Who's Who at AC3-Braeden Crain

In our mission to be a safe church for seekers, we sometimes hear those attending say that they don't know who someone is. We want you to get to know the faces you see around AC3. We are starting with the Triad, and last time we introduced you to Rick Thiessen. Next up, we have Braeden Crain, our Youth Director.

Questions: Spiritually-minded

• How I clear my mind after a challenging day:

If you had asked me a year ago my answer would be different… I would never have had imagined myself saying this but these days I clear my mind best when I go for a run. A good 3 mile run gets my mind straightened out usually. 

•  Advice to a person of faith dealing with a broken relationship with their church:

Don’t give up. People are broken, the church is not perfect and people hurt people. But don’t give up on Christ’s bride. Be a peacemaker and seek out resolution and restitution. Find a trusted friend to walk the path with you and a mentor to guide you through it. 

Braeden and her husband, Brandon

• When I declared I was going to walk along with God, instead of away from him:

I was seven years old, sitting next to my dad in church. I have a Bible that I wrote down my commitment to him. Pretty cool to be able to look back on that and see the faith I had as a young child. Helps me remember what my faith should look like today. 

• Change I’d like to see among Christians today:

Oh gosh, let's not go down that rabbit trail. There will always be things we need to change. We will never be perfect. Each person has their own journey and their own struggles. I don’t know that I could name one single thing that needs to change for “all Christians”. 

• Moment I saw significant change in my servant life:

My first global leadership summit I ever attended I heard a women speak who completely changed the way I look at service. Mother Maggie was her name. It’s hard to describe the impact she had on me, if you weren’t there. I don’t know if you’ve ever been in the presence of someone who radiates Christ… When she walked up to speak the whole room was silent and you could just feel it… I felt like it would be similar to being in the room with Mother Teresa. Anyways after she was done speaking I came away thinking “With all that Jesus has done for me, why would I not give him every ounce of everything I have? Every minute, every ounce of energy, every dollar, why would I not give it to him?” And since then that has been my motto. 

• How I found my way to AC3:

My family was looking for a church, and my mom new some of the founding members from Smokey Point Community Church. She actually played basketball with Rick on the weeknights. Anyways we found them when they were meeting at the hotel (before the school years) and we fell in love and never left. Now AC3 is my family. 

• Advice I’d give to Younger Me:

Relax. And try not to get diabetes

• Gifting I most admire:

Humble and gentle leadership.

• Favorite serving experience: 

I love Love LOVE serving in all the areas I currently serve. But probably my favorite experience ever was doing lights and building sets for some of our bigger shows like Imagine Christmas. It was just an absolute blast.

• What I tell others about serving:

I don’t know that I tell people things… but I guess if someone were to ask me “hey, tell me about serving” I’d say something like…: Serving requires a constant examination of your heart and motives. If you can get that in the right place and serve for the right reasons, you will grow more in your walk with Christ then you ever would just sitting in a chair listening to a sermon. (No offense to the awesome people who teach sermons…)

• 3 disciplines/habits that keep me connected to community:

Accountability with my small group/mentor, serving in the church, attending weekly services. The last one seems like a given but honestly if I don’t show up on the weekends when everyone else is here, I disconnect very quickly.

• 3 disciplines/habits that keep me connected to God: 

Prayer, Scripture study along with journaling, meeting consistently with a mentor


Questions: Secular-minded

• What book left a lasting impression on you?

Beautiful Outlaw. Very cool to be able to learn more about the personality of Jesus.

• If you could eat only one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Kraft thick and creamy mac and cheese… mmmm….

• There is a zombie apocalypse...What is your weapon of choice?

hm. Shot guns always seem to work well in those zombie shows.

• What is your dream vacation?

1 month, somewhere tropical, learning to surf!

• You have a day with NOTHING planned and no responsibilities! What do you do? 

Sit on my couch with my dog and do nothing. Or go to the beach.

• What is the last thing you binge-watched? 

Currently binge watching Hawaii five-o. I think I’m on season 5.

Braeden, husband Brandon, son Crosby, and daughter Charlie

• Morning person or night owl? 

Both

• What is your favorite sport to watch? Team to follow?

Football. Seahawks.

• You can only listen to the same song OR watch the same movie for the rest of your life. What do you choose? 

I boycott this question… I don’t want to choose…

• What are your top 3 hobbies?

Is being a mom a hobby? I feel like that counts as 3.
I like my dog, is that a hobby?
Or running… but that’s more just cause I wanna be healthy and not lose my toes due to necrosis.

Or maybe it's sarcasm. That’s it. Sarcasm’s my hobby. 

• Marvel or DC?

I don’t care… I love both types of movies. Why do I have to choose?

• Favorite season? Why?

Winter. Cause Christmas, duh.

• Beach or Mountains? Why?

Beach. I do love the mountains, the snow, the rivers, the lakes, the hiking. But the beach has my heart. The sand, the smell, the power of the waves. My soul is at peace when I’m there.