Honoring: A Hometown Hero

A little over ten years ago, I moved away from my small hometown of Lovingston, located in Nelson County, Virginia. I graduated high school and started my college adventure. There was nothing that could hold me back from taking steps out of the area and towards “bigger and better.” I wanted so badly to be in a place where I wasn’t known by every store clerk, high school teacher, and police officer. I wanted to experience being that small fish in a big sea and having a private life. You see, Nelson County is a very small community. In 2013, the population was capped below 15,000 people, approximately 31 people per square mile and that just wasn’t working out at the time…

Then, about two weeks ago, on June 26th to be exact, I found myself thinking and reflecting about Nelson County more and more frequently. On that day, I read an article about a young lady named Whitney Loving who sustained severe head trauma in a horrific jeep accident while traveling on a road in my hometown. Oddly enough, I didn’t know this young lady, but I learned quickly that I seemed to be in the minority as a “Nelsonian.” If you didn’t know Whitney directly, you were impacted by her smile, beauty, love of The Lord, zest for life, and her heart for people. Her story was captivating….current reigning “Miss Nelson County, an athlete, a singer, a lover of Jesus, daughter, sister, neice, auntie, best friend, girlfriend, confidant, encourager… In looking at the #PrayersForWhitneyFaith Facebook page, I continued reading even more about her story and the impact she made on so many.

Then, this morning after almost two full weeks of fighting, Whitney went home to spend eternity with Jesus. Without ceasing, Whitney’s family and friends confidently posted the verse below that Whitney had on her license plate:

“Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” John 13:7

As I sat praying today for this incredibly strong, faith-filled family, I couldn’t help but see that in this specific situation, I felt The Lord was granting us “instant gratification.” What if God was allowing “later” referred to in this verse to be now? You see I believe we are seeing part of Whitney’s miracle right now! In a matter of DAYS, Whitney brought together almost 12,000 people together to pray and believe for a miracle. TWELVE THOUSAND PEOPLE. Remember that statistic I gave you earlier about population? In number, Whitney has already reached almost the exact number of people who live in Nelson County, the county in which she reigns with the platform as Miss Nelson to “bring God into people’s lives.”  

And “bring God” is exactly what she has done. Throughout these last few days, I had the privilege of watching scores upon scores of people from my hometown and beyond join the #PrayersForWhitneyFaith group to follow her progress, to share encouraging remarks or scripture to those continuing to pray alongside Team Whitney, and to reminisce about countless memories filled with Whitney’s laughter, voice, support, and love. I had the honor of hearing from her mother filled with Jesus’ love, write powerful words of encouragement to a growing mass of people. I was humbled to see her surrender and unwavering trust in God – provided so willingly from such a vulnerable place. I even watched as people made recommitments to their faith because of this testimony.

As I sit here writing this tonight, I want to say a personal THANK YOU to Ms. Whitney Faith Loving. Thank you dear one, for your sacrifice, for your obedience every step of the way to walking out God’s plan for you even if we, down here on earth thought it was way too short. Thank you for reminding me again of the beauty of small town life, that bigger is not always better. Thank you for blessing a community with the biggest gift – one of UNITY, a revival of LOVE, an expectancy to see Jesus move, the eyes to count our blessings, and to see His mercies new each day. You are a gift and will continue to leave a lasting legacy of bringing God into people’s lives. I look forward to watching your testimony touch the hearts of thousands and thousands more.

Tonight and every night, Ms. Whitney, you make me proud to be a Nelsonian. #NelsonStrong

Feel free to comment below how Whitney has impacted your life and use this as an additional place to honor all she is to so many.