3ABN Radio

By Bobby Davis

August 1, 2016April 9, 2026

Touchdown—Just Two Miles Away – Mike and Kris Cavaness

By Bobby Davis

Over the years, we’ve published scores of the most amazing stories of how the Lord brought people of all descriptions in contact with Three Angels Broadcasting Network—stories of satellite dishes stuck on 3ABN, radio broadcasts picked up hundreds of miles away, and TVs that would pick up nothing else. But this story happened close to home— practically in our backyard!

Mike Cavaness was raised in Akin, Illinois, just a few miles away. “My family owned property here in Franklin County, and I bought part of their farm,” he says. “I’ve always been very content in southern Illinois, and honestly, I’ve never aspired to live anywhere else.”

His wife Kris agrees. “My family moved from Oklahoma to McLeansboro when I was in grade school, and although I could live anywhere, I want to be where Mike is, so I love it here, too. Mike and I met one summer, and we began dating. But I was working in Springfield, four hours away, and Mike was attending Bailey Technical Schools in St. Louis, Missouri. So we drove back home on weekends to go out on Saturday nights.

“Two years later, we married, and Mike became the youngest transportation manager his boat factory had ever hired. He was blessed with successful careers in the auto parts and tire businesses, and I worked for the state’s Rehabilitation Services until we decided to start a family. Then I stayed home to be a full-time mom, and I believe that’s God’s greatest job! Today we have two grown daughters, Erin and Joanie; a fine son-in-law, Steve; and a wonderful boy and girl set of twin grandchildren who are now seventeen!”

When their children were older, the couple decided to buy an old gas station in Thompsonville, and while Mike worked on car and tire repairs, Kris washed car windows and pumped gas. Eventually they tore the old station down and built a new one, and some years later, they sold the business, and both of them worked other jobs until they retired.

Beliefs

Mike says his mother tried to raise him as a Catholic, “But my dad was a Baptist that didn’t go to church, so that didn’t last long. From then on, we didn’t have any church affiliation,” he says. “But when I was 16, a terrible motorcycle accident changed my life .My leg was crushed, so I had multiple surgeries and was in the hospital for nearly six months. During that time, a Baptist preacher came by to visit me once, and although I didn’t know him, he prayed with me, and then gave me his little white Bible with a zipper, and encouraged me to give my heart to the Lord and be saved. I was desperate for change, so I did, but I never knew what else to do—until I met Kris.”

“Mike told me he prayed for three things in that hospital,” Kris recalls. “He prayed to be able to walk normally someday. He prayed to be able to farm again. And he asked God for someone to share his life with.” She pauses for a moment and then laughs. “He never farmed again, but two out of three isn’t bad!”

The influence Kris had on Mike was profound. They both began attending the 10-Mile Baptist Church, and soon he was baptized in Miller Pond.

“I thank God every day for a mother who took me to church every Sunday,” Kris says. “Because of her, I was saved when I was thirteen, and I remained in church ever since.”

Their commitment to the Lord continued throughout their marriage. Mike drove the church bus and was a trustee for many years, while Kris taught Sunday School and Vacation Bible School, ran sound for the Passion play, and did whatever needed to be done at church.

Questions

When it came to doctrines, Kris says she always trusted the man behind the pulpit. “If he said that God had called him to preach, then who was I to question it?” she explains.

However, Mike wasn’t so trusting. “Sometimes I’d question things, but I didn’t push it,” he admits. “I didn’t want to argue, so basically we left those things alone.”

It’s important to note that Mike and Kris were there when Danny Shelton first felt impressed to build a television station that would reach the world. As fellow Christians, they were supportive, and over the years, when some townspeople would criticize 3ABN, they always stayed out of those conversations. “We knew Danny and did business with him at our gas station. We even shared construction equipment while they were building the first studio.”

The Cavaness family was happy in their church and their work, and 3ABN continued to grow into a worldwide television network, adding a radio network in 2000. But while Mike and Kris were aware of our television ministry, it was 2006 before Kris heard 3ABN Radio for the first time.

