second Baptist Church of Bay City where he was ordained in August of the following year.

Before arriving in Winston-Salem, Rev. Doyle served Texas churches for sixteen years in many capacities. He served as an Associate Minister at the Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church, the Minister of Music at the Greater Worth Hill Baptist Church, the organist at the Corinth Missionary Baptist Church, and the Youth Pastor at the East Saint Paul Baptist Church: all in Fort Worth, Texas. On September 3, 2015, he began his tenure as the Senior Pastor of the Greater New Light Missionary Baptist Church of Waco, Texas, serving in that capacity for nine years. While there, he held a strong emphasis on worship, discipleship, and Christian education. Among his accomplishments, he compiled a teaching manual entitled Toward Understanding, Meaning and Application to train Christian educators at Greater New Light on effective teaching practices. Additionally, he led the church through the COVID-19 pandemic, which required technological upgrades such as introducing live streaming, online giving, and home-based discipleship. He also served in several local and state capacities with the Union Baptist District Association, the Waco Regional Baptist Association, and the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

In September of 2018, Rev. Doyle began working at Mission Waco Mission World, a Christian non-profit organization that utilizes social services and community involvement to assist people in the margins of society to improve their quality of life. There, he serves as a Program Director, overseeing the job training program and the homeless shelter; a position that allows him to use his love for the community and passion for pastoral ministry to assist people in need of housing and employment.

On November 20, 2024, Rev Doyle became the twelfth Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church in Winston-Salem. Upon his arrival, Pastor Doyle challenged the church with the theme, Walking Together. He believes that “if we worship together, pray together, study together, and fellowship together, we’ll be able to work together.”

In conclusion, Rev. Doyle hopes to become a most distinguished preacher, pastor, and leader within his generation. As an audacious witness for Jesus Christ to hurting people, he hopes to invest in the development of African American Christian maturity, social consciousness, and community engagement through biblical teaching and practice as a loving and caring shepherd.

Assistant Pastor