A DIFFERENT KIND OF CELESTIAL CHOIR

HOUSTON, TX -- In the span of 12 hours, he was hobnobbing with Shakira, being blessed by a celebrity pastor, and being hailed by a Hallejulah-crying choir for his days as the "first black president." Welcome to Bill Clinton's day. A visibly tired former president, fresh off of a high-profile fundraiser in Toronto last night, still managed to muster a few "Amens" during three church appearances in the Houston area this morning.

Clinton first appeared at the massive Lakewood Church in Houston, one of the nation's largest mega-churches and the home to famed preacher and charisma machine Joel Osteen. The ex-president, accompanied by daughter Chelsea and Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, looked impressed at the colossal congregation, which is housed in a former NBA basketball arena. Clinton did not speak, but bobbed his head in time to the soaring chords of the church's 100-person choir. When acknowledged by the superstar pastor, Clinton was received warmly by the eye-popping crowd, over eight thousand strong. "Love ya, Bill!" cried one audience member, moved by a different kind of spirit.

The size of the crowd was much smaller later in the morning, but their enthusiasm may have been even stronger. At Christian Hope Baptist Church, Clinton was cheered by an audience of African-American churchgoers whose gospel tunes were so rousing that more than one singer joyfully collapsed during the warm-up before Clinton entered the room.

During Clinton's remarks at Christian Hope, he acknowledged the difficult choice faced by Democrats who have long hoped for the chance to vote for either a woman or an African American president. "I don’t know why God asked us to make this decision," he chuckled. "It's funny sometimes, there is an old saying, that you gotta be careful what you ask for or somebody might give it to you."

Clinton seemed a bit sluggish this morning after touching down well after 2:00 am last night in Texas. The former president spent his evening in Toronto, Canada, at a glitzy launch of a new philanthropy effort. Tom Cruise, Elton John, and pop star Shakira reportedly attended the top-dollar fundraising event, which Clinton co-hosted with business partner and controversial mining tycoon Frank Giustra. (Giustra was a key character in the New York Times expose of Clinton's latest trip to Kazakhstan.)

The late night seemed to wear on the hard-charging Clinton, whose church appearances were among a total of a whopping eight public appearances scheduled for today. "You have to decide," he told the crowd at Christian Hope, rubbing his eyes with a weary smile. "I've made the best case I can."

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