“You know those moments when something big happens and we remember exactly where we were?” Kris asks. “We all remember when President Kennedy was assassinated, or when the space shuttle exploded. Well, that’s how I felt when I found 3ABN Radio. They were talking about the role of the papacy in the end times, and I drove into a parking lot to listen. I’d never heard such things, and I was absolutely stunned! Can this be true? I wondered.

“I filed it all away, and kept listening to 3ABN nearly every day. When I changed jobs, my schedule changed, and suddenly I was hearing Joe Crews and Amazing Facts. I still remember the highway I was on when he spoke about the body and spirit, and how we’re not immortal souls! He said that wood and nails can be made into a box, but when you take it apart, it’s not a box anymore. Then he explained what the Bible says happens when we die. On our way to church that Sunday, I told Mike about it. It made sense to us, and it was exciting. But when he tried mentioning it at church, no one seemed to know how to handle it.”

Cornbread

One day, as Kris watched the Travel Channel, she learned about a Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburgh, Tennessee, not far from Chattanooga. “It was coming up, and since it was right up our alley, we decided to go. That Sunday, when we’d normally be in church, we sat in our motel searching for a church service on TV, and we found something from Amazing Facts. There was this man, talking to children, and for a good half-hour, we sat there glued to our TV without saying a word. When it was over, we looked at each other and said, ‘Who is this guy?’ From that point on, I kept looking through the Dish Network program guide for any mention of Amazing Facts or Doug Batchelor.”

A Sign

Kris kept listening to 3ABN Radio, and suddenly she began hearing a lot about the Sabbath. “That topic upset me every time,” she admits. “My heart was for God, but I wanted it not to be true because it went against everything I’d been taught. So every time they mentioned the Sabbath, I’d turn off the radio! It kept happening, though, so one day I prayed, ‘Lord, if it matters what day we worship on, then let me know! Just give me a sign, please.’”

She didn’t have to wait long. “We were driving through Thompsonville, past 3ABN’s Worship Center, and there, on the marquee, it said, ‘3ABN’s 2014 Spring Camp Meeting with Pastor Doug Batchelor.”’

Mike and Kris immediately took several days off work to attend. “We had no idea what to expect,” she admits, “but as we sat down, we saw people we knew and had done business with all around us. Then Danny Shelton spotted us, and called us up on stage!”

Mike and Kris Cavaness with Danny Shelton — Mike and Kris attended their very first 3ABN Camp Meeting in 2014. “We had no idea what to expect,” she admits, “but as we sat down, we saw people we knew and had done business with all around us. Then Danny Shelton spotted us, and called us up on stage!”

Mike remembers that moment well. “We shared what we had been learning, and then I said, ‘You know, this gospel is going out to the whole world, but we’re finally getting it right here—just two miles away!’”

Kris continues, “We’d heard about these truths, but we didn’t know what to do with them, so we just put them away. When you’re walking in dogma, it’s hard to consider anything else; but now our eyes were being opened to new truth. We’d had a business on Main Street for many years, but now we were around people who could explain it to us. When we understood the significance of the Sabbath, everything else fell into place.

“Jesus said, ‘If you love Me, keep My commandments.’ How wonderful to know we are now finally keeping His fourth commandment in our Christian walk. Our family members and friends know we love the Lord, and that we’re happy in our newfound understanding of truth.”

Trust

Mike and Kris attended the Thompsonville Seventh-day Adventist Church, and became very involved in 3ABN’s ministry. “When Danny called me up on that stage, I told everyone that if I ever quit my job, I’d volunteer full time,” Kris says, “Little did I know that my office would be shut down soon after. But God had His reasons, and Mike and I got to retire at the same time.”

True to her word, Kris volunteers at our Call Center, and also works with our church’s Vacation Bible School. Meanwhile, Mike began working part time at 3ABN, but longed to maybe get back into the trucking business.

