By Cathy Kissling
When I heard that Eddie Bratton was retiring after a long, successful ministry at the Petersburg Church of Christ in Illinois, memories came flooding to me. I recalled a time in my life when Eddie and his wife, Lois, ministered to a small church in Kalkaska, Michigan, where I attended with my seven siblings (five sisters and two brothers) and parents in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Turmoil
It was a dark time for my family. With eight children, my parents had more than their share of stress. In fact, they were fighting bitterly, and it became apparent their marriage of 17-plus years was in trouble. I was in junior high then and in turmoil over many, many things””not the least of which was my parents” fighting.
One of the bright spots in my life at that time was the strong youth group at the Church of Christ in Kalkaska. It seemed that everyone I knew or cared about attended, and we had a blast being together. It helped that most of my siblings attended the high school youth group with me.
The youth minister and adult youth sponsors were great and fed us a weekly helping of solid, biblical truths, giving each of us a firm foundation to stand on.
We did not realize it at the time, but it was the vehicle God used to preserve us. Without the careful, God-guided leadership of Eddie Bratton and the elders at the Church of Christ, my life and the lives of many of my siblings””and of many lifelong friends””might have taken a very different path.
I vividly remember being awakened in the middle of the night when I was 10 or 11. My mother told us children to quickly get dressed as she threw a few pieces of our clothing in a bag. We were all huddling by the front door and then rushed out to a station wagon and driven to the home of a church elder who lived in the country. We woke up the next morning to the mooing of cows. We stayed with them for several days before returning home.
Looking back at that event, I am amazed that this elder and his family opened their home to us in the middle of the night””a family of so many children! They had three children of their own and took us in without question, so it seemed. Their generosity and hospitality during my mother”s hour of need was truly God”s provision. They were not only willing, but eager to answer the call of others who needed safety and protection. What a model of leadership that event still is for me today!
Comfort
Another vivid memory during that time in my young life was of Eddie Bratton. I was reluctant to confide in many adults, but I was drawn to Eddie”s wonderful, caring manner. His sermons spoke of God”s abundant love for us, and he sometimes sang special music, either on his own or with a group, for the church service. I can still hear his clear, strong voice singing out one of the precious hymns that we cherish from our childhood.
I didn”t always know where to turn for help in alleviating the anxiety that was building, but took a step of courage for a junior high-aged person and made an appointment to talk with him. He did not hesitate to meet with me. It was evening. As the two of us sat in a dark, quiet sanctuary at the church, I poured out my confusion and concerns to him as if I were verbalizing my frustration to God about my parents” situation.
Although he had a growing family of children by then, he sat with me for what seemed like hours, just listening and praying with a confused, discouraged, and frightened girl. I”ll never forget the comfort I felt in knowing he was there when I needed a shoulder to cry on.
That”s just how the Brattons were. They rescued my mother time after time. More than once Lois took us children to her home to play and eat, giving us hours of stress-free time. She allowed us to become part of their family when ours was falling apart.
Survival
It is so good to see how God held our family in his hands during that time of great sorrow. It isn”t easy when your parents” marriage is dying. As a result of the support, prayers, and lives of Eddie and Lois Bratton, as well as the church leadership at the Church of Christ in Kalkaska, all of my siblings survived the ordeal intact.
Both of my brothers have positions of leadership in the church they attend faithfully””one is an elder and one is a deacon. My younger brother is a deacon at Kalkaska, where his wife serves as church secretary. An older sister teaches ministry and New Testament courses at a Bible college. My other sisters are very, very active in the lives of their respective churches. My youngest sister is married to a minister who serves a congregation in Ohio.
We are a close family of siblings now. Seven years ago, my youngest sister organized our first “Sisters” Weekend,” an annual event where the eight sisters (two sisters-in-law are included) gather for a weekend of pure enjoyment of each other”s company.
Because we share memories””good and bad””and a deep love for God and for each another, we strengthen one another. A major part of our memories include those years when Eddie and Lois Bratton and the Kalkaska Church of Christ were instrumental in developing and forming our lives.
On behalf of one family, thank you so much.
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Cathy Kissling serves, with her husband Paul Kissling, as the registrar and administrative support for TCM International Institute near Heiligenkreuz, Austria. For more information about this ministry, see TCMI’s home page on the Web at www.tcmi.org.
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