What an Incredible Day in the History of Loudoun County, and I Almost Missed It….

Earlier this week I received a call from my pastor, Michelle Thomas, letting me know that she had been selected to deliver the invocation during an upcoming rally featuring President Barack Obama.  Even more, she had scored a VIP ticket for me to attend this event with her.  Although I was elated that she had been selected for such an honor, I was not really bothered about enduring the heat and hassle that would come along with seeing the most powerful man in the world. Therefore, I told Pastor Michelle that I was happy for her and would be praying for success—from home.

I really didn’t think much more about it until I got up this morning and headed to the gym to get my a.m. workout on.  About 20-minutes into my rowing routine, the Holy Spirit whispered to me “It’s really not about you; it’s about showing support for your friend and witnessing history.”  Shortly after this epiphany, I phoned Pastor Michelle to let her know what I had now realized and to see if she still had a VIP Willy Wonka ticket with my name on it. After hearing that I had FINALLY come to my senses, she told me that she would call me back in few minutes after she did some wheeling-and-dealing. Glory be to God, when she called me back a few moments later, I was informed that I really wouldn’t need a ticket; because, I would be traveling in the SUV with her family and would simply be waived thru by security. (Can somebody say favor?!?!)

Later that evening…

So there I am being ushered into the event with Pastor Michelle and her family (P-Diddy style) and seated in an area that was so close to the stage that even me with my Blind Mellow Jelly vision ("I want my daddy's records back!"), I could clearly see the POTUS and was even close enough to see that even on a 90+ degree hot August day in a state that not too long ago was lynching folks who looked like the President, this brother was just too dang cool to sweat.

During the invocation Pastor Michelle truly invoked the Holy Spirit and left the crowd awed and amazed.  However, what was even more amazing is that this young Black female pastor of a 6-yr-old church that barely has a congregation of about 50 members, had been able to land such an honor. This was truly a re-hash of the story of King David!

Needless to say, the evening was absolutely AMAZING and now my 6-yr-old daughter Landon can tell folks for the rest of her life that she got a chance to see the FIRST Black President of the United States of America just before he was re-elected for a SECOND term! God is GOOD!

The lifelong lessons learned from today’s experience were:

·         If you travel with those who are anointed and have favor, some of it can spill over on you.

·         Always take the time to support those around you who took the time to share the good news about their blessings with you.

·         It doesn’t matter how big your church is; it only matters how big your faith is.

·         Man looks at the outside appearance of a person, place or thing. God only looks at the inside.

·         Faith indeed has a voice during the historic 2012 election. Will you make yours heard?

About the Author: James Hackley earned a B.S. degree in Physics from Longwood College and an M.S. degree in Engineering from the University of Virginia.  He's the founder of Omega Consulting Enterprises, chaplain of a local chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity, and faithfully attends Holy & Whole Life Changing Ministries International in Lansdowne, Va. His latest book, Body, Mind & Spirit: The Awakening can be purchased by visiting him at www.jameshackley.com , www.Amazon.com, and http://www.barnesandnoble.com.