Rev. Dr. Gina M. Stewart

The Reverend Dr. Gina Marcia Stewart is a pastor, preacher, visionary, builder, mentor, adjunct professor, and daughter of Christ Missionary Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee.  She has led the congregation of Christ Missionary Baptist Church since March 1995.  She is a native Memphian and “daughter” of Christ Missionary Baptist Church where she was baptized, and mentored for ministry by her predecessor and former pastor, the Rev. Eddie L Currie. On March 4, 1995, she was elected by majority vote to serve as the pastor of Christ Missionary Baptist Church. She is the first African American female elected to serve an established African American Baptist congregation in Memphis and Shelby County.

She is a 1978 graduate of Memphis Catholic High School. She earned a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Marketing in 1982 from the University of Memphis. In 1989, she received a Masters of Education in Administration and Supervision from Trevecca Nazarene College in Nashville, Tennessee. She received the Master of Divinity degree from Memphis Theological Seminary in May 1996. Rev. Stewart also attended the Harvard Divinity School Summer Leadership Institute for Church Based Community and Economic Development (2000). She received the Doctor of Ministry degree from the ITC-Interdenominational Theological Center-(ITC)-Atlanta, Georgia on May 5, 2007. She is currently pursuing a PhD in African American Preaching at Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis, Indiana. 

Dr. Stewart has received numerous honors and awards for her outstanding service to the church and the community such as Outstanding African American Student Award from Memphis Theological Seminary (1996)), and Outstanding African American Alumni Award Memphis Theological Seminary (1998) Outstanding Citizen of the Year from Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority (2000), The Community Service Award from Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority (2000), the O’landa Draper Humanitarian Award, the Pastor of the Year Award (medium size church) from the Gospel Bridge Awards (June 2004), and The World’s Most Loved Pastors (November/December 2005-Gospel Today magazine) and the Women of Wisdom award from the Women’s Foundation of Greater Memphis (April 2007). She received the Pastor of the Year award from Citizens for Better Service (2012).  She was the first female to receive the prestigious Carter G. Woodson Award from Southwest Community College-February 2013.  In February 2017, she received the Living Legends Award in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the community. In April 2017, she received the Class of 2017 Women of Excellence Award from the Tri-State Defender and she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from Memphis Juneteenth Festival (June 2017).  

Dr. Stewart’s work been featured in numerous books and publications such as Audacity of Faith: Christian Leaders Reflect on the Election of Barack Obama, What We Love About the Black Church: Can We Get A Witness? and Black Practical Theology.  She has been featured in Gospel Today and Spirit magazine, “Soul Sanctuary” (released April 2006), a desktop documentary of the essential highlights of the African American worship experiences across denominations nationwide and The African American Pulpit, a quarterly journal that serves as a repository for the very best of African American preaching and provides practical and creative resources for persons in ministry.

Dr. Stewart has had the distinction of being the morning preacher for the Hampton Ministers Conference in June 2009 and the Conference Preacher for the Hampton Ministers Conference in June 2011.

She has served as a Team Leader for the Pastoral Excellence Program for Lott Carey International, a development and advocacy organization. She has served as Adjunct Faculty for Memphis Theological Seminary and a Faculty Mentor for United Theological Seminary Doctor of Ministry Program. She is currently a Visiting Professor of Practical Theology for the Samuel D. Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University.

Dr. Stewart was recently inducted into the Martin Luther King Board of Preachers-Class of 2018 (April) and elected to serve on the National Board of the NAACP (February 2017).  In August 2015, she was elected to serve as the Second Vice-President for Lott Carey Foreign Mission Convention. She also serves as a member of the Advisory Council for the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University, Co-Convener for the Women in Ministry Conference-Dr. Cynthia L. Hale, Convener and a Trustee for the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Pastors Conference. She is a former board member of the Advisory Board for The African American Pulpit, The National Civil Rights Museum and Bread for the World.  Dr. Stewart is the founder of Greater Works Inc. a non-profit organization devoted to philanthropy and ministry development. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc.  In September 2015, she released her first book entitled We’ve Got Next: HERstory in HIStory. 

Under Dr. Stewart’s leadership, CMBC has experienced significant numerical, physical and financial growth. The church has purchased several additional properties to accommodate their increasing growth. The church offers more than fifty ministries, which are intended to minister to the Spirit, Soul and Body of every person and lead to personal transformation. She travels extensively conducting workshops, revivals, and seminars. Dr. Stewart is a woman with a heart for God and God’s people.