Pastor Lance joined our church staff in September of 2016. Prior to coming to Ruffin Stacey he served as the Associate Pastor at First Baptist Church in Reidsville, NC for seven years. He is a graduate of Elon University, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Liberty University School of Divinity, and has a PhD from Johnson University in Knoxville, TN. In addition to ministering at Ruffin Stacey, Dr. Cole also serves as an adjunct faculty member in the Religion and Philosophy Department at Averett University in nearby Danville, VA. He affirms several statements of faith, including the Baptist Faith and Message 2000, the Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, The Nashville Statement on Sexuality and Gender, and the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy. Lance has been married to his wife Stefanie since 2006 and they have three sons, Sawyer, Carter, and Asher. Teaching and serving in missions with the church is what he enjoys most about serving at Ruffin Stacey.