Meet The Pastor
Lead Pastor James Armstrong
James Armstrong became Executive Pastor for Live Oaks Community Church in July 2022. He brings a rich, diverse background in ministries around the world.
A decorated U.S. Air Force veteran, James served under four different presidents in ministry to airmen, sailors, and soldiers both at home and overseas in Operation Just Cause, as well in both Afghanistan and Iraq. He was an adjunct instructor and professor at colleges in Maryland and Texas, teaching courses ranging from Philosophy and Religion to Management and Criminal Justice. He also taught Military Strategic Studies at the U.S. Air Force Academy; and was pastor of The Hill Fellowship, the Academy’s largest worship service. James has served as both an associate and senior pastor at a dozen churches stateside and abroad; a trained crisis chaplain and counselor; and led dozens of marriage, youth, and single ministry retreats during the course of his 30-year ministry career. Committed to investing in the church on both a local and international level, in 2019 he founded Becoming Missional, an organization aimed at training and equipping leaders and churches primarily in developing nations. His heart and passion, he says, is “for serving God and His people, those living and serving around the globe.”
A military kid, James grew up in both the U.S. and Europe; he became a Christian as a teen at a Baptist camp in Texas. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Christian Ministry from East Texas Baptist University (where he met his wife, Wendy), as well as an Master of Divinity in Biblical Languages from Southwestern Seminary; a Doctor of Ministry in Leadership from George Fox University; and is completing a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Midwestern Theological Seminary. The Armstrongs have three grown children – Austin, Alysse, and Ashlea.