Callie Jo Smith never planned on being a professional pickleball player.
In fact, she used to roll her eyes at the sound of the sport. “It drove me nuts,” she laughed, remembering the loud paddles, the altered tennis nets and what she once saw as graceless strokes. “I will never be caught dead with a pickleball paddle in my hand,” she told her husband.
But today, she holds 11 professional titles, has traveled the world with her family and uses her influence as one of the sport’s best to do something far greater than win games: She shares the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In a new episode of the Church News podcast, Smith opened up about what really matters to her. And it’s not the trophies, medals or national acclaim.
‘This is between me and God’
Smith’s journey from reluctant participant to top-tier athlete is impressive on its own. But what makes her story remarkable is the spiritual wrestle behind the scenes — especially seeking personal revelation during trying times.
Often struggling with her own trials and challenges, Smith would turn to prayer, fasting, scripture study and counsel from Church leaders, family, friends and mentors.
One test occurred when she felt she couldn’t receive answers to questions for close to a year. That’s when she asked her husband, Kyle, for a priesthood blessing.
Though Kyle Smith didn’t know her questions, the blessing was an immediate answer to her many prayers.
“Oh my gosh. Multiple answers to prayer right there,” she said. “I had not told Kyle about that. Those were personal prayers that I had had. And so for Him to answer through a blessing was pretty personal for me.”
The carpenter of her soul
Smith said her testimony isn’t just based on priesthood blessings and personal revelation — it runs through her injuries, her family life, her postpartum struggles and her losses.
From sobbing in hotel bathrooms after tough defeats to singing Primary songs to her daughter late at night, Smith has learned to find God everywhere. In a sport that measures success in points and podiums, she’s redefined what it means to win.
“Success isn’t always what I think it is,” she said. “I am not my wins. I’m not my successes in pickleball. I’m a daughter of God.”
When she feels like she’s failing — on the court, in motherhood, in faith — Smith gets on her knees. And without fail, the Lord sends someone to bless her. A text. A priesthood blessing. A tender mercy.
One night, while staying with a nonmember host-family during a tournament, she was in so much pain she couldn’t walk. She called a local bishop, received a blessing and was not only able to play the next day but also introduced her host to the gospel. That woman later came to church with her. “The Spirit of God is real,” Smith said.
Pickleball as a mission field
Now in her seventh year on tour, Smith says she’s had “thousands” of chances to bear testimony — on airplanes, in clinics and over chocolate ice cream bars.
Sometimes she preaches with words. More often, with quiet conviction.
She’s heard from fans who noticed “this light,” she said, adding, “You never know who you’re helping.”
That’s what drives her now. Not rankings. Not endorsements. But the knowledge that “when I have chosen to involve Him and include Him, He changes me.”
From tears to testimony
Smith knows what it feels like to question one’s worth. She’s felt like a bad mom, a mediocre athlete, a struggling disciple.
But through every back injury, mental spiral and sleepless night with kids on the road, she’s discovered something deeper than achievement: divine identity.
That’s what she hopes others take from her story.
“I am not pickleball,” she said, adding, “I’m a daughter of God. I am a mom. I am a daughter to some amazing parents. And He helps and has helped me through these experiences, helped me realize that that is success, that I am successful because I am His child.”
