First Baptist Church of Oxford, located at 150 Pontiac Street, is proud to announce Dr. Claude B. Wiggins is its new senior pastor.
He assumed the full-time position earlier this month.
‘We love the church people, we love the community,? Wiggins said. ‘This reminds us a lot of some of the places (where) we’ve ministered before. Where you have a very mature community, but it still has that small town feel (and) that has worked out very, very well (and given) opportunities to get to know community leaders.?
Wiggins, who was born and raised in Livonia, knew from the time he reached his high school years, he wanted to do something in vocational Christian ministry.
‘My senior year, I became convinced the best way to invest my time and energies and abilities would be to serve as a minister,? he said. ‘Feeling a call to serve means a call to prepare.?
After graduating Churchill High School in 1976, he went to Tennessee Temple University where he graduated in 1980 and got his B.A. In the same year, he married his wife Lynn.
From Temple University, Wiggins went on to Temple Baptist Seminary where he worked towards a Master of Religious Education and then transferred out of the program to Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary, where he received his Master of Divinity in 1984.
Prior pastoral roles include being the assistant pastor at Fellowship Baptist Church in Union Lake, senior pastor at Temple Baptist Church in Fredericksburg Virginia and senior pastor at First Baptist Church in Wixom.
Wiggins said he enjoyed Virginia because as a history buff, Fredericksburg was part of Civil War history, but he also enjoyed it for the experiences in the great outdoors, especially the mountains.
‘I worked with our church camp and had (the) opportunity (to work with) a teenage wilderness backpacking program, where I would spend a week out in the mountains with guys,? he said.
Prior to coming to Oxford, Wiggins has spent the last 13 years serving in an administrative role as assistant to the president at Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary.
After realizing that First Baptist was still without a pastor he decided to mention to the church leadership that he had been ‘looking and praying for the right opportunity to move back from a seminary academic role into more of a pastoral role,? so he handed his resume over to church leaders.
When he got the job, Wiggins along with his wife and his son, Josh, 14 moved to Oxford.
‘We live a couple hundred yards away from the church here,? he said. ‘We’re thrilled to plug in and get to know folks, not just in our church but in our neighborhood and the broader community.?
Wiggins and his wife also have two other children, Christina, 30, who is married and lives in the Boston Massachusetts Metro Area and Ben, 29, who is also married and lives in Rowley, North Carolina.
Wiggins noted that Ben is a veteran of United States Marine Corps and served his country for six years, including one tour of combat duty in Iraq during the height of the offensive there.
As for the vision of the church, Wiggins said it’s defined in the church’s mission statement, which is ‘First Baptist Church exists to glorify God by making, maturing and mobilizing disciples who are becoming like Jesus Christ.?
‘That doesn’t mean they’re becoming Gods, it means they’re cultivating Godly qualities or character, that they’re becoming more loving, joyful and patient and forgiving,? Wiggins explained. ‘They’re becoming more sacrificial in their service and they’re becoming more patient in enduring hardships and trials.?
In order to help with that growth process, First Baptist offers a variety of classes geared towards, children, teens and adults.
Sunday services are held at 9:15 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and 6 p.m.
For more information about Pastor Wiggins or First Baptist Church of Oxford, visit www.oxfordbaptist.net or call Wiggins at the church office at 248-628-2911.