Ronnie Floyd
Ronald Wayne Floyd (born November 11, 1955) is an American, Southern Baptist pastor, author and previous president of the Southern Baptist Convention. Ronnie was the Senior Pastor of Cross Church (First Baptist Springdale), a Southern Baptist megachurch located in Northwest Arkansas. He stepped down from his post as Senior Pastor in 2019 to become the full time CEO of the Southern Baptist Executive Committee- running the day-to-day operations of the denomination (in contrast to the President which is not a full time position).
Ronnie Floyd | |
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Born | Ronald Wayne Floyd November 11, 1955 |
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | B.S., Howard Payne University M.Div., Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary D.Min., Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary |
Occupation |
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Spouse(s) | Jeana Floyd |
Children | 2 |
Website | ronniefloyd.com |
Southern Baptists |
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Early life and career
Floyd was born on 11 November 1955 in Gonzales, Texas.[1] He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from Howard Payne University in 1978, then attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary where he obtained a Master of Divinity in 1980 and a Doctor of Ministry in 1983.[1]
Ministry
Floyd was a pastor at First Baptist churches in Cherokee, Texas (1976-1978), Milford, Texas (1978-1981), Palacios, Texas (1981-1984) and Nederland, Texas (1984-1986).[1]
A strong advocate of evangelism and discipleship, Floyd was a member of the "conservative resurgence" that retook control of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) during the 1980s. In 1989 he was a candidate to become president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, but was defeated by Mike Huckabee.
Floyd became Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church of Springdale in northwestern Arkansas, USA, in 1986. In 2001, Floyd led his congregation in the building and opening of a second campus, The Church at Pinnacle Hills in Rogers, Arkansas. In 2010, he led the two churches in adopting the unifying name Cross Church. Since, Cross Church has added three more locations (Neosho, Rogers, and Fayetteville), reaching thousands weekly. Cross Church ranks number one in Arkansas and number 18 in the nation in total giving to the Cooperative Program of the nearly 50,000 SBC churches. In 2013, Cross Church contributed about $700,000 to the SBC's Cooperative Program. Additionally, Floyd maintains a blog, podcast, and television ministry. Floyd is also the Founder of the Cross Church School of Ministry, a one-year residential ministry school that prepares students for life, ministry, and global evangelism. Floyd is the founder and host of the Summit, a weekly lunch seminar for Northwest Arkansas businesspersons which hosts renowned guest speakers.[2]
Floyd became chairman of the SBC Executive Committee (1995-1997) and president of the SBC Pastors Conference (1997). He led the SBC's Great Commission Resurgence Task Force (GCRTF) to generate its 2010 report resulting in "dramatic efforts to penetrate lostness in America and across the globe."[3]
In 2013 he began to lead, along with other pastors, a national Call to Pray initiative. Hundreds of Southern Baptist pastors attended Call to Pray events, all for the purpose of praying for spiritual awakening in our churches and revival in our nation.[4]
Floyd serves as the General Editor of LifeWay's Bible Studies for Life Curriculum Series, which is used presently by around 150,000 small groups from approximately 30,000 Southern Baptist and other churches. Additionally, he serves as Lead Pastor and Strategist of SEND North America, the North America Mission Board's church-planting strategy resulting from the GCRTF.[5]
On June 10, 2014, Dr. Floyd was elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention at the SBC's annual gathering held in Baltimore. Upon close of the meeting, he became the 60th president of the SBC. He succeeded the Rev. Fred Luter.[6] Dr. Floyd served as SBC President until June 15, 2016 when Dr. Steve Gaines was elected.[7]
In June 2016 the subject was tapped by then-candidate Donald Trump to serve on an advisory board of evangelicals some of whom, like Floyd, had not endorsed him.[8]
In 2017, the church opened Heart for the city, which feeds the homeless, ministers to those in need, and advances a ministry to children in the immediate region of its location in Fayetteville.[9]
Dr. Floyd has appeared on CNN, Fox News, CBN News, and other major networks. He has interviewed with major news publications, including The New York Times, Washington Post, Washington Times, and others.[9]
In April, 2019, Dr. Floyd was elected once more President and CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention's Executive Committee. On April 7, he announced his resignation as Senior Pastor of Cross Church, so as to devote full time to the SBC EC position.[10]
Bibliography
- Ronnie Floyd (1983). Implementing a theology of stewardship that will build a biblical attitude of giving in the local Southern Baptist church. Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
- Ronnie Floyd (1988). Coping with life in a confused world. Spirit Publications.
