June 8, 2009
With nearly 2,000 attendees as witnesses, Dr. Gary Benedict was elected to another four-year term as president of the U.S. Christian and Missionary Alliance at General Council 2009 in Louisville, Kentucky.
Dr. Benedict is serving as the eleventh president of the U.S. C&MA. Having received an honorary doctor of divinity degree from Nyack College in Nyack, New York, Benedict became the thirteenth president of Crown College in 1997. During his tenure, enrollment at Crown increased by 60 percent.
Sleeping Giant
Benedict’s vision for the future of The Alliance includes healthy people leading healthy churches that will multiply themselves and reap a grand harvest. He also envisions a strong laity, which he refers to as a “sleeping giant.”
“There remains a huge, untapped ministry potential among our laity,” says Benedict, who believes that the “true” headquarters of The Alliance is the local church. “Our mandate at the National Office is to serve the local church and to assist it in carrying out its Great Commission ministries. Grassroots ministry flows from our local churches to U.S. neighborhoods and to the nations of the world.”