Area resident Nicole Pryor leads members of the Restoration Church of Gaffney choir as they sing during a recent 2010 Census event. With every note she sings Pryor gives a testimony, losing a lung after being stricken with pneumonia and influenza as a child. Singing is much more than a passion for area resident Nicole Pryor, who serves as a praise leader during Sunday morning worship services at Restoration Church of Gaffney.

She savors the opportunity, standing in front of fellow church members as a testimony that miracles do happen.

“Life doesn’t always take us exactly where we want it to,” said Pryor, a Shelby, N.C., native. “But God knows everything. He is good at showing us life may have a different meaning and direction than we humans sometimes believe.”

The daughter of a pastor, Pryor first began singing at the tender age of seven, though it wasn’t an activity near the top of her list of things to do.

“My parents would have all over singing, praying, reading hymns, doing a little of everything; you name it, we did it,” Pryor said. “But at the time I felt I was doing something I didn’t want to do.”

It’s funny how God gets our attention sometimes.

But Pryor’s situation was no laughing matter.

At the age of 14, she was diagnosed with pneumonia and influenza, which left her bedridden in a hospital for 15 months.

“There was a night the doctors called my family in and told them I may not make it through the night,” Pryor said. “I couldn’t see them, but I could hear what was going on.”

The time sitting in a hospital did allow Pryor time to speak with God though, asking that His will be done in her life.

“I simply prayed to God that if He healed me I would do whatever he told me to,” Pryor said. “From that conversation, I learned what my destiny was. It all began with the fact that ‘I will live and not die.’”

Pryor would lose a lung due to her illness, but said a calm came to her life knowing that God was in control. Several weeks after doctors said she would not live through the night, the area resident was given a clean bill of health by medical professionals.

“We’re always told to not despise small beginnings because Christ will do a mighty work in our lives,” Pryor said. “There have been some uphill and downhill battles, but I’ve made it through it all. For that reason, I’ve been working for God ever since.”

Staying faithful has reaped benefits beyond Pryor’s wildest imagination, given the opportunity to perform with the likes of Gospel music legends Shirley Caesar, Canton Jones, Lajune Thompson and Donnie McClurkin. She is currently working on her own solo album, which features the single “Water & Wine.”

“Her voice is so pow- erful and inspiring,” said Rev. Joey Turner, pastor of Restoration Church of Gaffney. “The fact she is doing all this with only one lung is powerful and a blessing. It’s just more proof that our God is one of miracles.”

In addition to her musical prowess, Pryor is also the owner of the Shekinal Glory Hair Salon in Blacksburg.

“All I can do is give God the praise, He’s done so much for me,” she said.