Stranger in the Night

**Update** I will use the following story for this week's theme of "night"over at Thematic Photographic, even though I do not have an actual photograph. I hope you can visualize the photo! I will try to look in my archives of hard copies for a prairie wintry night!

Startled, I awoke at 3 am to the sound of loud banging at my door. Reluctantly I stirred from my cozy, warm bed and answered the door. It was our security man, Keith. The year was 1991 and I was a student in my final year at Briercrest Bible College in Caronport, Saskatchewan. ( for my American friends, Saskatchewan is one of the prairie provinces north of the Dakota's!)

Caronport, home of Briercrest, is situated on the Trans Canada Highway in the middle of nowhere - well for a city girl from Ontario, it was the middle of nowhere! It used to be the old Canadian Air Force base in the early 1900's. A Petro Canada gas station and restaurant was located at the entrance to Caronport. However, they were not open at three in the morning.

The weather outside was bone chilling cold, typical for the prairies in the middle of winter. The wind was howling at break-neck speed stirring the dusting of snow viciously across the highway.

Keith apologized for waking me up but needed my help. A young girl driving alone from Calgary, Alberta to Brandon, Manitoba ( about a 15 hour drive) hit black ice and rolled her car into the ditch right in front of the gas station.

Clearly, God was watching over this girl. Caronport was the only town for miles and at three in the morning, on an extremely cold winter's night, there wasn't much traffic on the highway. She would have froze to death, alone in her car.

Instead, God brought her to us. Keith told me he took her to the guest room on the first floor of my dorm. He asked that I go be with her as she was pretty shaken up. Miraculously, she suffered no physical injuries.

By this time I was wide awake and had the kettle on. I brought her a cup of hot chocolate to warm her insides and warm her shaken soul. I sat with her for a while. We didn't talk much but I did ask if she would like me to pray for her. She accepted my offer and quietly sobbed as I petitioned God. After our prayer, I left her alone so she could get some rest before her father arrived from Manitoba the next day. As I climbed back into my cozy, warm bed to try to get a couple hours of sleep before breakfast, I thanked God for protecting this girl and allowing Keith and I to assist her in this tangible way.

By the time I awoke later that morning she was gone. I never did find out the ending to her story. Yet over the course of the next couple of years she would come to my mind and I would say a little prayer for her.

It has been about 15 years since I have thought about that stranger in the night. I can't recall her name now. Nevertheless, God brought her to my mind this morning while I was sitting in church. I don't know why but do know I needed to say a little prayer for the girl who almost froze to death, alone on that cold, dark wintry night on the prairie.