Middle Florida Baptist Association

Phillip Herrington’s call to the ministry came when he was a junior in high school and a member of First Baptist Church of Live Oak. After high school, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, and then received his master of divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.

His first job out of seminary was back at his home church in Live Oak serving as pastor to students and children. He served in that role about five years before answering God’s call to become senior pastor at the church and served there for the past 18 years.

Herrington began working with the Florida Baptist Convention in July 2023 as the north region catalyst.

Herrington and his wife Cristina have been married for 26 years. Cristina works as an academic coach at a local middle school. They have two children, Emma, 20, and, Jack, 15, whom they adopted from Haiti in 2012.

Phillip’s role as regional catalyst is to connect with and engage churches, pastors and staff in areas of church planting, church revitalization, community ministries and other ways the convention can be “right beside” the churches. The partnership with local associations is an important relationship in serving churches throughout the Middle Florida Baptist Association and all of north Florida.