An Open Letter to the Man Who Kicked in My Door

It was a normal Friday morning until the front door flew open.

I have so many questions for you. Why did you pick my house? Why did you feel the need to kick in my front door? What did you hope to find in my house?

I am sure you have done this before. You appeared to know what you were doing. You were trying to be cautious.

Did you think you were alone?

I know you heard my voice through the security camera in the living room. Did you know I was watching you? Did you know where I was?

Maybe I was in the basement doing laundry. You knocked and waited maybe half a minute before kicking in the door. I could not have answered the door that fast. Was I walking towards the stairs when I saw you peek in the window? I saw you kick in the door. I was watching you.

After you kicked in the door, I would have stayed put. Maybe one of my precious grandchildren was there, helping grandma with the clothes. Maybe I had my hand over their mouth, whispering in an ear that it was okay and we needed to stay quiet. The police would be coming soon.

You didn’t know where I was. But I knew where you were. I was watching you. Listening to your footsteps as you walked down the hall and into my bedroom. The sound of drawers opening and items being moved.

Did you know you were on camera?

Maybe I wasn’t home. I could have been at the grocery store, pushing my cart down the cereal aisle, when I received the intruder alert on my phone. Did I shout at you with other shoppers looking on? Did one of them call 911 while I continued to feel panic spread through my body? Did they look over my shoulder and watch you on my phone? Did one of them recognize you? Did a crowd gather, watching as you peeked out the front door to see if you were safe? Watching you walk into the kitchen? Watching you bolt out the front door when you decided it was no longer a safe place?

It’s no longer a safe place for me either. Or my family. You not only broke our door, you broke our feeling of security. If I had answered the door, what would you have done? I can’t think about that. I don’t want to know.

Was it worth it? Did you accomplish your goal? Did you have a goal? The police have video from inside and outside of the house. Your face is all over social media. People are providing leads to the police. Even though you covered your fingers with your grey hoodie, you left a few fingerprints when you stopped being careful.

Maybe you don’t care if your family sees you kicking in my door. Looking around to be sure no one is watching. Maybe they know you are a thief, a criminal, someone who takes from others. Someone who hurts people. Do you know you can hurt people without touching them?

I hope you are caught. I hope you serve time. I hope this will be a turning point in your life and you use that time to look deep into your soul.

I wasn’t the only one watching you. The One who sees all and knows all was watching. God sees your heart and loves you. It is never too late to repent. It is never too late to get on your knees and pray.

You may not care, but I forgive you. I forgive you for breaking my door and scaring my family. I forgive you because I don’t want to carry the weight of unforgiveness.

I pray you find the peace, love, and forgiveness of Jesus. I also pray you make changes in your life before you kick in a door and find a homeowner ready with a gun.