Pastor Frank Smith is a retired career banker, commercial pilot, and auxiliary police officer. A Florida native, and 1965 Lake Wales High School graduate, he spent 54 years in the banking industry before retiring in 2021.
Pastor Frank holds an F.A.A. Commercial Pilot’s License with instrument and multi-engine ratings, as well as an F.A.A. Flight Instructor’s License.
In 1992, God intervened in Pastor Smith’s life through a Damascus Road Experience that forever changed his life’s direction. Following that experience and the leading of the Holy Spirit, Pastor Frank and his wife, Doris, founded Ephraim’s Light Assembly 19 years ago.
In addition to High School, he graduated from Weaver Airline Personnel School in Kansas City, Missouri, the National Installment Credit School at the University of Oklahoma, and the University of Virginia School of Banking. He has studied at Trinity College and Seminary in Newberg, Indiana; Emory University Seminary in Atlanta, Georgia; and Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida.
Before founding Ephraim’s Light Assembly, Pastor Smith served his home church, The First United Methodist Church in Lake Wales, Florida, and pastored the Eloise United Methodist Church in Winter Haven Florida. He has served our Lord as an Evangelist, and served as an area representative for the United States Spiritual Warfare Network, coordinating prayer efforts among churches in Polk, Hardee, and Highlands counties. He also co-founded a 12-member prayer and deliverance team that traveled wherever they were needed to pray for those who were troubled.
Through more than 34 years of serving God, studying Scripture, praying, and seeking the heart of God, Pastor Smith has developed a particular understanding of the continuity of Scripture. Inspired by Yeshua’s words in Matthew 9:37: “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few” his ministry continues to help people better understand God’s Word and grow in righteousness.
Doris Smith was born and raised in Quito, Ecuador. She became a physical therapist after studying at the state university in Quito and completing postgraduate work in Spain. She owned and operated a physical therapy clinic and brings a strong background in healthcare and community service to the ministry.
Fluent in English and Spanish, Doris has also studied Hebrew and continues to develop her proficiency. Together, Frank and Doris have ministered to many people’s spiritual and physical needs, inviting others to join their family of faith and grow together in the image of God.