First Baptist Church
of Rochester, PA
A Historic Church Proclaiming a Relevant Message
Dr. Phillip J. Huggins
As the son of a missionary to the American Indians, his early childhood was spent in Southern California and Northwest Montana. From 1972 until 2010 he lived primarily in Wisconsin. He has a B.A. in pastoral studies from Northland Baptist Bible College, Master of Divinity from Maranatha Baptist Bible College and Doctor of Sacred Ministries from Northland Baptist Bible College. Prior to accepting the call to First Baptist, Pastor Huggins pastored three churches in Wisconsin, one being a church plant, and a church in Illinois.
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Pastor Phil accepted the position of bi-vocational pastor at First Baptist Church in January of 2014. In addition to his role as pastor he works at a storage facility and is Dr. Phil to his counseling clients.
​Pastor Phil is the father of three adult children: Aaron, Joshua and Alexandria. His stepson Timothy is still at home. He has one grandson, Carson. Pastor Huggins’s wife, Kristi, is not hard to find. Just look for the lady who is always smiling. She is an incredible asset to the church in general and to Pastor Phil in particular.
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Throughout his 30+ years of pastoral ministry he has served in a number of local Baptist Associations and State Convention roles such as serving on the executive board, healthy church team leader and the committee established to rewrite the convention constitution. He is a level one Disaster Relief Chaplain through the Southern Baptist Convention.
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Pastor Phil's ministry philosophy, based on 2 Timothy 2:2, is "Faithful men teaching faithful men to be faithful men." Whether as a pastor discipling, serving in Kenya, or a counselor providing hope and peace, everything goes back to this basic philosophy.
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​His original purpose for obtaining a doctorate degree was to teach on the foreign mission field. In 2018 Pastor Huggins began working with Wings of Life Church International of Nairobi, Kenya. In partnership with Wings of Life, in 2019 he began to develop Rabboni Bible Institute to teach and train Kenyan pastors. In December, 2021 32 students graduated with an associate degree in Biblical Studies. There are currently in excess of 200 students enrolled.
Dr. Phil is also a Board Certified Advanced Christian Life Coach. The Board of Christian Professional and Pastoral Counselors conferred upon him the credential of Board Certified Pastoral Counselor. He is a member of the International Board of Christian Care, a presidential member of the American Association of Christian Counselors, and a preferred member of the International Christian Coaching Association.