Hi! My name is Paul Whitmore, and I have the privilege of serving as an Elder at SMCC. I was born and raised in Harrisonburg, Virginia, right in the middle of the beautiful Shenandoah Valley. I graduated from Virginia Tech in 1970. It was during my sophomore year in college that I came to know Christ. God used many things to bring me to Himself. The death of my brother in the Vietnam war and the political and social turmoil of the 1960s caused me to despair and question the meaning of life. In spite of nine years of perfect attendance in church as a child, “my faith” offered no hope.
In 1968, God used a Billy Graham movie, the witness of a fellow student, and reading the Gospel of John to show me that the world could never satisfy, and opened my eyes to see my sin and need for Christ. By faith I repented of my sin and received Christ as my Lord and Savior. Most of my early growth as a follower of Christ was in the context of being discipled one-on-one through the Navigators. Following graduation from college, I began a 20 year career as a pilot in the United States Air Force. I met my wife, Kathy, in 1973 in Selma, Alabama, where I was an instructor pilot. I had additional assignments in California, Michigan, Alabama, and Georgia as well as numerous short assignments around the world. During our time in the Air Force, God blessed us with four children: Nathan, Angie, John Paul, and Bryan.
After retiring from the Air Force in 1991 and returning to Birmingham, I worked for an engineering firm for three years as a project manager. A major change occurred in 1994 when God called us into a career in ministry with World Reach, a Birmingham based, global missions organization. After 26 years of ministry, in 2020, I went “off the clock” with World Reach and now serve in a volunteer role. I find great joy in exercising my gift of teaching the Word of God at SMCC.
In 1968, God used a Billy Graham movie, the witness of a fellow student, and reading the Gospel of John to show me that the world could never satisfy, and opened my eyes to see my sin and need for Christ. By faith I repented of my sin and received Christ as my Lord and Savior. Most of my early growth as a follower of Christ was in the context of being discipled one-on-one through the Navigators. Following graduation from college, I began a 20 year career as a pilot in the United States Air Force. I met my wife, Kathy, in 1973 in Selma, Alabama, where I was an instructor pilot. I had additional assignments in California, Michigan, Alabama, and Georgia as well as numerous short assignments around the world. During our time in the Air Force, God blessed us with four children: Nathan, Angie, John Paul, and Bryan.
After retiring from the Air Force in 1991 and returning to Birmingham, I worked for an engineering firm for three years as a project manager. A major change occurred in 1994 when God called us into a career in ministry with World Reach, a Birmingham based, global missions organization. After 26 years of ministry, in 2020, I went “off the clock” with World Reach and now serve in a volunteer role. I find great joy in exercising my gift of teaching the Word of God at SMCC.
Hobbies:
If I had to pick one hobby that I consistently engage in it would be singing. Now don't laugh, but I also enjoy and get great satisfaction out of mowing my lawn.
Role:
I have the privilege of being a servant to our congregation in my role as an Elder. In that role, I relish my opportunities to teach the Word of God. I find great joy in helping others grow in their relationship with Christ.
Favorite Scripture:
So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light, momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4:16-18