Her name means “Rising of a New Dawn”. But her life as a little girl was filled with the darkness of her rebellion. Meggi was born in Jamaica, the seventh in a family of ten children. Perhaps her very independent and determined nature as a young child was a way of gaining attention among the many voices surrounding her. She recalls scheming a lot, always figuring out a way to work around the rules. In her Jamaican culture, her attitude was considered to be a bad reflection on her family.
As a child, Meggi remembers someone repeatedly saying that she was “born of the devil” and there was a part of her that believed she was. She accepted this description of her as the norm, but as a result she became even more rebellious. Her father tried to warn her that her rebellion would eventually catch up with her, saying, “Meggi, you will die or end up in prison one day.” However, he continually gave her encouragement and showed her how much she was loved in spite of her rebellion. On occasion he softly called her, “Daughter, Daughter,” in a way that made her feel as if he were saying, “You are my cherished daughter.”
Perhaps there were many voices defining who Meggi was as a child but she somehow knew she must find the right voice. Finally, one day in 1974 Meggi heard one voice speak above all the others and knew God was calling her name saying, “Meggi, I don’t love you because you’re good or bad but because I created you and chose you!” It was at about the age of twelve or thirteen that she gave her life to God and Meggi began to mature in her faith.
When Meggi was 16, she went to live with her extended family with an agreement that in exchange for her working in their store, they would help her obtain her college education. Her extended family was very rich in contrast to her own family who did not even have electricity. Although her physical circumstances improved, Meggi had difficulty adjusting to the drastic changes in her life. She was the only Christian amidst her family members and other workers in their store. Since they did not know Christ at this time, their lives were focused on the material things of life and making money. She was not even allowed to go to church. This was also a time of disappointment, as Meggi realized that her dream of a college education through her extended family was not going to happen as she had hoped. She felt she was more important to them as an employee in their store, than as the girl to whom they had made a promise.
God finally allowed an unexpected set of circumstances to occur in her relatives’ home that forced Meggi and the others to look at life much differently. One day fourteen men rushed into their home with guns in hand shouting and yelling at everyone. The workers in the store unsuspectedly entered the house during the chaos not knowing what was happening on the other side of the door. The gunmen forced everyone to lie down on their faces as they rampaged the house. They wanted money and they wanted it without any hesitation! When they couldn’t find the money they wanted, one of the men grabbed Meggi and forced her into the restroom. Meggi does not know why she was singled out from all the other women. However, once she was alone with the man he reached to touch her and she quickly realized she was about to be raped. Although frightened, she suddenly felt a power overcome her and she began to rapidly pace the floor in front of the gunman. She felt like a toy that had been wound up and the power would not run down. She spoke with a strength that she knew was not her own saying to him, “I will not be raped! You will have to kill me first because my body is the temple of God.” He looked at her for a moment and with slow realization said, “You are a Christian!” After only another second of thought, the robber and would-be rapist immediately rushed out of the room yelling at his partners, “Don’t touch anyone! Let’s go! As soon as the man left her in the room, Meggi felt the energy and power she experienced during the ordeal leave her body and spirit. She knew she had received the power of God when she needed it the most!
Her family and other workers immediately rushed to her asking, “Tell us about God!” That day, every member of her extended family and the workers there confessed their belief in Jesus Christ! Even though she considered this season of life as the worst of times, she also realized it was the best of times. For it was during this difficult period that her family came to know Christ and that Meggi learned to become more compliant, accepting the responsibilities given her. She also became very passionate about her relationship with God and her faith continued to mature.
At the age of twenty-seven, she met her husband, Homer, through a mutual friend. They were married in Jamaica in 1991 and eventually moved to Missouri City, Texas.
In November 1998, Meggi continued to work through some of the issues in her life. One day she was driving to a friend’s birthday party in Houston with her very cranky six-year old daughter and eighteen month old son. Homer was doing some international travel and had been out of the country for several weeks. Meggi missed her husband and the support he gave her with the children and other family responsibilities when he was at home. This particular day she was not asking God for direction nor was she praying about any specific needs. It was just one of “those” not so good days that we all experience occasionally. While she was driving, she stopped at a railroad crossing. With the guard rail down and the red lights flashing before her, an unmistakable question occurred to her, “What can get a stain out of clothing?” She pondered this random thought for a moment, and a distinct answer came to her, “Bleach will get the stain out”... Meggi began to imagine the picture of a beautiful formal dress but the dress had a stain on it. She saw bleach being poured on the stain but the stain was only partially washed away. She realized God was telling her that only He can totally take the stain of sin away through His forgiveness. Only then would the beautiful dress of her life be washed clean by God. She heard God’s voice speak to her heart, “Meggi, I want you to tell my people that no matter where they are in the world and no matter how big or messy the stain of sin is in their lives, when I take it away, it is really gone! No one will ever know the stain was there unless they choose to tell others.” It was at that moment that Meggi received the call to ministry work.
She continued to try to find her friend’s house but she was lost in an unfamiliar area of Southwest Houston. She realized it was too late to make it to her friend’s birthday party. However, it was not too late for God to finish his conversation with Meggi. She struggled with Him briefly about having missed His call to ministry over the years. With tears flowing down her cheeks, she asked God how she could possibly accomplish the necessary work of ministry while raising two small children. During her rambling drive, she saw very clearly in her mind a group of buildings, but wasn’t sure why or where the buildings were located. She eventually passed Houston Baptist University and realized that the HBU buildings were the very buildings she had thought of moments earlier.
In September 1999, Meggi enrolled at HBU and completed her degree in Christianity and Psychology. Following graduation from HBU, she went to work at Teen Challenge, a Christian faith based program which helps men and women of all ages overcome life-controlling drug and alcohol abuse. Meggi worked with women in this program for two years. Teen Challenge eventually moved their offices to Channelview which was too far of a commute to make on a daily basis.
Meggi began to search for some volunteer work to do until she knew where God wanted her to go next. She visited Fort Bend Human Needs Ministry who referred her to Second Mile Missions. She met someone there who shared with her that there was a full-time job opening at the Pregnancy Resource Center and encouraged her to apply. She initially hesitated because she really wanted a part-time position. However, she applied for the job, trusting that God would work out the details for her. One week later Meggi was hired on a part-time basis. Her work at Pregnancy Resource Center is split between their Rosenberg and Sugar Land locations. Her responsibilities revolve around post-abortion counseling, sexual integrity training, new volunteer training, and she also conducts parenting classes. Pregnancy Resource Center counsels with about eighty clients per month and helps new moms from the time of a positive pregnancy test to six months after giving birth. Meggi, therefore, has many opportunities to witness to young girls and women about her faith in God leading many of them to commit their lives to God and His Son.
God began weaving the tapestry of the beautiful formal dress of Meggi’s life when He gave her the name that means “Rising of a New Dawn”. Meggi’s earthly father knew how to whisper “Daughter” to her in the same loving way that God has throughout her life, so she would believe she is born of God and not born of the devil. The little girl with the big name, “Rising of a New Dawn”, grew into the purpose and passion of that name, which has enabled her to shine the light of Christ’s life into the lives of others she meets. Because Meggi heard God’s voice above all the others in her life, she shares with other women the story of the tapestry of the beautiful formal dress that God can also weave in their lives. She is helping young girls and women she counsels with to also hear God’s voice when she shares the very words that God gave her telling them, “God doesn’t love you because you are good or bad but because He created you and chose you!”