About ABWE
President's Blog: From the desk of Dr. Michael G. Loftis, ABWE President
February 14, 2008
Tributes to Dr. Wendell Kempton
“Wendell was a great friend to all of us at Word of Life. If I had to define Wendell Kempton for all of us at Word of Life, and for me especially, I would call him the greatest Barnabas I ever met. He touched my life, and encouraged me to continue moving forth, holding forth the Word of Life.”
--Rev. Joe Jordan, Executive Director, Word of Life Bible Institute
“The Bible says give honor to whom honor is due. In the honoring Wendell Kempton, we have been honoring the Savior who claimed his life and made a difference. I would like to be more of a friend to people like he was to me. God alone knows the impact he has had on my life. I want to do that for others the rest of my life.”
--Dr. Dan Gelatt, Pastor, ABWE Representative at large
“Especially when you are young, isn’t it true that you need someone out in front of you who is a hero/mentor? I always looked a Wendell like that. In a sense I watched him lead and I wanted to be a leader like him. I watched him relate to his family and to the constituency, and to his friends. I felt every time I was with him I was important to him. I’ve lost a mentor. We’ve all lost a champion of the gospel. My prayer is that some of us will step up and fill that void in a wonderful way. But praise God that this is not the only world we have. The world to come is that far better world. May we all find tremendous confidence in the midst of our tears, as we sorry but as the Bible says, not as others who have no hope.”
--Dr. Joe Stowell, Sr. Teaching Pastor at Harvest Bible Chapel
“Wendell Kempton was a man with a burning heart. His spirit burned within him. He had a burning passion of love for God, and a burning compassion for people who needed Christ. His loving concern for us who served on his administrative team, and for the over 1,000 field missionaries around the world that he lead, had a profound impact on all of our lives. Wendell lived Christ before us. His Christ-like spirit infected all of us who served under his leadership.”
--Bill Commons, ABWE Strategic Initiative and Research