Michal is the fifth of eight children. He was born in Connecticut and was ordained as a deacon there in 1979 at St. James Baptist Church. Michal accepted his calling to the ministry ten years later, was licensed as a minister in 1990, and was ordained in 1995, serving as the assistant to the pastor at Smyrna Missionary Baptist Church in Massachusetts. A data-processing system analyst, he is married with two daughters and now lives in North Carolina, and loves playing the drums, chess, and listening to gospel music.