Smile of the Second Chance
By Lori Wilhite
In Vegas, one of our church campuses is inside the Florence McClure Women's Correctional Center. A few months ago, my husband Jud and I had the joy of getting to go worship with those ladies in person. We walked into a cinderblock gymnasium bursting with over 300 inmates in their blue jumpsuits. Their screams pierced our ears. Their song of praise was literally deafening.
What we noticed immediately was the absolute joy radiating out of those ladies. They were beaming ... smiling from ear to ear.
But, something else was instantly noticeable. Most of those ladies, many in their 20s, 30s and 40s, were missing teeth. Some ladies with two holes in their smiles ... others with 4 or 5 gaps.
Apparently, when the inmates have dental problems, if it is cheaper to pull a tooth than to fix it, then that tooth is pulled. It does not matter if it is one of their front teeth or not, it is pulled.
So we looked out across this room of women who, without shame of their gap-toothed smiles, were beaming with gratitude for how God was moving in their lives. That is the Smile of the Second Chance.
And I wonder if it is time, as pastors' wives and as leaders, to embrace our Smile of the Second Chance ... living joyfully and without abandon in who God made us to be. Knowing that we all have imperfections and shortcomings, and not allowing those to take away from the joy of smiling ear-to-ear.
So...smile widely.
Lori Wilhite is the founder of leadingandlovingit.com for Pastors' Wives and Women in Ministry and the wife of Jud Wilhite, Senior Pastor at Central Christian Church in Las Vegas.
By Lori Wilhite
In Vegas, one of our church campuses is inside the Florence McClure Women's Correctional Center. A few months ago, my husband Jud and I had the joy of getting to go worship with those ladies in person. We walked into a cinderblock gymnasium bursting with over 300 inmates in their blue jumpsuits. Their screams pierced our ears. Their song of praise was literally deafening.
What we noticed immediately was the absolute joy radiating out of those ladies. They were beaming ... smiling from ear to ear.But, something else was instantly noticeable. Most of those ladies, many in their 20s, 30s and 40s, were missing teeth. Some ladies with two holes in their smiles ... others with 4 or 5 gaps.
Apparently, when the inmates have dental problems, if it is cheaper to pull a tooth than to fix it, then that tooth is pulled. It does not matter if it is one of their front teeth or not, it is pulled.
So we looked out across this room of women who, without shame of their gap-toothed smiles, were beaming with gratitude for how God was moving in their lives. That is the Smile of the Second Chance.
While most of us are not in prison, we sometimes are trapped in prisons of our own making. We've been hit, hurt, dinged and damaged along the way in leadership and in ministry. At times those hurts come from other people through criticism or betrayal. At other times, they are self-inflicted wounds that we carry because we feel like we do not live up to expectations or somehow feel like the odd woman out. We walk around trying to hide our imperfections and our shortcomings. Yes, we may grin ... but we refuse to smile widely revealing the gaps in our teeth.
And I wonder if it is time, as pastors' wives and as leaders, to embrace our Smile of the Second Chance ... living joyfully and without abandon in who God made us to be. Knowing that we all have imperfections and shortcomings, and not allowing those to take away from the joy of smiling ear-to-ear.
So...smile widely.
Lori Wilhite is the founder of leadingandlovingit.com for Pastors' Wives and Women in Ministry and the wife of Jud Wilhite, Senior Pastor at Central Christian Church in Las Vegas.
CALL TO PRAY http://www.ifmypeopleprayusa.org/
As American Christians, we need to BEWARE. London broadcast and it is Current. Click on the link below. The attitude portrayed in this video has already begun in the USA .
As American Christians, we need to BEWARE. London broadcast and it is Current. Click on the link below. The attitude portrayed in this video has already begun in the USA .
This is a T.V. News piece from CBN London .
When a secular station puts out a piece like this........pay attention!
http://downloads.cbn.com/cbnnewsplayer/cbnplayer.swf?aid=9425
When a secular station puts out a piece like this........pay attention!
http://downloads.cbn.com/cbnnewsplayer/cbnplayer.swf?aid=9425
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