“I found out quickly that’s not what God wanted me to do!” he says with a laugh, “and so far, all the other doors are closed. But God is sovereign, and He faithfully takes care of us, according to His will.”

“And speaking of faithfulness, we’ve tithed since we first got married,” Kris adds. “I told Mike, ‘You do what you have to do, but I’ll tithe what I make.’ And when he tried it, someone came by and bought an old tractor that had been for sale for a long time. It was like God was saying, ‘Trust me, and I’ll take care of you.’”

Mike and Kris joined the Thompsonville Seventh-day Adventist Church by Profession of Faith, and are a wonderful addition to their new church family. God has wonderful plans for their lives, and we can’t wait to see them unfold!

Thompsonville Seventh-day Adventist Church

Thompsonville Seventh-day Adventist Church Website

By Bobby Davis

July 1, 2016April 9, 2026

Reaching In, Reaching Out – Prisoners

By Bobby Davis

For many years, 3ABN’s Pastoral Ministries Department has corresponded with inmates, answering their Bible questions and sharing spiritual food. In addition, they’ve prayed over their prayer requests, and sent them Bibles, books, and Bible study courses, too.

Reaching In Through Television

By God’s grace, 3ABN television is currently reaching around 46,000 inmates in 40 prisons, and the stories of changed lives are amazing. One inmate in his twenty-second year of incarceration wrote to tell us that he’d searched for God by attending church services in the Church of God, Baptist, Pentecostal, Lutheran, Methodist, and Roman Catholic faiths. However, he still felt empty.

In prison, he made a firm decision to live for God. He joined the Episcopal Church, and then enrolled in college classes to prepare for the ministry.

But what little faith he had was soon challenged. “I was being taught that many books of the Bible were mythology, parables, or simply non-factual,” he says. “Their teachings often seemed at odds with the Scriptures, and even worse, the instructor seemed to be trying to force the Scriptures to say something they never intended to! The longer I took those classes, the more confused I became, and by the time I dropped out, I wasn’t sure what to believe in anymore. So I stepped away from organized religion to study the Bible on my own.”

He sat down with an Oxford Annotated Study Bible, a borrowed King James Bible, and a worn-out paperback version of the Holman Christian Standard Bible in modern English. Methodically, he read each one through and compared the three versions, verse by verse. When he found verses that didn’t seem to agree with each other, he searched for the original Hebrew and Greek meanings in the chapel’s huge, exhaustive concordance.

“Nearly three years later, I’d read through all three Bibles three times,” he writes. “And by then, I’d concluded that almost everything I thought I knew about God’s Word—and almost everything I’d been taught by my church and family—was wrong!

“I soaked up God’s truths like a sponge, but didn’t know what to do with it. I wanted to tell the world, but honestly, I was afraid they would think I was crazy. I didn’t know anyone else who believed as I did, so I felt more alone than ever. I grieved over the knowledge God had given me, since it set me apart from everyone I knew. So I began to ask God to help me understand what to do with it.

“Shortly after this, while flipping through the TV channels, I stumbled onto 3ABN. All of a sudden I wasn’t alone anymore! I wasn’t crazy—unless millions more were crazy with me—and I was overjoyed! I immediately recognized my brothers and sisters in Christ by the message they proclaimed, and 3ABN became my second home, as well as my place of worship. If I was a castaway, then 3ABN had become my life raft—my secure place in a sea of confused Christians.

“One day I heard of a group who met on Saturdays for worship, and I couldn’t wait to visit. After attending for eight Sabbaths, I asked to be baptized; and two weeks later, I joined the local prison congregation and became a member of my local Seventh-day Adventist Conference!”

Reaching In Through Radio

3ABN Radio also reaches in behind the walls through radio stations that “just happen” to be located where prisoners can listen. A prisoner in Michigan writes, “I thank 3ABN Radio for saving my life. My first five months in prison were the darkest period of my life on this earth, and I felt so lost that I contemplated suicide. However, something kept me walking back to my bunk, where I finally begged God to deliver me from the pain and anguish in my heart and soul.”