- Ronnie Floyd (1993). Reconnecting: How to Renew and Preserve the 3 Vital Elements of a Powerful Spiritual Life. Broadman & Holman. ISBN 0-8054-6088-8.
- Ronnie Floyd (1994). Choices: Making Sure Your Everyday Decisions Move You Closer to God. Broadman & Holman. ISBN 0-8054-6152-3.
- Ronnie Floyd (1996). God's Gateway to Supernatural Power. B&H Publishing Group. ISBN 0-8054-9296-8.
- Ronnie Floyd (1997). The Meaning of a Man: Discovering Your Destiny as a Spiritual Champion. B&H Publishing Group. ISBN 0-8054-6348-8.
- Ronnie Floyd (1999). How to Pray. Thomas Nelson Inc. ISBN 0-8499-3746-9.
- Ronnie Floyd (2000). Life on fire: radical disciplines for ordinary living. Thomas Nelson Incorporated. ISBN 0-8499-3748-5.
- Ronnie Floyd (2004). Family Life Illustrated For Teens. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-586-0.
- Ronnie Floyd (2004). Family Life Illustrated For Women. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-583-6.
- Ronnie Floyd (2004). Family Life Illustrated For Men. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-584-4.
- Ronnie Floyd (2004). Family Life Illustrated For Finances. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-587-9.
- Ronnie Floyd (2004). Family Life Illustrated For Parents. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-588-7.
- Ronnie Floyd (2004). Family Life Illustrated for Marriage. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-585-2.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
- Ronnie Floyd (2004). The Gay Agenda. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-582-8.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
- Ronnie Floyd (2005). Family Life Illustrated Study Guide. New Leaf Pr. ISBN 0-89221-599-2.
- Ronnie Floyd, Ronnie Floyd (2005). Finding the Favor of God: A Discovery That Will Change Your Life. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-619-0.
- Ronnie Floyd (2006). 10 Things Every Minister Needs to Know. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 0-89221-655-7.
- Ronnie Floyd, Bill Bright (2010). The Power of Prayer and Fasting: God's Gateway to Spiritual Breakthroughs (revised & expanded from 1997 edition). B&H Publishing Group. ISBN 0-8054-6483-2.
- Ronnie Floyd (2011). Our Last Great Hope: Awakening the Great Commission. Thomas Nelson. ISBN 0-8499-4707-3.
See also
References
- "Biography Dr. Ronnie W. Floyd" (PDF). Ronnie Floyd. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-15. Retrieved 2010-08-20.
- Art Toalston (February 20, 2014). "Ronnie Floyd to be SBC president nominee". Baptist Press. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
- Staff (June 24, 2009). "Hunt names GCR task force members". Baptist Press. Archived from the original on May 15, 2014. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
- Diana Chandler (August 14, 2013). "47 SBC pastors call massive prayer meeting". Baptist Press. Archived from the original on May 15, 2014. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
- Lifeway (March 16, 2013). "Meet Our Contributors". Lifeway. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
- Baptist Press (June 10, 2014). "Ronnie Floyd wins Southern Baptist Convention presidency". townhall.com. Retrieved 2014-06-10.
- "Gaines recounts presidential decision". Baptist Press. Retrieved 2016-06-16.
- Shellnutt, Kate and Zylstra, Sarah Eekhoff. (June 22, 2016). "Who’s Who of Trump’s ‘Tremendous’ Faith Advisers". Christianity Today website Retrieved February 5, 2017.
- http://www.ronniefloyd.com/am-site/media/dr-ronnie-floyd-formal-resume-518.pdf
- Ronnie Floyd Leaves Cross Church after more than 30 years
Preceded by Fred Luter |
President of the Southern Baptist Convention
Ronnie Floyd |
Succeeded by Steve Gaines |