REVEREND JEROME FORKPA KENNEDY
Appointment to the Best Friends in Christ UM Charge
July 1, 2021
Churches Include:
First UM Church of Canonsburg
Fawcett UM Church
John Wesley UM Church
Appointment to the Best Friends in Christ UM Charge
July 1, 2021
Churches Include:
First UM Church of Canonsburg
Fawcett UM Church
John Wesley UM Church
BIO & STATEMENT OF MY UNDERSTANDING OF GOD'S CALL IN MY LIFE,
BY PASTOR JEROME KENNEDY
"My family background provided the context for my Christian ministry experience. Growing up in Lofa County of Northern Liberia, my family was active in the William P. Kennedy UMC, a church named in memory of my grandfather, who was a local leader of the United Methodist Church. I attended Sunday school and became active in the United Methodist Youth and other church organizations through high school. Before graduation from high school, I prayed and reflected on my vocation. The Spirit helped me realize the sense of peace and fulfillment within me when I organized and/or led activities related to the church as well as my desire to transform lives through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. However, I prayed for confirmation in order to ensure I was making the right decision. Confirmation came in the form of recommendation by the committee on ministry of the local church and the district because of the gifts and graces they saw within me.
After accepting the call to ministry, I applied to the Gbarnga School of Theology (GST), the ecumenical theological college operated at the time by the Lutherans and the United Methodists. The process of admission included an interview with the Board of Ordained Ministry of the Liberia Annual Conference. My years at GST were disrupted by the Liberian civil war, which began on December 24, 1989 and by early 1990, had reached central Liberia where GST was located. The college was forced to close. Students and faculty left the area and went to Monrovia while the war continued to spread. In 1992, GST was relocated to Monrovia and I continued my studies, graduating in 2005 with the Bachelor of Theology (B.Th.) degree.
The current prompting in my life is to become a better caregiver through counseling, develop a great focus on outreach and mission to the local community, effectively preach the Gospel, and encourage a love of Scripture within the local church where I serve so that people will understand the Bible and its relevance today.
My passions for ministry are outreach and mission, preaching the Word of God, and providing care for those I serve. The church is the Body of Christ called out of the world to return to that world and share the Gospel through words and actions. There are so many people who are not actively involved in a local church and the church was called not to be self-contained but to also offer forgiveness, love, understanding and salvation to those who seek. Outreach and mission to all ages, children, youth, adults and the elderly is important because Jesus said whatever we do to the least we do to him (Matthew 25:40). I also love preaching biblical sermons because I believe the Bible has rich treasures that can enrich the lives of God's people today. A sermon is an interpretation of a biblical passage so that it is relevant for people in the 21st century. I preach from the lectionary and this has allowed me to develop the discipline of doing exegesis on various passages and not just on the ones that might be my favorites. Thirdly, caring for those I serve is what ministry is about. As a pastor, I am a shepherd and I want to imitate Jesus as the "Good Shepherd" who cares for the sheep. There is so much pain in the world and I want parishioners to know that while there is bad news in the world, there is Good News in the Word. I want to continue to develop my pastoral skills and counseling to better equip me to help people deal with the stresses and anxieties of their lives. I have found ways to increase participation of the laity in worship and ministry. These are the things I do well. I am a preacher, an organizer, a counselor, and yet, I want to keep on improving myself to become a more effective pastor.
In terms of my perspective of myself as a pastor, last year I read a book, "PastorPower", in which the author, Martha Stortz, identified three kinds of power: "Power over, power within and power with." I believe in power within, especially using the various gifts and graces of the congregation. I also believe in sharing power with the people because ministry is a team effort. Ministry is about service and the pastor serves with the congregation yet proving leadership where it is needed. In order to empower the laity it may be necessary to bring in a speaker from the district or encourage the leaders to attend workshops on the subject of leadership.
We of the First United Methodist Church of Canonsburg welcome Pastor Jerome to our church family and look forward to growing, together with him and our new Charge churches! Praise the Lord!
BY PASTOR JEROME KENNEDY
"My family background provided the context for my Christian ministry experience. Growing up in Lofa County of Northern Liberia, my family was active in the William P. Kennedy UMC, a church named in memory of my grandfather, who was a local leader of the United Methodist Church. I attended Sunday school and became active in the United Methodist Youth and other church organizations through high school. Before graduation from high school, I prayed and reflected on my vocation. The Spirit helped me realize the sense of peace and fulfillment within me when I organized and/or led activities related to the church as well as my desire to transform lives through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. However, I prayed for confirmation in order to ensure I was making the right decision. Confirmation came in the form of recommendation by the committee on ministry of the local church and the district because of the gifts and graces they saw within me.
After accepting the call to ministry, I applied to the Gbarnga School of Theology (GST), the ecumenical theological college operated at the time by the Lutherans and the United Methodists. The process of admission included an interview with the Board of Ordained Ministry of the Liberia Annual Conference. My years at GST were disrupted by the Liberian civil war, which began on December 24, 1989 and by early 1990, had reached central Liberia where GST was located. The college was forced to close. Students and faculty left the area and went to Monrovia while the war continued to spread. In 1992, GST was relocated to Monrovia and I continued my studies, graduating in 2005 with the Bachelor of Theology (B.Th.) degree.
The current prompting in my life is to become a better caregiver through counseling, develop a great focus on outreach and mission to the local community, effectively preach the Gospel, and encourage a love of Scripture within the local church where I serve so that people will understand the Bible and its relevance today.
My passions for ministry are outreach and mission, preaching the Word of God, and providing care for those I serve. The church is the Body of Christ called out of the world to return to that world and share the Gospel through words and actions. There are so many people who are not actively involved in a local church and the church was called not to be self-contained but to also offer forgiveness, love, understanding and salvation to those who seek. Outreach and mission to all ages, children, youth, adults and the elderly is important because Jesus said whatever we do to the least we do to him (Matthew 25:40). I also love preaching biblical sermons because I believe the Bible has rich treasures that can enrich the lives of God's people today. A sermon is an interpretation of a biblical passage so that it is relevant for people in the 21st century. I preach from the lectionary and this has allowed me to develop the discipline of doing exegesis on various passages and not just on the ones that might be my favorites. Thirdly, caring for those I serve is what ministry is about. As a pastor, I am a shepherd and I want to imitate Jesus as the "Good Shepherd" who cares for the sheep. There is so much pain in the world and I want parishioners to know that while there is bad news in the world, there is Good News in the Word. I want to continue to develop my pastoral skills and counseling to better equip me to help people deal with the stresses and anxieties of their lives. I have found ways to increase participation of the laity in worship and ministry. These are the things I do well. I am a preacher, an organizer, a counselor, and yet, I want to keep on improving myself to become a more effective pastor.
In terms of my perspective of myself as a pastor, last year I read a book, "PastorPower", in which the author, Martha Stortz, identified three kinds of power: "Power over, power within and power with." I believe in power within, especially using the various gifts and graces of the congregation. I also believe in sharing power with the people because ministry is a team effort. Ministry is about service and the pastor serves with the congregation yet proving leadership where it is needed. In order to empower the laity it may be necessary to bring in a speaker from the district or encourage the leaders to attend workshops on the subject of leadership.
We of the First United Methodist Church of Canonsburg welcome Pastor Jerome to our church family and look forward to growing, together with him and our new Charge churches! Praise the Lord!