 Ken Sumrall has been in full time ministry for over five decades. He is the founder of Liberty Church in Pensacola Florida; Liberty Fellowship of Churches & Ministers in Birmingham, Alabama; Globe Missionary Evangelism in Pensacola, Florida; Ken Sumrall Ministries in Pace, Florida; and Church Foundational Network in Valdosta, Georgia.
Church Foundational Network was formed to decentralize oversight of ministers and give each minister the privilege to relate to a small family of ministers under the oversight of an apostolic team.
"Papa Ken" as he is known by many, desires to see Malachi 4:6 come to fruition among this generation; in the Body of Christ as well as in natural families. It is out of the preceding burden that he and others formed Church Foundational Network (CFN) in 1995. Beginning with a small group of ministers, CFN is now composed of over 600 ministers in 22 apostolic families, commonly called "Ministerial Cells." Its growth has been amazing considering that the primary way to become a part of CFN is to become related to one of the smaller families within the network.
These cells are based on relationship with the Lord and with one another. Papa Ken believes that the Body of Christ is supposed to be a family and that's what CFN is -- a family of families that God has brought together to encourage one another, provide oversight to ministers and further the Kingdom of God.
It is the conviction of CFN that every pastor should have a pastor who cares for his welfare and an apostolic team to whom he or she is accountable in ethics and in morals.
All CFN apostolic families function under the same general vision, but we do not believe we should promote conformity in the operation of CFN ministries. The Scripture declares, "There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord." (I Corinthians 12:5)
Briefly stated, our overall vision is:
(1) To reap the harvest of the Lord and to equip believers for the ministry,
(2) To provide care, protection, and accountability for ministers of the gospel,
(3) To unite ministers and churches for the effective promotion of the Kingdom of God, and
(4) To establish a network of ministerial families or cells under endorsed apostolic oversight in
order to achieve these goals.
Though CFN believes in Divine Government, we teach that government is not an end in itself, but a means to an end: (i.e., the orderly connection of ministers for effective promotion of the Kingdom of God), therefore, we remain flexible and do not major on structure, but on life within the structure. Though we do not actively recruit ministers, we are open to other ministers and their ministries becoming related to us.
Papa Ken has been married to his wife Wanda for over fifty years. They have four children, thirteen grandchildren, and nine great grandchildren. He and Wanda currently reside in Pace, Florida, where he continues to serve the Lord by pastoring pastors, ministering to hurting ministers, equipping the Body of Christ and serving as a professor with Christian Life School of Theology.
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