PASTOR TO PASTOR - LORI WIHITE

lori wilhite

pastor to pastor

A few years ago, my daughter, Emma, made me a jar of the “Reasons Why I Love You” filled with scraps of paper. On each one, she wrote something she loved about me. Some were silly and others were serious.

Here are a few of my favorites:

“You’re my best friend.” “You help me not want to give up.” “You’re amazing.”

I was supposed to read one scrap of paper each day, but once I read the first, I just settled in to read them all. One by one, I read the reasons why my daughter loved me. I laughed, and I cried. She saw things in me I didn’t see in myself.

Most of the time, I don’t feel like I’m amazing. Sometimes, I’m the one who wants to give up. But that’s how my daughter saw me. Reading each one of those bits of paper made me want to do better… to be better. I wanted to live worthy of all of the reasons why she loved me!

Paul says, “As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love” (Eph. 4:1-2).

You have a calling on your life. Even if you feel unqualified, unworthy, or unprepared, God has given you a calling, a ministry. When you follow God in obedience, you are leaning into the calling He’s put on your life. It’s not about titles or roles; it’s about God letting you in on what He’s doing.

It might be the wonderful ministry of parenting. It might be the wonderful ministry of preaching. It might be the wonderful ministry of working at a church. It might be the wonderful ministry of sharing Christ with your neighbors. It might be the wonderful ministry of your marriage. It might be the wonderful ministry of the small group you lead. It might be the wonderful ministry of the nonprofit you run. But what do you do when the calling is weighty? When that ministry doesn’t feel wonderful? When joining God in what He’s doing seems overwhelming?

What do you do when the wonderful ministry of parenting involves arguments and slammed doors? Or your teaching feels overrun by mounds of paperwork and difficult parents?

Or there just isn’t enough of you to go around at the church and you’re spread too thin to be effective? Or your coworkers make fun of you because you’re a believer? Or your marriage is hanging on by a thread and communication has pretty much shut down? Or there is friction in your small group? Or you don’t know how you’ll keep your non-profit going financially?

WELL. WE LIVE WORTHY. Walking worthy in the calling God has given us isn’t contingent upon it being easy or trouble-free. It’s not dependent upon confidence in our own strength, power, or success. It isn’t so that God will love us. We live worthy because He already loves us. When we realize the depth of God’s goodness and love, it makes us want to do better, to be better. To live worthy.

What does it mean to live worthy? Do we need to work harder? To hustle more? Do we learn new things? Or hone our craft? Do we need to get it right all the time…no mistakes? No failure?

Let’s hope not. Like my friend Hosanna Wong says: Walking worthy isn’t about what we’re doing, it’s about how we’re living. We live worthy when we recognize that God is the one who’s worthy.

When we dive back into Ephesians 4, Paul says, “Be completely humble…”

We are called to walk worthy in humility remembering it’s God’s name that’s worthy, inclining us to change our posture, turning our faces upward and lifting our focus. Living worthy causes our heads to be held high.

Our name isn’t as important as God’s name. Our fame isn’t critical like God’s fame. Our acclaim isn’t essential like God’s acclaim.

Our position is irrelevant compared to God’s position.Our personal glory pales in comparison to God’s glory.Our reputation doesn’t matter when side-by-side with God’s reputation.

We are forgiven because God is forgiving. We are loved because God, Himself, is love. We are worthy because God’s name is worthy.

Paul doesn’t just say to be humble, in Ephesians 4:2, he also says we need to be “gentle.” Gentleness comes from knowing that God’s plan is sovereign.

As much as we love being in control of our lives and circumstances, we know the One who is ultimately in control. God is the One who is sovereign. The One who’s all-knowing and allpowerful. The One who’s so much bigger than any teeny-tiny box we try to fit Him in.

When you need to have a hard conversation with your spouse, be gentle. Trust that God’s plan is worthy.

When you have to address the issues going on in the hearts and lives of your teens, clothe yourself with gentleness. Believe that God’s plan is worthy. When you feel overcome with disappointment or discouragement, be gentle with yourself. Have confidence that God’s plan is worthy. When life isn’t working out according to your carefully laid out plan, walk in gentleness. Be assured, God’s plan is worthy.

Walking worthy isn’t about what we’re doing, it’s about how we’re living. We also need to remember that God’s kingdom is worthy. After all, the goal is not for our pleasure, but for peace—among and between all of us.

Paul goes on in verse 3, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” We live in a culture where we want a trophy if we make any effort at all. We want a prize if we held back our nasty comment on Twitter, but we also held back our forgiveness. We want an award when we stay silent instead of jumping into a pointless argument, but we also don’t speak up for those who have been silenced.We want a gold star when we avoid a confrontation, but we won’t have a conversation that will bring actual healing. There is no participation ribbon for half-baked effort or just doing the littlest bit that depends on you. Living a life that is worthy isn’t about what we’re doing, it’s about how we’re living.

Every effort. As much as it depends on you. Because God’s Kingdom, His people are worthy. The unity in His bride, the church, is worthy.

God’s looking for people who believe His name is worthy. God’s hunting for people who are confident that His plan is worthy. He’s keeping an eye out for people who know His Kingdom is worthy. God is seeking people who will live worthy.

We live worthy because Jesus is worthy. Let’s live worthy of the calling we have received

Lori Wilhite is the founder of Leading and Loving It— a ministry dedicated toequipping, connecting, and impacting pastors’ wives and women in leadership. She is the author of Rise Up: Lessons from Ezra on Walking with Your Head Held High and My Name is Victorious: Find Strength, Freedom, and Joy innWho You Are Created to Be. Lori serves alongside her husband, Jud Wilhite at Central Church in Las Vegas, NV. Together they love watching God change Sin City into Grace City. They have twohilarious and amazing kids, Emma and Ethan.