The “ALL IN” life of LaVern Williford

On Monday, August 21, 2023, Pastor Dan Williford called me with the sad news that his dad, my friend LaVern Williford, had passed away. LaVern Williford was the first person we met in July 1974, when I was considered for and then became the pastor of Toledo Baptist Temple in Toledo, Ohio. He was in the church’s garage repairing one of the busses. He gave us a warm welcome and immediately told us about the bus ministry, which he led. He explained how many people came to church because of the busses, the many routes that covered various parts of the city, how many volunteers were involved, and his vision for the future. His enthusiasm told me he was “all in” for the gospel outreach of the bus ministry.

I soon learned that LaVern accepted Christ through the personal ministry of Phil Smithers, one of the church’s deacons. After accepting Christ, LaVern’s life was transformed. He quit drinking. He quit smoking. He quit cussing. He quit going to bars. He worked harder at loving his wife and family. He began sharing his faith and winning others to Christ. He started tithing. He also found a fruitful place of service in the church’s bus ministry. He was an “all in” believer.

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Many of us were impressed by LaVern’s sacrifice and that of his family. On a Sunday, at about 5:30 am, he and his now deceased wife, Darlene, gathered up their three little children, still asleep, and brought them to the church. They put the kids where they could continue sleeping while Darlene fixed a delicious breakfast for all the bus drivers, captains, and volunteers who make a bus ministry successful. He and they did this for the entire time LaVern was director of the bus ministry. Their “all in” self-sacrifice inspired a host of others to join them in gospel outreach.

LaVern was also a steady and dedicated leader. Leadership was part of his DNA. Before accepting Christ, he was the leader of a Country and Western band that played in honkey tonks and bars. He played guitar. He was the leader of his own drywall company, D and W Drywall. I have already described his leadership of the bus ministry at our church. He led that ministry with his personal effort and creative attendance promotions. His leadership brought many under the sound of the gospel and won many to Christ. During that time, he surrendered to the ministry and moved his family to Springfield, Missouri so that he could attend Baptist Bible College. He and his family “adopted” four other students to help them succeed in their studies. 

In the late 1970s, LaVern was asked to preach a few Sundays at the Mount Zion Baptist Church in the rural area outside Jefferson City, Missouri. The host pastor was leaving and asked the tiny congregation to call LaVern as pastor. They agreed, but LaVern was reluctant. The former pastor then said, “Would you just fill in until they get somebody else?” LaVern hesitated but said, “OK.” Williford took this church on a gravel road out in the country and built the congregation to a high of about 150 people. He stayed as pastor until 2021. He was a pastor in that difficult place for 43 years. He displayed “all in” faithfulness and “all in” leadership.

Anyone who knew LaVern Williford had to be challenged and inspired by his life. His fervent faith, his infectious enthusiasm, his selfless sacrifice, his natural leadership, and his enduring faithfulness touched many lives.

Revelation 14:13 says, “…Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.” Our friend LaVern Williford is enjoying this verse. He is blessed forevermore. He is resting with the Lord in heaven, reunited with Darlene, Phil Smithers, and a host of other family and friends. His works follow him as a legacy for his children and many friends. His was a life “all in” for Jesus Christ.