Welcome to the Family

It was 2am on May 20th. I had just gotten home from a LONG nite (dealing with a young girl who was raped and Doug's friend who passed away). I had worked 18 hours or so and was exhausted. I had just crawled into bed to attempt to sleep; my mind reeling with the events of the evening. I'm startled from my semi-commatose state with the sound of my cell phone ringing. I automatically figured that it was the girl who had been raped, but was surprised to find Keyah on the other end of the line. (With permission, Keyah has allowed me to share this story). I asked what was going on, and she wanted me to join her on MSN. I knew that wasn't gonna happen, as my mom was fast alseep. I told Keyah, just tell me over the phone. We debated back and forth for a few minutes, before i got frustrated and told her that she needed to tell me what was going on, otherwise I wouldn't sleep. Instead of recieving horrible news, I recieved the best message I could have ever recieved. Keyah paused and said, "I love Jesus."
At this point, I burst into tears. We continued to talk till 4am. I was increasingly more surprised with her as time went on. There were some key phrases that i remembered from our conversation. From a girl who said, "i don't care" on a regular basis, there was one moment where she said, "I care." At the end of the nite, she said: "I love you" My heart melted. I said to her, "Welcome to the family of God." We ended the converation not with a good-bye but with see ya later.

For Keyah: I am so proud of you. You are embarking on a huge journey to discover who Jesus is. Don't be discouraged by trials that come your way. You are an incredibly strong young woman and I know that you can fight for what is right. Welcome to the family! I love you! If you ever need anything; don't hesitate to ask. And always remember: God loves you too! In the words of my little three year old niece, "I thank God for you!"