Putting on his headphones, he says that he searched the dial for some music, but instead found a 3ABN Radio station broadcasting a sermon by Doug Batchelor. “I felt like he was speaking right to me!” he exclaims. “I’ll pray that someone else may be saved the same way I was!”

Reaching In Through Literature

God is not just using television and radio. An inmate in Texas writes, “Thank you so much for sending me a copy of the book, The Antichrist Agenda. It’s been a blessing to me, as well as to many others in this prison. Today is the third Sabbath I’ve observed, and I intend to discuss this matter in detail with my pastor upon my release.”

An inmate in Indiana writes, “I received the Bible and the information booklet you sent me. It’s the nicest thing anybody has done for me in a very long time. I would like to thank everybody who donates to 3ABN. I will put the Bible to good use daily, and have already started. I’ve tried so many churches growing up, but never totally agreed with them. What do I have to do to become a Seventh-day Adventist?”

Reaching In Through DVDs

Recently, we received a letter from a man we’ll call “Mark” in the Cayman Islands who’s serving a life sentence. We first heard from him several years ago, when he asked our Call Center manager for materials he could use for outreach in his prison. But when our Pastoral Ministries Department volunteer, Grace Yost, received a phone call from him, she was rather surprised.

Prison Chapel — Mark (a pseudonym) stands in the chapel he was able to remodel with his own funds some years ago. By God’s grace he was able to make many improvements, including the addition of the Ten Commandments, and two large murals, depicting the Last Supper and a picture of Jesus Christ.

“At first I thought, Is this a joke?” she recalls. “After all, was it even possible that I was talking to an inmate calling from the Cayman Islands? Then he explained to me that his prison job allowed him access to the telephone, and that he’d been in touch with one of our previous Call Center managers. I was immediately impressed by the sincerity with which he asked for materials. It was clear that the Lord had transformed his life, and that his greatest desire was to reach others for Christ.

“We’ve sent quite a few DVDs to prisons, like Unclean Spirits with John Lomacang, The Harvest Is Ready! with C. A. Murray, and episodes of Celebrating Life in Recovery with Cheri Peters,” Grace continues. “Mark says that Free Indeed, featuring the stories of prisoners who’ve found freedom in Christ, are especially popular in his prison.

“Of course, many correctional facilities only have one television in each wing, and Christians have difficulty convincing the rest of the population to let them watch religious programs. So they watch the DVDs in their chapel, learning new truths together and often using them as a springboard for further Bible study or discussion.”

Reaching Out

As inmate lives are transformed, a deep desire arises in each of them to reach out to fellow inmates with God’s amazing grace and salvation. Recently, Mark worked hard with the local churches to coordinate an evangelistic series in his prison, and was overjoyed by the results.

“Yesterday, nine precious souls were baptized at HM Northward prison,” he writes, “so I am no longer the only Seventh-day Adventist baptized member here! Thank you, 3ABN, for the many resources you’ve sent me. Surely the Holy Spirit is working in this place. My labour is not in vain. There are new names written down in glory!”

Friday night and Sabbath Worship attendance is growing, a Conference Bible worker now brings a Bible study to 22 inmates every Wednesday, and they’re anticipating another baptism this summer.

“When we receive a letter like this, we rejoice at how God reaches those inmates who are searching,” Grace says. “Their letters tell us the horrible backgrounds they’ve come from. Many have been frightfully abused since they were tiny children. But the healing power of Jesus, combined with our humble efforts, gives them hope that we’ll all be together in His heavenly kingdom.”

Changed Lives

Mark is enthusiastic about what happens when new Christians leave prison. “God has big plans for those who find Him here but then leave this place,” he says. “An inmate who was converted and baptized is now conducting an evangelistic series with a pastor in Barbados! Another man who fled the country after being charged with drug trafficking, arrived back here suicidal. But the Holy Spirit won him to Jesus, and he was baptized. Today he is a faithful member on the outside and is doing his part for the Lord.”

