Bittersweet

I'm convinced it all began long before Braeden was even born, his love for Christ that is. I feel like I never stopped praying the entire time I was pregnant with him. After losing our first baby at the end of my first trimester I was scared to the core of losing another child.... especially when I was having all the same symptoms I had in the first pregnancy. Finally his due date came... and then went. The next Thursday my Doctor agreed that they should induce. So that night Chad and I went to the hospital relieved that our baby boy would finally be in our arms by the next day. Ha! That's just what we thought. Even with the pitocin the contractions were not enough to put me into labor. Friday and Saturday went by dreadfully slow, as did Sunday morning. Sometime after lunch I was napping when I woke to find our pastor, Brother Buddy there. He had heard about me being in the hospital and wanted to come to offer his support and best of all, his prayers. Before he left everyone gathered around me as we all bowed our heads as he prayed for God to please protect Braeden and I during my delivery and for God to please allow me to have Braeden soon. Within 30 minutes after he left I could tell it was time. Finally. Braeden Hunter came in to this world at a healthy 7 pounds 7 ounces which was big for me seeing how I only weighed 85 pounds myself when I got pregnant with him. We were even able to go home the very next day. I was thrilled that Braeden was finally here especially because the next Sunday was Easter and this meant I was going to get to go shopping for my baby's first Easter outfit for church!

So, since he was a whole 7 days old he has been listening to The Word of God. Of course being my first child, I wasn't willing to leave him in the nursery during church...months and even years down the road. Braeden would sit and listen intently even as he colored in the notebook we brought for him each week. When Braeden was about 2 years old he had nearly filled another notebook so Chad and I started thumbing through it adoring the sweet pictures he was drawing when we came across several stick figures with sad faces clearly drawn on crosses with details such as fingers and red crayon colored on the hands and feet of each. Chad asked Braeden who the pictures were of and without any hesitation and said,"it's Jesus Daddy." We were amazed by detail a toddler had put in to these drawings and quite frankly it absolutely melted our hearts that our baby already knew the existence of Jesus.

Time and time again people would stop us and tell us how special of a little boy Braeden was and of course each time Brother Buddy would be around he would always say "well there's my boy! He's gonna be a preacher one day I tell ya!" At a Sunday evening service in October of 2004 during the invitation Braeden looked up at us and said I need to go up there because I want Jesus in my heart. So we went. Braeden confidently walked up to Brother Buddy and told him that he wanted to ask Jesus into his heart. He asked Chad how old Braeden was now and Chad let him know that he had turned 4 in April. He was hesitant and responded that it was very rare that a child so young would grasp the concept of God's saving grace. He asked if we would be comfortable with waiting a bit to feel Braeden out before moving any further with him that night and we agreed it was fine. The next week we were at some friends of ours house who also had a 4 year old son. Chad and his friend were outside in the back yard practicing shooting their bows at a target when we over heard the little boy telling Braeden how he was feeling sad about having to go back and forth between his mom and step dad's house and his dad's house. Chad and I both froze when we heard Braeden as he explained that he should just pray to Jesus to make everything better for him then if he asked Jesus into his heart he would always have Jesus to talk to and help him because he died on the cross for them. At the tender age of 4 years old Braeden was spreading the love of Jesus! The next Sunday we practically ran up the aisle once the invitation began to tell Brother Buddy about how Braeden was witnessing to his friends. Brother Buddy told us without a doubt he was indeed ready to pray and ask Jesus to come into his enormous little heart. Braeden was baptized during the evening service on Sunday, November 14, 2004.

Still to this day we have people we know and even more often, perfect strangers come up to Chad or I and tell us that there is something "different" about Braeden. A lady probably in her fifties sought me out after a funeral we had attended because she said she had been drawn to Braeden. She told me that God wanted her to tell me that he had bigger plans for Braeden than I could ever imagine for my child and that one day he would lead many people to the Lord. I instantly felt a chill run through my body and tears started building in my eyes. I explained that something like that would not surprise me one bit and thanked her for being brave enough to approach me, as a stranger to tell me what she had. She gave me a hug before she turned to go outside and we didn't see her again. During the ride home I cried as I told Chad and Braeden about the things the lady said to me. Braeden just smiled, laughed a little and said,"man, I guess I'm not gonna play football in the NFL then."

