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 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.