From Silence to Boldness: A Story I Don’t Want to Forget

Sometimes I forget to share stories like this.

Not because they aren’t important… but because they happen so often here that they can start to feel normal. And I never want to get to a place where I see a miracle and think, “oh, that’s just another day.”

So I’m trying to do better this year. I want to slow down and share more of what God is doing, because it’s too powerful to keep to myself.

I heard this story recently, and I might not have every detail exactly right, but the heart of it is something I don’t want to miss.

There’s a girl at ZOE who, when she first came to us, was incredibly shy and withdrawn. The kind of quiet that isn’t personality… it’s protection. She had experienced deep trauma, and like many kids, she learned to cope by shutting down. Not engaging. Not opening up. Just staying safe in the only way she knew how.

But over time, something began to change.

Little by little, she started hearing about Jesus.

Through small groups, through conversations, through simply being in an environment where she was loved and seen… she began to understand who He is. And eventually, she made the decision to give her life to Him.

What we didn’t know at the time was that God was writing a bigger story.

At the very same time this was happening in her life, God was also moving in her father’s life. In a completely different place, through completely different people, her dad was being ministered to. This was a man who had struggled with addiction, a man whose life had been broken in many ways.

And he, too, gave his life to Jesus.

No one here orchestrated that. No one planned it. It was God.

Now, both this girl and her father share something they never had before… Jesus.

And because of that, they’ve begun to reconnect. To build a relationship that wasn’t there before. To find common ground in something that brings healing, not more hurt.

But here’s the part that gets me every time.

The girl who once wouldn’t speak… who stayed hidden and guarded… is now one of the boldest voices around when it comes to her faith.

She goes up to the other girls and says, “Let me tell you about Jesus.”

Over and over again.

Honestly, she’s a little relentless about it. Some of the girls are like, “Okay, we know!” and she just keeps going anyway.

“You need to know Him. Let me tell you.”

It’s almost funny, but it’s also incredibly beautiful.

Because this is what transformation looks like.

From silent to bold.From shut down to fully alive.From self-protection to sharing hope with others.

Her story isn’t just about being rescued.

It’s about redemption.It’s about restoration.It’s about a God who is always working, even when we don’t see it.

After 19 years of being here, I think there are moments where I can unintentionally become numb to just how incredible these stories are. But this is not normal.

This is a miracle.

And it’s happening every single day.

This is why I’m here.This is what your support makes possible.This is what God is doing in the lives of these kids.

And I don’t want to miss it anymore. 💛