In 1991, when Maury and his wife, Gail, answered the call to pioneer a church in Nashville, Tennessee, they arrived in a new state with little other than a call from God, a set of triplets, and an intense work ethic. Rather than pioneering a new start-up church, an unexpected chain of events led to Maury’s election as Senior Pastor of a small, 200-member congregation in the suburbs of the city.
Maury’s unique and personal journey with God has allowed him to experience the full life cycle of a pastor and the deep satisfaction of growing a ministry. His success is a testimony to his belief in and passion for empowering those around him to grow, take ownership, inspire others, and move forward.
Whether through intimate conferences, one-on-one coaching, or consulting relationships, Maury is dedicated to teaching and guiding other ministers to grow their churches. His heart understands that to further the Kingdom, we have to reach people. And that’s what he does, each and every day.
Today, that little 200-member church has grown to over 16,000 congregants that call Cornerstone Church home.
RISE 2021 | Pastor Maury Davis
February 25, 2021 • Pastor Maury Davis
RISE 2021 | Pastor Sammy Rodriguez
February 24, 2021 • Pastor Sammy Rodriguez
Samuel Rodriguez is the President of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC), the world’s largest Hispanic Christian organization with 42,000 plus U.S. churches and many additional churches spread throughout the Spanish-speaking diaspora. Rodriguez has been named among the “Top 100 Christian Leaders in America” (Newsmax 2018) and nominated as one of the “100 most influential people in the world” (TIME 2013). Rodriguez is regularly featured in CNN, Fox News, Univision, PBS, Christianity Today, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, andmany others. Rodriguez was the first Latino to deliver the keynote address at the annual The Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Service at Ebenezer Baptist Church, and is the recipient of the Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Award presented by the Congress of Racial Equality. Rodriguez, has advised Presidents Bush, Obama and Trump, and frequently consults with Congress advancing immigration and criminal justice reform as well as religious freedom and LIFE initiatives. On January 20, 2017, with over 1 billion people watching around the world, Rev. Rodriguez became the first Latino Evangelical to participate in a Presidential swearing-in ceremony reading from Matthew 5, concluding with “In Jesus name!” Rodriguez is executive producer of two films (Flamin’ Hot and BREAKTHROUGH ) in partnership with Franklin Entertainment and 20th Century Fox. He likewise serves as co-founder and lead pastor of TBN Salsa, an international Christian-based broadcast television network, and he is the author of You Are Next, Shake Free, as well as Be Light, a #1 LA Times bestseller. He earned his Masters Degree from Lehigh University and received Honorary Doctorates from Northwest, William Jessup and Baptist University of the America’s. Rodriguez serves as Senior Pastor of New Season Christian Worship Center in Sacramento, California, where he resides with his wife, Eva, and their three children.
RISE 2021 | Pastor Tony Stewart
February 25, 2021 • Pastor Tony Stewart
Tony Stewart is a voice to this generation…. a voice that speaks with passion and unwavering faith in the word of God. With fervency and an energetic delivery, he presents the word and paints the text in a way that challenges believers and non-believers to follow Christ. Pastor Tony is the Senior Pastor of citylife church…a dynamic, 4000 member, multi-campus, multi-racial, multi-generational church that is on the move in the Tampa Bay area. Additionally, citylife church has been named by Outreach Magazine and Lifeway Research as one of the fastest growing churches in America and received this recognition the last 4 out of 5 years. Along with his pastoral responsibilities, Pastor Tony • Travels nationally and internationally speaking in conferences and campmeetings. • Hosts a weekly broadcast of citylife TV reaching into over 10 million homes • Was recognized in 2018 as one of the Top 40 young Kingdom voices in the United States • Served as Chairman of the Executive Council of Eighteen for the Church of God, Cleveland, TN Pastor Tony’s partner in ministry and in life is Kaci Stewart. Kaci serves as the pastor of worship and arts at citylife church. She is a recording artist on several projects including her own album, You Are God. Tony & Kaci are the proud parents of 2 precious girls, Bayli Grace & Hadli Hope. Follow Pastor Tony on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter : @tonydstewart
RISE 2021 | Dr. Sam Chand
February 25, 2021 • Dr. Sam Chand
Who would have thought, when in 1973 “student” Sam Chand was serving Beulah Heights Bible College as janitor, cook and dishwasher that he would return in 1989 as “President” of the same college! Under his leadership it became the country’s largest predominantly African-American Christian College. Sam Chand is a former Pastor, college President, Chancellor and now serves as President Emeritus of Beulah Heights University. In this season of his life, Sam Chand does one thing—Leadership. His singular vision for his life is to help others succeed.