New Life SDA Philadelphia

Howard W. Duncan, as of December 12, 2020, was assigned to be the Pastor of the New Life Seventh-day Adventist Church of Philadelphia. He was the former Pastor of the Campostella Heights Seventh-day Adventist Church (Norfolk, VA) and  Bethany Seventh-day Adventist Church (Bridgeton, NJ). Pastor Duncan is a native of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. He was born to the late Elwood and Irene Morris. He is the youngest of 11 children. At the tender age of 12 years old he was baptized along with his mother, into the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. At this young age he was infused with the Spirit of Evangelism, where he began reaching out any way he could. He began knocking on doors within his community as a part of the Ingathering Campaign that his new-found congregation encouraged him to take part in. He also learned the important skills of industry and hard work while doing yard work and odd jobs which led him to better job opportunities and greater responsibilities as a cook at a local restaurant.

Education

Upon completion of high school, Pastor Duncan later graduated with a diploma in carpentry from the Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades in Media, PA. He also holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Ministerial Theology from Oakwood University in Huntsville, AL and a Masters of Divinity degree from Andrews Theological Seminary in Berrien Springs, MI. He is a certified Prepare & Enrich Marriage Facilitator. Pastor Duncan has served as a Chaplain for the

City of Bridgeton Police Department for the past five years.

He currently resides in, and is in transition from, Wilmington, Delaware with his beautiful wife, Glendoria Singleton-Duncan. She is currently employed as a teacher by the State of Delaware. They will be celebrating twenty-two years of marriage on the 18th of August. God has blessed them with two beautiful and talented young ladies Zarea, 20 and Moriah, 17. Pastor Duncan had the privilege of baptizing his daughters as they joined the family of God.

While attending Oakwood he was a Night Dean for the men of Peterson Hall where he mentored and spoke candidly with young men concerning the pitfalls of life as a growing young man. He has ministered at local prisons in the Wilmington area and later, at Oakwood University, he became an active member of the late Sister Inez Booth’s prison ministry team where he helped a local gang leader and his family to experience the power of God. One of his greatest missionary experiences was watching God orchestrate times and events that allowed him to find and baptize a former school mate while ministering in Oakland, CA. In March of 2017, he had the awesome privilege of preaching a three-week campaign in Nairobi, Kenya, Africa where many souls were baptized.

The Lord provided him the opportunity to become a certified counselor and care giver for those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS within the State of Delaware, under the leadership of Love Heals Ministry. In February of 2013, he established the “Open Arms Ministry,” a thriving nonprofit ministry for substance abuse and HIV/AIDS in the city of Bridgeton, New Jersey.

Ministry

Some of Pastor Duncan’s levels of ministry have included Literature Evangelism, mentoring, homeless ministry, nursing home ministry, and tent revivals, just to name a few. Pastor Duncan strongly believes in the quote by Ellen White that emphasizes the need for our youth to be “rightly trained” so that they can be the sharpest tool possible. [Emphasis added] As a result, in 2008 the Lord led him to develop a Youth Literature Evangelism and tuition assistance program at Sharon Temple Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Pastor Duncan has ministered in various parts of the country from Delaware to the South to the Midwest and out to the West Coast. All along the way he has achieved several financial goals and led many souls to the watery grave of baptism and seeks to do his part to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.

He has led churches to financial success by paying off a mortgage, increasing savings, supervising renovations, purchasing vehicles, inspiring a church climate of love and acceptance, as well as building church leaders for tomorrow.

Out of all that has been said, Pastor Duncan loves the Lord and strongly believes that the Power of the Holy Spirit is the only way that a person’s life can be transformed. Positive change cannot and will not come by willing it to happen, or by behavior modification alone, but, by the constant pleading for the indwelling of God’s presence in a believer’s heart as he or she obeys Him—by faith. Two of his most highly cherished Scriptures are I John 1:9 and Phil. 1:6. Both texts express God’s willingness to grant His grace to those who have faith in Him.