My name is Khechara Bradford let me tell you my story…
I learned at a young age that no matter what happens at home or in your heart you always smile and give the perception that everything is fine. Growing up I went to church, and tried to be a Christian. I was basically acting most of my life, and I thought it was normal to live a double life. So on the outside…to most of the world…I looked fine. However on the inside I was angry, bitter, jealous, immature, and sought to fulfill my own desires 100% of the time. I put my needs before anyone else’s and although I knew of God, I also knew that there is no way He could love me. I looked for love in all the wrong places, and as a teenager I was a prisoner to lying, stealing, and cheating. On the outside I was smart, funny, ambitious, and attractive. I went through cycles of seeking God the best way I knew how, then sinning, and then running from God because I thought I was too shameful to be in His presence. Praying and reading my Bible were activities I did only at church, and I only went to church because of the importance of appearing to be okay. I knew that I was not okay, but I still tried hard to hide it. The cycle of doing good for awhile and then backsliding continued into adulthood.
In 2006, I finally reached rock bottom—a real rock bottom. I was in a pit so dark and deep I could not see my way out. In my mind I had lost it all. Nothing could help me…not doctors, not medicine, not a great education, not a man…I was hopeless. My husband and I lost a baby during my 8th month of pregnancy. I was not prepared for such a loss. Each day was filled with a continual sense of drowning. This fake life I had built for myself finally crumbled and I was face to face with death. Somewhere deep inside me I knew that only God could heal a wound this deep. But I did not know how to reach God, or where to even start. My life was in shambles. In 2007 I began taking baby steps towards God. I was surprised to find out that He was closer than I thought. I knew that this time around I had to do this for real, and for myself. This time I would not rely on church, or a pastor, or evangelist, or anything I saw on television. I needed a real God to save me. I needed to know God for myself.
As I sought God, He met me and blessed me. Even though I had given up on myself I realized that God never did. We were able to adopt a beautiful son in 2008, which renewed my faith. Adopting brought a sense of purpose into my heart and reminded me of how good God is! A few months later I became pregnant, and we had a son who was born prematurely. Shortly after he was born the neonatal doctors placed a feeding tube down his throat because he was not eating. Every three hours he was tube fed, and the doctors did not know why he wasn’t eating. His liver was damaged, a valve in his heart was enlarged, and another had failed to close completely. We were living in the hospital for two weeks hearing one bad medical report after another. My mother was a part of Vine Fellowship Network, and put our situation in the Prayer & Fasting Community and people were praying for us around the clock. There was talk of a liver transplant, and possible heart surgery. After sixteen days our little one started to drink milk from a bottle (praise God). Then one day the doctor came over to me and said, “There is nothing else we can do for your son here….we are sending you home.” The blood work and scans still showed there were problems, but they would be dealt with through long term care and specialty doctors. Then God showed up….when our son was 8 weeks old, the liver specialist called me personally to tell me that all of his blood work was miraculously in the normal range. He was healed!!! His heart scans also showed that everything was normal!! We were given a clean bill of health—-how Awesome!
I knew that the power of God had touched my life by giving me two smart and healthy sons. I also knew that I needed to be connected to Vine Fellowship Network and join the Prayer & Fasting Community. I saw firsthand the power of prayer!! Today I am so thankful to live a life of peace and joy. I no longer have to act when I leave the house every day. Through repentance, faith, prayer and submission, I have all the things that I’ve ever wanted. I now have a personal relationship with God. I know that He loves me enough to send His one and only son to die on the cross. Only because of Jesus my sins are washed away and I am able to live without guilt or shame.
Find out how you can meet Jesus yourself.