Mark receives much support from the Cayman Island Seventh-day Adventist Conference, and is especially grateful to Pastor Reinaldo Dracket, their executive secretary, who has always helped tremendously. He’s also greatly blessed by the Adventist pastors who lead out in church services each week. “But our main support with materials has come from 3ABN,” he adds. “We’ve received cases of books and many DVDs. And when the inmates watch them, the Holy Spirit works on their hearts and opens their eyes.

“I’m also deeply grateful for the materials we receive from United Prison Ministries International and Inspiration Books East, in Alabama. These materials are changing lives!”

Grace is quick to add her gratitude for those who contribute each month to 3ABN’s prison ministry. “We can send these materials only because of the generosity of our donors, and my heart is humbled when I realize that God’s ministry has opened up their hearts to support those who don’t have the ability to receive materials freely, as we do in our country. Thank you for your prayers and financial support that make this possible.”

By Bobby Davis

February 1, 2016April 9, 2026

Like Coming Home – Eric Dryden

By Bobby Davis

Religion can be confusing to some children, but it was downright baffling to Eric Dryden. “I grew up in Hannibal, Missouri, along the banks of the Mississippi River,” he says, “and my mother was a staunch Roman Catholic, while my father was a member of the Aaronic priesthood in the Mormon faith. Since they both believed strongly in their religions, we attended the Catholic church one Sunday, and the Mormon church the next. I remember being scared as a kid, because both religions seemed focused on sin, and both preached fire and damnation!

“But that all came to a complete halt when I was about nine years old,” he recalls. “Very suddenly, my parents decided that instead of going back and forth, we would all go to a Pentecostal church. We went from church rituals to speaking in tongues, and it all seemed very strange to me. My brothers just tuned it all out, but I was the observant child who paid very special attention to details, so it was really hard for me to switch gears. They talked about God and read the Bible, and that was a good thing. However, by the time I was 15 or 16, I’d decided that there were so many different churches and beliefs that no one could figure it out. I had started growing my hair out and playing heavy metal rock because they sang about stuff I felt, and I was done with religion. I believed in God, but I didn’t want anyone telling me if I was good or bad.

“At that point everything became a struggle,” he admits, “and my parents had to all but drag me to church.”

Work

While he was still in high school, Eric landed a job with the Top 40 station, KGRC, and was surprised to see his musical taste change. “Instead of music that talked about death and killing, I began listening to music that made me feel happy and alive,” he says. “Then, a friend suggested that I apply for a job at a restaurant, and that eventually led me to the chef position at the Hannibal Country Club.”

Work was exhilarating, but it soon dominated his life. Besides his job at the country club, Eric began working for the local Sheriff’s department—which led in time to another job with the federal government.

Eric, Robert, and Makayla — Eric and his 18-year old son Robert Emmanuel, and 16-year old daughter Makayla Helen. “They are the love of my life,” he says.

“All this took its toll on me,” he says, “and I now suffer from PTSD and only get a few hours of sleep each night. My work kept me away from my home, and I saw my marriage fail. However, we had two beautiful children who are the love of my life.”

A second marriage also ended with a broken heart, and Eric says he now felt a huge void in his life. “I missed having a church family, and felt I didn’t have anyone to talk to. As a last resort, I turned to prayer because no matter what was going on, I knew I could always talk to God.”

A Radio Station

While Eric worked at the military academy in Mexico, Missouri, he met his third wife. “We both changed jobs when we got married,” he says. “She began working for the State Mental Hospital, and I took a job as a representative for a high-end guitar company. Since she worked 30 miles away, I would often take her to work and then spend the day at a park. One day, the heavy metal CD I tried to play in my car wouldn’t work, so I switched to the radio. However, it seemed that the only thing I could get was KRFL-LP, a low-power FM radio station in Fulton, Missouri. The program I heard was called Your Story Hour, and it instantly brought me back to my childhood. There were those Bible stories I’d heard as a child, and they were exactly what I needed! The next program was with Pastor Doug Batchelor, and I enjoyed it so much, I just kept listening. I listened all day, before realizing it was time to pick up my wife. I’d gone through half a talk of fuel, since the engine had been running the whole time!

