Reverend Joseph W. Lyles was born in Washington, D.C. and reared in Waldorf, Maryland. He received Jesus Christ as his personal Savior at the age of 16 while participating in a religious camp meeting in Damascus, Maryland. He has been a devout servant of the Lord since that time.

Reverend Lyles attended Thomas Stone High School in Waldorf, Maryland from 1970 - 1974. He was active in football, basketball and track. Upon completion of high school, he entered the Glenville State College in Glenville, West Virginia. God blessed Rev. Joseph W. Lyles to complete his senior year on the Dean’s List. He graduated from Glenville State College in 1978 with a major in English and minors in Sociology and Psychology. Rev. Lyles has been married to the former Sheila Countiss since June 1982.

In 1981, Rev. Lyles joined the Mt. Sinai Baptist Church, Washington, D.C. and served as a Deacon for three and one-half years. The Lord continued to shower him with His blessings by allowing him to become a very faithful and committed servant to this office and gave him the opportunity to observe and participate in the total church program. During this time, he was under the spiritual care of the late Reverend Dr. David Durham, his pastor. Recognizing the potential and desire Rev. Lyles had to spread the word of God, Reverend Durham willingly shared much of his spiritual insight and wisdom with him.

On February 7, 1988, Rev. Lyles was given his license to preach the Gospel by Mt. Sinai Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. Rev. Lyles was selected to serve as interim pastor of the Fort Foote Baptist Church in January of 1990. On April 8, 1990, the church called Rev. Lyles as the seventh pastor of Fort Foote Baptist Church.

Since 1990, over 1,200 members have been added to the church membership roll. Sunday school attendance and Bible Study have increased significantly also. Contributions have greatly increased since tithes and offerings have been preached and taught by Rev. Lyles. Under Rev. Lyles’ tenure the church’s ministries also have increased. They include the Children’s Ministry, Senior’s Ministry, Family Ministry, Men’s Ministry, Women’s Ministry, Single’s Ministry, Media Ministry, Counseling Ministry as well as Altar Counselors, a Child Development Center and a Cancer Support group and others.

Rev. Lyles served as 1st Vice President of the African American Fellowship of the Southern Baptist Convention for one and one-half years. In March of 1998, Rev. Lyles took on the position of President of the African American Fellowship of the Southern Baptist Convention and served in that capacity for three years.

Rev. Lyles also has a heart for missions. In 1995 he went on a missionary trip to Nairobi, Kenya where he preached and taught the word of God in the village of Soweto. He completed other missionary trips to Uganda, Africa in August 2000 and August 2003. Additionally, Rev. Lyles and the First Lady of Fort Foote Baptist Church completed a mission trip to Moscow, Russia, September 2002. Continuing God’s service, Rev. Lyles led another contingent of Fort Foote Baptist Church (FFBC) missionaries to serve the disenfranchised in Kingston, Jamaica August 2001, 2002 and August 2003. He was the keynote speaker for a mission trip to Nairobi, Kenya in 2004, and lead the FFBC Missionaries back to Jamaica and Uganda in summer 2004. He returned to Jamaica and Kenya in summer 2005. With God’s continued blessings and guidance under Rev. Lyles’ leadership, the Fort Foote Baptist Church continues to grow, climbing to the heights necessary for meeting spiritual needs of the changing Fort Foote community. A groundbreaking ceremony was held August 19, 2000 to erect a new Church edifice with additional classrooms for Sunday school and Christian Education. The new Church edifice was completed in December 2001. Rev. Lyles’ primary goal is to be a “Servant of God” forever.

Rev. Joseph W. Lyles graduated with honors from Howard University School of Divinity in Washington, D.C. on May 11, 2002, with a Master of Divinity Degree. Rev. Lyles is currently matriculating through the Doctoral Program at Howard University School of Divinity.

Two of his favorite verses are Philippians 3:13-14, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

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