Ryan Whitley, founding pastor of the nearly 20-year-old CrossPoint Church in Trussville, was re-elected to a second one-year term as second vice president.
He was nominated by his longtime friend John Thweatt, pastor of First Baptist Church Pell City, and ran unopposed.
“I’ve known Ryan for almost 30 years,” Thweatt said. “We’ve run two marathons together. We’ve traveled the world together, including three missions trip to China and two missions trip to Malaysia.
“What I learned about Ryan over these years is he loves Jesus Christ. I’ve seen Ryan share the gospel in China … Malaysia … in hotels and restaurants all over this world and in his own city,” Thweatt shared.
Heart for people, church, missions
“Ryan loves people. … He loves pastors. If you are a young pastor and you’ve spent time with him, you know how he checks up on you and loves you.
“He loves church. Ryan has pastored small churches in rural Mississippi. He’s pastored churches in county-seat towns here in Alabama, and he’s been pastor of Crosspoint for 20 years where they’ve seen extensive growth.
“This year they will give $100,000 through the Cooperative Program, $20,000 to their association and $480,000 to their church’s mission stream,” he noted. Crosspoint’s mission stream is a giving structure through the church that this year will send $192,000 to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering, $96,000 to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering and the rest to various missionaries, missions, ministries and pastors across the state, nation and world.
“Ryan loves the Word and he preaches it,” Thweatt said. “He’s a disciplemaker. … He loves missions, and he does missions and he gives to missions. Also, his son and daughter have planted a church in Berlin, Germany.
“Years ago, I told my daughters … if you can have a friend like Ryan Whitley, you will go a long way in life.”
Whitley is a graduate of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and received a doctor of ministry degree from Beeson Divinity School at Samford University.
He was pastor of First Baptist Church Center Point in 1998 when the idea of a satellite campus was born.
CrossPoint Church became that campus before eventually branching out on its own Jan. 2, 2005, with the vision of “reaching just one more to become a fully devoted follower of Christ.”
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