“I was hooked. The 3ABN Radio programs pulled me in, although my wife couldn’t stand them. I was addicted to 3ABN Radio, and I couldn’t pull away.”

Leon Makovicka stands by the KRFL-LP 107.9 FM transmitter and tower in Fulton, Missouri—the 3ABN Radio affiliate that changed Eric Dryden’s life.

Eventually, Eric heard Doug Batchelor suggest that he should look up and visit a local Seventh-day Adventist church. “KRFL Radio announced their local church services from time to time, and one day I was almost past the church when I saw it,” he says. “My law enforcement skills kicked in, and I turned my car sideways at 35 mph and pulled directly into the parking lot! It wasn’t even a second thought; it was like a magnet pulling me in. And as I walked in, I had the curious feeling that I was coming home!”

The Sabbath

Eric had never heard the word ‘Sabbath’ mentioned, except for the heavy metal band, Black Sabbath. “It was all new and strange to me, but I knew it was right. Sabbath was like breathing, and we all have to breathe, so I knew right away there was something right about it. The service started at 9:15, and when they served a vegetarian meal afterward, it was different, because I was a hunter and had always liked to hunt!

“After everything was over, though, I didn’t want it to end. I sat in my driveway and teared up. Wouldn’t it be nice to have Sabbath every single day? I thought. I know it can’t be that way right now, but someday it will be, in Heaven!”

Eric says he attended four or five Sabbaths consecutively, but then felt he needed to do some soul searching.

“I come from law enforcement, and I’ve been trained to take a step back and look at things objectively,” he explains. “I’ve dealt with people who get pulled into different things, but finally recognized that I felt much happier and safer when I was in church. That’s when I knew it was time—I wanted to be baptized and become a member of the Seventh-day Adventist church.”

An Amazing Facts series with Wyatt Alan was scheduled, and Eric says it had a great impact on his life. “I managed to talk my wife into coming to the meetings,” he says, “but she wasn’t happy, at first.”

Pastor Neil Dye, of the Fulton Church, recalls, “Eric and his wife were having some problems. She had struggled with alcohol and smoking, and we prayed for victory over these things. They attended every night, and by the end of our series, they’d both made commitments to follow the Lord. God did give her the victory, and I was thrilled to see Eric take a firm stand to support her when she told him she might have to quit her job if she couldn’t get Sabbaths off. She’s scheduled to be baptized soon,” he adds, “and they continue to soak in God’s Word.”

Eric is ecstatic. “My wife loves coming to church,” he says, “and she’s stopped smoking, too! She just received approval to have her Sabbaths off from working at the hospital, and I can’t wait to see her be baptized!”

A New Life

Eric says his own baptism was amazing. “I was baptized as a young kid, but I don’t remember that,” he says. “However, I do remember this one, because I actually cried! Two weeks later, I was driving and listening to KRFL but had to pull off the road because I was crying so hard. Something about this church has made me very emotional. And while I don’t like crying, somehow I love it, because these are tears of gratitude!

“This is the first time I’ve had a relationship with Jesus, and everything’s coming together for me. My job brings me in contact with professional musicians, and many of them are on the fence when it comes to the Lord. But they have problems, too, and whether I’m at a convention or talking one on one, I’ve been given the opportunity to share the peace I’ve found in Jesus Christ.”

Eric says his musical tastes have changed drastically, too. “One day I picked up a guitar and I tried playing a heavy metal tune, but kept stumbling over the simplest stuff! So I started playing a classical piece, and the next thing I knew, I’m playing Christian music! I realized the devil was just trying to kick me around, but the Lord has taken away my taste for Satan’s music, and today, I’m working on ‘The Old Rugged Cross.’

