Martha Jane Morris

Martha Jane Crouch Morris left this earthly life on October 29, 2025 at the age of 74 years, 8 months and 9 days. She was born to Loyd Melvin Crouch and Marjorie Nace Crouch on February 20, 1951, in San Antonio, Texas. She was Marjorie’s first-born child. Martha’s two older siblings’ mother passed when Tom and Linda were quite young. Martha loved her mother and father dearly, especially her mother. Often, she mentioned her mother’s picture at her bedside. She wanted to be like her mother, and she succeeded. Her kind, loving, and giving spirit was well known by everyone who knew her.

Martha chose to be a Christian wife, mother, and friend.

She was faithful to our Lord Jesus Christ all her life, having surrendered to Him in baptism at an early age. Her devotion to the Lord and His church was evident to everyone who knew her, not only because she always maintained the outward, modest appearance of a faithful Christian woman, but also because of her inward adornment with her gentle and quiet spirit. That devotion is quite rare today, even among ladies who profess Christianity.

Travel over a weekend was never an option unless arrangements were made to worship with a faithful congregation. Even on extremely rare occasions when on-time arrival at a worship service was hindered, she felt the need to arrive anyway, no matter how late. One Lord’s Day morning, after a lengthy period of illness, she suddenly announced, “I want to go to church!” Because of the late hour, we left for church immediately as we were, hair uncombed, faces unwashed, and with wrinkled clothing.

Martha always felt the responsibility to not only give back to the Lord with weekly church contributions, but also with helping individuals and families who had sudden financial needs.

Martha was devoted to her role as a Christian wife and mother. She married Chuck Morris on June 30, 1972. Together, having lost one child during pregnancy and two infants in the process of private adoption, Christian Homes of Abilene made it possible for us to have the child that was so desperately wanted. Upon adoption, she immediately became a stay-at-home mom. From the beginning, she would sometimes ask late at night, “Am I a good mother?” She always did her best to provide love, nurture, and admonition.

Martha could have excelled in any profession she chose. She was blessed with the family trait of needing to account for every penny in the family finances. Often, she would spend hours reconciling, to the penny, a bank statement. For a while, she handled the household budgets for two wealthy widows who had no idea how to even write a check, let alone balance a bank statement. On one occasion, on her own time, she battled with a bank for days to reconcile the difference of less than a dollar, simply because “the bank was wrong.”

After graduating from high school, Martha moved to Fort Worth, Texas, and went to work as a legal secretary for the law firm Hooper, Kerry, Chappell and Broiles. She quickly gained respect for her ability to provide letter perfect work, long before word processors and computers, when each keystroke had to be perfect on a typewriter. Later, she worked for the prestigious law firm Brown, Hermann, Scott, Dean, and Miles. When she left that job to be a stay-at-home mom, she was the only secretary in the firm with her own office. She could have excelled as a prestigious attorney.

For many years, Martha spent countless hours assisting with proofreading the Contending For the Faith Commentary series, along with other publications. She was always careful not to go beyond her role when she offered suggestions that might affect the intent of the commentator.

On the internet, she enjoyed word games with church friends, school friends, and several people in foreign countries. Some of these developed into daily correspondence. One elderly, gospel preacher, who did not use social media, told her that she was his source of information about what was going on in the brotherhood.

Martha is preceded in death by her father Loyd Melvin Crouch; her mother Marjorie Nace Crouch; and One sister, Sarah,who passed on November 24, 2000.

Martha is survived by her husband, Chuck of 53 years and four months, a wonderful marriage that began June 30, 1972. They have one son, Brent and wife, Lauren. One grandson, River Colton Morris. Four siblings, Tom Crouch and wife, Beverly, Linda Cutter, Susan Cawley and husband Jonathan, and Kent Crouch and wife Pam.

Martha will be missed by those of us she left behind but as much as we might like to think she misses us, she surely knows the unspeakable joy that awaits the faithful.