‘Keep praying for me’: In month before death, Mica Miller said faith, friends kept her strong
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — Over 10 days in March, Mica Miller used her Facebook page to deliver words of affirmation and messages of strength — ending each one with a smile.
Five videos posted between March 18 and March 28 — totaling just over nine minutes — pulled in more than 5,000 positive reactions.
Miller, 30, is at the center of a death investigation after her body was found on April 27 at Lumber River State Park in Robeson County. Authorities plan to release more information about her death on Tuesday.
“Hey everybody. I just want to let you know that I’m alive and well, and life’s been kind of crazy the past weeks, months, years, but I’ve had to keep my circle really small for the past couple of weeks because I’m going through a lot, and it’s hard, and it’s my cross to bear,” Miller said on March 18.
“I want to reach out to everybody to tell you how much I love you and I miss you, but this is the best way I know how,” she said.
Miller was a vital part of Solid Rock Church in Market Common alongside her husband, senior pastor John-Paul Miller, leading youth worship sessions and the women’s ministry.
On Sunday, John-Paul was “released” from his duties, according to an email sent by church officials.
Documents filed last week in Horry County Probate Court by Miller’s siblings gave a look into the troubled relationship between Mica and her husband.
“Mica stated to me on many occasions, ‘If I end up with a bullet in my head, it was JP,’” Mica’s sister, Sierra Francis, said in an affidavit asking to be named the special administrator of Mica’s estate,
The May 2 affidavits filed by Sierra Francis and Nathaniel Francis, allege a pattern of abuse and harassment toward Mica by her husband.
“I know my sister to have expressed the abuse and violence against her by her husband to others, including family members and members of the church congregation,” Sierra Francis’ affidavit said.
Nathaniel Francis’ affidavit also references incidents on March 11 when Mica reported to Horry County Police that a tire on her car had been slashed early in the morning while she was at the Springmaid Pier. Later in the day, when she took her car to East Coast Honda to have the tire repaired, the report said mechanics found a GPS tracking device installed on her vehicle.
Nathaniel Francis said in his affidavit that Mica forwarded him an email from her husband in which he apologized for the “tires and causing damage to her vehicle.”
In her Facebook posts, Mica Miller acknowledged the discord in her life but never mentioned her husband’s name.
“My Bible says He took all the abuse you could think of for you so that you didn’t have to live that life of slavery and bondage and pain”, she said on March 22.
“You don’t have to stay in an abusive relationship, whether that’s sexual, whether that’s somebody forcing you to take illegal drugs or alcohol abuse or physical abuse, psychological abuse, making you think this is all your fault, or you’re a bad mom, or you’re a bad wife or you’re a bad husband, or you’re not giving it your all when you know you are,” she said.
An accomplished singer, Miller opened a March 21 video with a reference to “Trouble” by Christian rock group CAIN.
Then she said, “Loving God’s people the way you know God loves you and pouring it out on someone else, let’s do something good for somebody else, and make the enemy so mad today.”
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Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.
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