“I didn’t realize when I first heard KRFL that the Lord had stretched that signal many miles beyond what it normally reached. But that’s what He did for me, and I’m forever grateful.”

That radio station began with Leon Makovicka’s obedience to the Lord when He impressed him to apply for a construction permit and build the station. “As I stood and watched Eric be baptized, I thought, Here is one who was searching for truth and found it, because we followed Your impression to build this station, Lord. God provided the funds to build it, so it’s really His radio station.

“If God asks you to do something, do it! he continues. You may not know what to do, or where the funds will come from, but God does. I trusted Him and He provided. Then He gave me a faith experience that no man can ever take away—saving souls for Christ.”

Fulton Seventh-day Adventist Church

Fulton Seventh-day Adventist Church Website

By Bobby Davis

February 1, 2014April 9, 2026

Radio Changed Her Life – Brenda Kiefer

Brenda Kiefer shakes her head. “I can honestly say I started listening to 3ABN Radio because of someone’s laughter!” she begins. “You see, my 91-year-old friend, Luetta (whom I call ‘Teddy’ because she loves teddy bears) had just given me a new radio, and I was running through the dial when I heard a man laugh. He laughed so hard he got me laughing, too!

“Just then Teddy came by and asked what was so funny.

“ ‘I don’t know,’ I said, ‘but that man’s laugh got me tickled!”

“ ‘You mean you don’t even know who he is?’

“ ‘No! I have no idea,’ I replied. ‘It’s just some station I tuned in.’ ”

The station Brenda was listening to was 3ABN’s WDQN FM 95.9 in Du Quoin, Illinois—and little did she know how that station would change her life!

Childhood Questions

Born in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri—one of the oldest European settlements west of the Mississippi River—Brenda says she was raised Roman Catholic, like most of the kids in town. “My whole family went to Mass every week, and I made First Communion and Confirmation. But as I look back, I think nearly all of my friends were Protestant,” she says.

“I was born with spina bifida, a birth defect where the nerves of my spine did not form properly, causing a variety of problems, and because the local Catholic school couldn’t or wouldn’t put in a wheelchair ramp, I was tutored at home until I went to high school. By that time I was really beginning to question things.

“One day I asked a Protestant friend if I could borrow her Bible.

“ ‘Why do you want to read my Bible? Don’t you have one?’ she asked.

“I didn’t tell her my Catholic Bible was different, so I asked her again, and she finally agreed. You see, I had serious doubts about the host and the wine becoming the literal body and blood of Christ. And the more I thought about it, the less I believed it. Her Bible said that Jesus told His disciples, ‘Do this in remembrance of Me,’ and I took that to mean remembrance, not a literal thing.

“Confession was another problem, mostly because at one time I’d confessed what seemed to be a serious dilemma to the priest, and he’d made light of it. From then on I shied away from confession, and when I read my friend’s Bible, I found that Jesus told us to confess our sins to God, and that He would forgive us. Why should I confess my sins to a man? I wondered. For all I know he has the same problems!

“I also got tired of repeating all those Hail Marys and the Lord’s Prayer. So I started talking to God as a friend, instead. Over the years I stopped going to church on a regular basis, but would still go with my family, once in a while.”

That Laugh

Eventually Brenda discovered who the laughter belonged to—Pastor C. A. Murray, the producer for 3ABN Today who also hosts various programs and serves as our television production manager. “I learned a lot from 3ABN Radio, but when Pastor Murray spoke, I really tuned in,” she says.

“Then one day I called 3ABN Radio and spoke with Nikki Anderson, their administrative assistant. I told her who I was, and that I’d really like to speak with Pastor Murray. To my surprise, she connected me to his office, and he answered! I almost passed out when I realized I had to talk to him, but finally I said that he sounded like a terrific person, based on his laugh, and that I’d like to have a picture of him.”

C.A. told her he didn’t have one handy, but would try to dig one up. However, after several weeks, Brenda figured she’d never get one.

