Northern Valley Evangelical Free Church in New Tripoli, Pennsylvania, Welcomes Permanent Pastor Kenneth Spence

Northern Valley Evangelical Free Church in New Tripoli has welcomed its new pastor, Kenneth Spence. He became the church’s permanent pastor in December 2014.

Spence holds a Master of Theology degree in Christian Education from Dallas Theological Seminary. In remarks to the Lehigh Valley Press, he described his goals for the congregation. “I want this church to provide solid Biblical teaching to our congregation and to the community through our ministry and through our small groups during the week,” Spence said. “I want the church to be a body of believers who teach God’s word and live by it, a living vibrant body of Christ in the community, engaged in sharing the love of Jesus both locally and worldwide.”

He said the church also aims to connect with its immediate community by offering ministries that benefit individuals and families nearby. “We will do this by being interested in our neighbor’s welfare in general, providing specific support and education for the children in our community, dealing with topics of concern to many in our community, such as Godly parenting and healthy finances and using our facility for support of our community,” the pastor said.

The church holds Sunday School for children and adults at 9:15 a.m., followed by a 10:30 a.m. worship service. It also hosts two mid-week Bible studies, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Spence said a men’s breakfast is offered three times a year. He added that the church often holds a summer children’s ministry one or two days each month and focuses it on Operation Christmas Child, a program sponsored by Samaritan’s Purse.

The congregation has a long-standing commitment to Operation Christmas Child, collecting items to fill shoeboxes for children in Third World countries. “In December, we delivered 500 shoeboxes,” Spence said. “A couple years ago, we did more than 2,000 shoeboxes.” He said the church would expand its community goals as it grows. “As the church grows, we will increase our goals in the community,” Spence said.

Spence has been a pastor for 43 years. He served at Northern Valley Evangelical Free Church in Cresskill, N.J.; Faith Evangelical Free Church in Acton, Mass.; Faith Evangelical Free Church in Trexlertown; and Bethlehem Evangelical Free Church in Randolph, N.J. He has also served as district superintendent for the Eastern District of the Evangelical Free Church of America.

A 1961 graduate of Bergenfield High School in Bergen County, N.J., Spence earned a Bachelor of Economics and Business Administration degree from Wagner College on Staten Island, N.Y., in 1965. He and his wife, Joan, who will celebrate 50 years of marriage in July, live in Center Valley. The couple has four children and 17 grandchildren.

Source: Read the original report