James has been the lead pastor at First Marion since 2017. He has a Master of Divinity Degree from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry Degree from Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama.

James began his ministry in 1990 as a youth minister and worked with teenagers until he accepted a call to the pastorate in 1996. From that time until now, he has served four churches in Georgia, Mississippi, and now Arkansas.

He also serves on the Board of Trustees at Williams Baptist University. James has been married to his wife, Jamie, since 1995. They have four children; Madeline(Sam), Abigail(Caleb), Malia, and Jay. James enjoys traveling, leading mission trips, reading, playing guitar, gardening, and coffee.