My dearly loved PEPpers and far flung family and friends,
Well, I pray that it has been a good week for you. It has been a good but fast-paced week for me. Sonja and I celebrated our 32nd anniversary this week and I’ve had to spend several days on the road attending my first Care Division Board meeting.
Most of you will recall that I have spent the last eight years serving as a member of the Church of God Chaplain’s Commission. Now I’ve been asked to serve on the Church of God’s Care Division Board. This board has oversight of the benevolence and outreach ministries of the entire Church of God including the Chaplain’s Commission, Operation Compassion, our ministry to the widows and orphans/orphanages around the world, the Church of God’s ministry to Israel and a number of other ministries that I am still learning about.
Sometimes I wonder how I can find time in an already packed schedule to do yet one more thing. But as I’ve spent time this week being introduced to my new responsibilities and meeting my new fellow-board members I feel that I (along with the FMCOG) am being set up for yet another opportunity to make a difference in the world. I have had several moments when I have wondered what in the world I was doing on the Care Division Board. It is made up of extremely wealthy businessmen, leading pastors and denominational officials…and then there’s me?! But then I am reminded of one of my personal “life-scriptures”
Proverbs 22:29 (NKJV)
Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men.
I have embraced that verse both personally and for the FMCOG for many years and I have found God to be faithful to keep his word. I believe that every day we get up we do not just go to work, but we have a work to do. Each of us is included in God’s Master Plan for eternity. We may not all have many things to do but we all have at least one thing to do and if we keep doing it with anointed excellence God will continue to open doors of opportunity for us to grow and excel. And sure enough when I stepped into the new position the name of Fort Mill Church of God and the great ministry that we are achieving was already known to these great men. So no matter what is happening at any particular time with we PEPpers, I truly believe that as long as we stay focused on giving our B-E-S-T better days are always ahead.
Now for a few things to remember…
IMPORTANT DATES & ISSUES:
September 12 AM: Please be in prayer for me tomorrow. In my morning message I will be introducing a theme that I believe is one of those “works” that God has for us at the FMCOG. It seems that there has hardly been a waking moment that this message hasn’t been weighing on my heart and mind. I sense God leading us as His people and I want more than anything to be faithful to following the heart of God. Please breathe a word of prayer on my behalf that I will being able to share the message that God has for us in such a way that we can all grasp God’s heart and be moved to respond.
September 12 PM: I have asked Pastor Jonathan to move our monthly Fine Arts Service to this date. Our annual Pastor’s Conference begins on Monday and because of the date change I was able to invite the pastors to come early and experience one of Fine Arts service. Several have confirmed that they will be there. So in addition to us getting to enjoy a great evening of worship, we will also be able to be a blessing to other church through blessing their pastors.
September 19AM: The Lee University Campus Choir will be with us on that day.
September 24-25: Annual Marriage Conference
October 3: Heritage Sunday / special music guest, Jason Crabb / following the service we will have a church family picnic at the Andrew Jackson State park. Tickets go on sale tomorrow.
RESOURCE OF THE WEEK: Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell
Gladwell is one of my favorite authors. You will find him intellectually stimulating but easy to read. I highly recommend this book along with his two previous books, The Tipping Point and Blink.
AFFIRMATIONS OF THE WEEK: I call the following affirmations are affirmations concerning my finances. Jesus taught that money can become a “master” in our lives unless we keep it under the lordship of God (Matthew 6:24). Over the years I have developed several series of affirmations to help me resist the sway of “mammon” and to keep my possessions sanctified unto my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is my prayer that they will help you also.
1. God Owns Everything. I’m His Money Manager. Therefore, I acknowledge that everything I have has been entrusted to me not given to me.
2. My Heart Always Goes Where I Put God’s Money. Therefore I constantly stay focused on turning the currency of earth into the currency of heaven. (Fishers of men)
3. Heaven, Not Earth, Is My Home. Therefore, I will not measure my success by how much I have accumulated on earth but rather by how much I have invested in heaven. (Hebrews 11:16)
4. Giving Is The Only Antidote To Materialism. Therefore, giving is a joyful surrender to a greater person and a greater agenda. It dethrones me and exalts Him.
5. God Prospers Me Not To Raise My Standard Of Living, but To Raise My Standard Of Giving. Therefore, God gives me more money than I need so that I can give – generously.
Life in Kempsville…
As I wrote above, the most significant thing that happened in Kempsville this past week was that Sonja and I celebrated our 32nd anniversary this week. I thank God for my beautiful and godly wife. Truly she has been a faithful ally and partner in ministry and life; I am a blessed man. Let me share one funny thing that happened this week. As you may recall, two weeks ago I played a little joke on Sonja for her 50th birthday. I had a hearse to pick her up for dinner along with a police escort. Combine that with the fact for the first time in his life, I took David Lee out for a walk in his stroller and you get the following incident…
Last Sunday afternoon the doorbell rang. I wondered who would be ringing our doorbell on a Sunday afternoon. When I answered the doorbell there was one of the neighbors standing at my door. I greeted her and she asked with a very somber face if I was OK? Through this surprised me a bit and answered kindly
that I was indeed. Then she asked if I needed anything. This surprised me even more and I answered that “No I was fine.” But I asked, “May I ask why you are asking?” It turns out that several people noticed the hearse on Wednesday and then me out walking David Lee (something that Sonja had always done). Everyone reached the conclusion that Sonja had died and they had all gotten together and designated the particular lady standing at my door as the spokesperson for the neighbor to check on me and make sure I was OK. I assured her that Sonja was fine and produced her to prove it. We all got a good laugh out of that one.
So I guess you could say that we had a “resurrection” this week in Kempsville…and who said life was boring!
Well, better let you go. Blessings everyone,
david l. kemp
The ONE THING 
Congratulations Pastor on your new commission and we will be in prayer for you this morning that our ears and our hearts will be open to your message and that it will sink in. Congratulaltions again on your 32nd Wedding Anniversary. May God bless both of you with many, many more happy years together. We love you both…..Joe & Ann (your Romans)
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