We are all probably familiar with the childhood fable, Little Red Riding Hood, whereby a young girl innocently sets off down the trail to her grandmother’s house. Before long, she encounters a wolf along her path but doesn’t know it is dangerous to talk with him. She politely answers the wolf’s questions, in great detail too, about her whereabouts. Unbeknownst to her, the wolf was plotting to consume her as he later disguised himself as

the little girl’s grandmother. Thus, when Little Red Riding Hood arrived at her grandmother’s house, she was surprised to find her grandmother in bed looking quite different than she expected. She began to question her grandmother (who, at this point, was really the wolf in disguise) about her usually large hands, ears, and eyes. The grandmother offered logical explanations for her large features until she was questioned about her teeth. At that point, the character’s true predatory character was revealed and the wolf jumped out of bed and consumed the little girl. Unfortunately, friends, this almost happened to me. Allow me to explain.
   Five years ago I wrote a song called, "I Only Know To Pray," about the dangers of the internet. In particular, it dealt with young girls exploiting themselves. The song was based on a trend that I saw among young girls that I knew at the time. I am blessed and amazed by how well this song has been received in concerts and in cd reviews--it is on my latest album, Keep On Prayin'. I never realized, however, that this song would come to stand for so much more. In addition to folks telling me their stories about "lost" loved ones and how this song encourages them to keep praying for them, this song has taken on new meaning for me. Recently, I found out that I was a victim of internet fraud. It started with a person that I was acquainted with in the gospel industry for about 5 years. On many occasions, this person provided very resourceful information that helped me launch both of my cd projects and helped me learn the ropes of the music business.
   During this past year, however, this man stated he had a family (a wife and three daughters) and "introduced" me to them via Facebook and email. We immediately began corresponding and I tried to be a godly role model to these three girls as they navigated the troubled waters of their teenage years. I was told they were adopted and came from loss, abuse, incest and rape. They asked me many personal and sensitive questions and I truly believed, as one who has tried to take the high road throughout the course of my life, that I was helping them to be strong, virtuous women. At times, I would be silly and let my hair down a bit and engage in the personal banter and many other times I would be firm but loving and would correct them. I had their "parents" permission to do so and I thought I was making a difference in their lives. For those who know me and have been around my ministry for a while, you know that I desire to make a difference wherever I go with whomever I meet. It has always been my goal to instill self-respect and modesty in girls (as well as boys) of all ages.