In 2009, which was Braeden's 4th grade year he struggled daily with math so I called up to the high school and asked if they could recommend someone to tutor Braeden. The next day I received a call from the high school's office letting me know they had a student willing to work with him. We set up a time to meet at the library following Tuesday. The first day Braeden walked into the high school library and Courtney was sitting there you could his face blush instantly. Here was this gorgeous high school cheerleader with long blonde hair and she was going to be helping him two times a weeks with his math. I usually stayed in the library at a different table reading or helping Chloe with her homework while Courtney was helping Braeden. Over time you see Braeden getting more comfortable with her and a friendship in the making. Courtney was and still is a God's girl and you can see it all over her and in everything she does. She was definitely Heaven sent, an amazing example for Braeden of a teenager who didn't let the normal high school temptations corrupt her beliefs. The year after Courtney graduated she text Braeden and let him know that she would be coming home at the beginning of the summer to hold a car wash to earn money for a mission trip she would be going on in the Panama Jungle. Braeden started texting everyone he knew letting them know about the car wash then asked if we had plans for that Saturday because he wanted to go help Courtney wash cars. On Saturday morning he was up and at'em ready to go help. We dropped him off about 9 a.m. and let him and Courtney know we'd be back around 1 to get him. Chad and I had some errands to run in town that day so we drove by the car wash a couple times and seen Braeden busy, washing cars with a huge smile on his face. Can you imagine what a smile it brings to a parent's heart to see their pre-teen joyfully working for God? When we picked Braeden up that afternoon he talked non stop about everything Courtney would be doing and how he couldn't wait to be an adult so that he could go on mission trips also.

Several times this year either at church or just visiting with friends, mission work has been brought up and every time you can see Braeden's face light up. Saturday, October 1 was no different. We were at the youth rally held on the first Saturday of each month when a girl from one of the other churches let everyone know that she would be going on a mission trip to Romania next year. We no sooner got in the car that night to come home when Braeden asked how she was going on a mission trip and she wasn't much older than he was. We weren't quite sure so we suggested if he wanted to find out that we felt sure Courtney would be able to help him. He text her right away and she let him know that she was working for Global Expeditions, and that's what they do, set up mission trips all over the world. She wasn't sure about Braeden's age so she told him she would let him know as soon as she could. The next morning at church Braeden was quieter than usual, you could tell there was something on his mind. During the time of invitation at the end of the church service Braeden made his way past his Dad and I with tears in his eyes up to the alter where he knelt in prayer. Chad, myself, Chloe and several other members of his youth group came to kneel and pray with him that morning. It was obvious something was happening in my baby's heart. When he stood to go back to his seat there were no words spoken between any of us...just hugs. As soon as we were in the car he asked Chad to please hand him his cell phone so he could text Courtney. By the time we were back at the church for Sunday afternoon Bible study, Braeden was an entirely different child with a huge smile on his face racing from person to person telling them that he had made the decision to go on a mission trip with his friend Courtney to the Panama Jungle during the next summer. I'm sure he either called or text every single contact in his phone that evening so he could tell them "good news" as he called it, that he was going to be a missionary.

As soon as Braeden jumped in the car on Monday after school he was texting Courtney again to find out what all he needed to do to get everything started. We waited to hear back about the age exception application and a little over a week and a half went by when we found out that they would allow Braeden to go even though he was so young. On Tuesday night while Chad was in class and Chloe was busy reading, Braeden and I sat down once again to finish and submit his final application for the trip. Finally it was done and we figured it would take a few days to hear any news back. When Chad got home that night he said that while he was in class someone from Global Expeditions had called and left a message on his phone saying they needed to speak to Braeden. With it being almost 10 at night we thought it was best that he just wait until after school the next day to return the call. Braeden anxiously called when he came home from school this afternoon. You could tell he was nervous with his quiet voice shaking as he talked to the representative. They asked to speak to me to verify Braeden had his parent's permission to go on the trip so I confirmed and they politely asked to speak again to Braeden. By the end of the conversation it was all complete and his application was confirmed, Braeden, my 11 year blessing from God, would be going on a mission trip in the Panama Jungle for the entire month of June and part of July in 2012.....wow!

Just today, I was nauseated as I seen the picture of the Christians burned in Nigeria. Am I scared for Braeden?...yes. Am I worried?...no, I have faith beyond faith that God will have Braeden and the others going with him in His hands protecting them. Now when the time comes for him to leave it'll be such a bittersweet moment. So proud to see the man he is becoming but sad that it's come so early and will be taking him away from me for a month. Just as much as I know God will take care of Braeden during that time, I know he will also take care of me.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.~Matthew 5:16