Margaret McCray Brown’s call to missions began as a young girl in a small church near the North Carolina-South Carolina line, where a pastor’s sermons ignited her passion for the lost.

Disturbed by the idea that people in other countries might never learn about Jesus, she resolved to spread the Gospel herself. “That was the beginning of planting missions into my heart,” Brown explained.

For ten years, Brown met with three other women in her church for a time of prayer and Bible study. Each Monday morning, they would spend one hour studying Scripture and an hour in prayer. It was there that Brown prayed to the Lord that he would make her family into what he designed them to be.

Life Turned Upside Down

Within the next 11 months, Brown lost much of her family. “I never dreamed that when you make a sacrifice unto the Lord that it may be consumed,” Brown said.

Her 66-year-old husband died suddenly of a heart attack. Her mother, who had been bedridden for five years, died at 97. And her 35-year-old daughter, who required much of Brown’s care and attention due to intellectual and physical difficulties died.

Brown felt that she had choices to make since she no longer had the responsibility to care for her family as she once did. “I chose hope, but I did not feel that I could relish in that hope without giving it to others who knew no hope,” she said.

Following the Lord in Missions

Brown spent the following summer in Kenya as a missionary. “It was the greatest opportunity for my grief to be consumed in what I was doing there, Brown said. “I would not have been able to do some of the things that I did because of my daughter’s health,” Brown said

Her calling led her to numerous mission trips and experiences abroad taught her of God’s connection with all people, regardless of language or life station. “God can have a connection with every person all over the world,” she said.

Brown’s dedication to the Lord extended beyond her travels. After spending years involved in women’s ministries and serving on the board of the South Carolina Baptist Women’s Missionary Union (SCWMU), she served as SCWMU president. As president, she continued to share a love of spreading the Gospel.

Reflecting on her tenure, she emphasized the importance of early Christian education and engagement in mission-oriented activities. In 2009, Brown was awarded the Martha Myers Girls in Action Alumna of Distinction Award at the national Woman’s Missionary Union’s annual meeting for her missions work.

Trusting the Lord’s Plan

Although Brown admits she often planned her life differently, she believes the Lord directed her steps, and for that, she thanks the Lord. “He would intervene in some way to lead me to the places that he wanted me to be,” Brown said. She knows that the Lord did this so that, “as long as I live, I may grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Even in her retirement at Martha Franks Retirement Community, Brown continues to inspire and evangelize, showing that one’s mission does not end with retirement or age. Her days are filled with fellowship and the sharing of her faith, embodying the spirit she has carried throughout her life.