The Southern Baptist Convention names a new president Tuesday (May 10) at its annual meeting in Baltimore.
Cross Church Senior Pastor Ronnie Floyd was elected as the next president of the Southern Baptist Convention. Floyd won the election, receiving 52-percent of the convention vote.
"I'm humbled and so blessed with this extraordinary entrustment given to me by the Southern Baptist Convention," Floyd said.
Dr. Floyd will be taking the place of New Orleans pastor Fred Luter, who became the first African American to be president of the Southern Baptist Convention.
"His words for me is that he's glad I'm coming to be President," Floyd said. "I just saw him on the stage a moment ago, he's tired! He's promised me that he's going to pray for me everyday, because he knows where I am walking."
Floyd was nominated by Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr.
"He is a unifier and a denominational statesman. He knows the Southern Baptist Convention at every level, and he has served and led at every level," Mohler said.
As the pastor of Cross Church, Floyd leads five congregations in Springdale, Rogers, Fayetteville and most recently in Neosho, Missouri.
Floyd's son, Nick, is the pastor at the Cross Church Fayetteville location. He said he's proud of his father.
"It's a great thing for our community to be represented in this way," he said. "It's also going to bring more recognition to this great place we all know as Northwest Arkansas. He's been a great dad. He's been a great pastor. I think this is just the icing on the cake for how God has already used him."
Matthew Harn said he watches Cross Church from home on Sunday mornings and enjoys the praise and worship. He said he's happy to see Floyd get honored in such a big way.
"He's been around here for over twenty years and I really think he deserves this," he said.
Even though his new role will require a lot of traveling, Floyd said he wants the people of Cross Church to know he's not going anywhere.
"Obviously I'll be traveling some throughout the week and every now and then across the world, but nothing will really change from the Sunday format," he said.
Floyd said his role as President will be effective when the Southern Baptist Convention closes out on Wednesday.