Athens First Baptist Church Pastor Dr. Joel Carwile likes to stay busy.

The calendar on his desk tells the story of a man constantly in motion; there’s nary a square that doesn’t have an appointment scribbled inside.

After speaking with The News Courier Thursday morning, he planned to drive to Huntsville Hospital to visit two church members.

“If things slowed down, I don’t know what I’d do,” he said.

The 51-year-old Carwile, an Athens native and West Limestone High School graduate, has been a man in motion since he was first called to preach at age 17. His trip to the pulpit wasn’t exactly immediate. At that time in his life, he was far more interested in sports than proselytizing.

He was a walk-on football player at the University of North Alabama before signing a baseball scholarship at Wallace State in Hanceville. He only stayed a couple of semesters, because he said God kept calling on him to preach.

After Wallace State, he got a job in a woodworking shop, and then later found full-time work at Steelcase. It was while working there he became a bi-vocational preacher, which he did for 3 ½ years before entering the ministry full time.

“My mom said I came out of the womb giving orders,” he said with a chuckle. “She said I needed to get saved quick because I was either going to lead a whole lot of people to heaven or a whole lot of people to hell.”

Though he said he accepted Christ at 8 years old, his love of sports trumped his ministerial calling. But after being ordained at First Union Baptist Church 27 years ago, there was no looking back.

On the move

Carwile pastured in Hazel Green for 13 ½ years before accepting a job at Valley View Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, where he taught a much larger flock than what he was accustomed to.

It was in Louisville where he and wife, Jo Mahan Carwile, began to grow their family. Their son Zeke, who was just a toddler when the couple made the move to Kentucky, turns 10 in December. Fourteen months ago, the couple welcomed a daughter, Dani.

Though most fathers like to be present for the birth of a child, Carwile had the unique privilege of delivering his daughter in the front seat of the car while enroute to the hospital.

“One of the nurses told me after we named her Dani that she could be the next Danica Patrick,” he said, noting her automotive beginnings. “It’s a great story, but she’ll probably get tired of hearing it when she gets older.”

Though the family was settled in Kentucky, Carwile said he felt a strong pull to return to his roots. He remembers how spending time with his grandparents on Sundays after church helped shape him, and he wanted his own children to have that opportunity since Carwile’s parents and mother-in-law still live in the area.

“When we left to go to Louisville, we felt like we were led by the Lord to do that. We had an impactful ministry there, but we had been gone eight years,” he said. “Coming home has its benefits because our family and friends are here. I had been away 20-plus years, and to come home and be a part of this 195-year-old church is a wonderful thing.”

Growing the church

Carwile took over at First Baptist in early August following the retirement of Dr. Edwin Jenkins. Since that time, he said the church has grown by “several hundred” parishioners in 50 days and the church will add a second service in January to accommodate the growing flock.

He said the sudden growth spurt is not an indictment of Jenkins’ leadership, and Carwile is quick to say he’s simply building on the foundation of his predecessors.

“In any church, especially when there’s a new pastor in town, people come to check him out,” he said. “We try not to read a whole lot into it, and it’s certainly better than losing several hundred folks. We want to keep that momentum going for as long as we can.”

When asked how his style may differ from that of his predecessor, Carwile said he has his own way of doing things that he hopes will connect with a broader base of worshipers.

“I (preach) in a very loving and compassionate way, and I try not be political in the pulpit,” he said. “We love being liked and approachable, but you have to take a stand sometimes and sometimes that may alienate or offend some people. I’d rather please the Lord than man.”

The road ahead

As trends and technology change, churches find themselves in the precarious position of balancing traditional scripture with high-tech teaching methods. Carwile said First Baptist is catering to those who may prefer to watch a church service via livestream or on local television channel ZTV, which carries Sunday morning services live.

“I do think the church has to continue its methodology, while maintaining sound theology to reach millennials, who are more mobile than my generation,” he said. “They have a lot more disposable income and they want to go to the beach or lake on weekends. There are ways to reach them through technology, and we have sermons and audio on our website. I think it’s important to meet people where they are.”

For more on First Baptist Church, visit fbcathens.org. Carwile can be found on Twitter @pastorjfc.