“It was okay,” she says. “I understood, because I’d been in the music business as a child, singing on my own radio show and in front of a crowd of 100,000 as the ‘Sweetheart of the Ozarks.’ I just figured it was a ‘Don’t call us, we’ll call you,’ thing.”

‘Bro’ and ‘Milady’

Most of two years went by, and along the way Brenda subscribed to 3ABN World magazine. Then one day she spotted a picture of C.A. in a group shot.

“He had a gorgeous smile that could light up a room, and I was so happy to finally know what Pastor Murray looked like,” she says.

“Then, last summer, I came down with bladder cancer, and after successful treatment, I moved to a convalescent home in Benton, Illinois, just a few miles away from 3ABN headquarters. I believe this was all part of God’s plan, because one day an attendant said she was a Seventh-day Adventist. I told her I listened to 3ABN Radio, and that I was interested in her beliefs. I don’t recall how it came up, but I also told her I really liked to listen to Pastor Murray.

“She told me she didn’t know him personally, but a few weeks later she found someone who did.

“Two ladies came from the Thompsonville Church, and we had a wonderful discussion for a whole hour. Then they asked if I’d like to meet Pastor Murray. When I told them how much he’d come to mean to me, they promised to mention it the next time they saw him.”

A few weeks later Brenda was informed that she had visitors. “A short, attractive lady with a beautiful accent walked in and said, ‘Brenda, my name is Irma, and I have someone here I think you might want to see.’

“Then, suddenly, there stood her husband Pastor Murray in my doorway!

“‘Oh my goodness, it’s you!’ was all I could get out, and I’m pretty sure that was the first time I’ve truly been at a loss for words!

“We talked for a long time, and at some point I told him that when I got my van fixed, I’d like to visit his church.

“ ‘Well then, I’ll just come by on Saturday morning to pick you up,’ he replied—and he did!

“ ‘You’re a gentleman of your word,’ I told him, and he just smiled and said, ‘Milady…’ and escorted me to the van.

“We got to know each other pretty well, and one day I said, ‘Pastor Murray, I hope you understand this. I grew up without brothers, but I think I’ve found one, and I’m sitting right next to him. Is it okay if I call you “Bro?’ ”

“He smiled and said, ‘I’d be very honored.’ From that day on, I call him ‘Bro,’ and he calls me ‘Milady.’

Baptized

After attending church for about three-and-a-half months, Brenda realized she wanted to be rebaptized.

“Teddy came for a visit, and said the idea was wonderful, so I felt reassured. Then I spoke with Pastor Murray and asked him if he would baptize me, and he answered, ‘I’d be honored to, Milady. Don’t rush into it,’ he added, ‘but if you’re ready, don’t put it off, either.”

Brenda's Baptism — The joy on their faces says it all. Brenda says Pastor C.A. Murray was the only one she would consider to baptize her.

Brenda admits she was a bit apprehensive about how she’d get into the baptistery, “But when they were ready, Pastor Murray just picked me up and carried me to the baptistery. As he climbed the steps, I could hear him breathing sort of heavy, so I asked, ‘Bro, are you alright?’

“ ‘Never been better!’ he answered.

I guess he was so concerned about dropping or hurting me that when he put my head under the water, his head went under, too! I guess we’ve both been baptized twice.”

Teddy had planned to be at her baptism, but called that Sabbath morning from the hospital where she underwent emergency surgery. “It’s all right, though,” Brenda notes. “Today she feels and acts younger than ever.

“One day, out of the blue, Teddy asked me, ‘Do you realize how crazy all of this is? I buy you a radio, and the whole world changes! It boggles my mind!’

Brenda laughs. “Sometime soon, when the weather is good, Teddy’s promised to come to church with me. But wait until I tell her that my story will be in 3ABN World magazine. She’ll probably faint!”

Editor’s Note: Today, Brenda is sleeping in Jesus, awaiting His soon return. She faithfully witnessed to all in her nursing home about her new-found faith, and was cheerful till the end.