As a boy growing up in Coatbridge, Scotland, Peter Marshall loves the sea and wishes to work on a ship. Several years later, he is caught in a fog, and nearly falls over a ledge. Survival compels him to dedicate his life to the ministry. He begins working double-shifts to save enough money to go to school in United States of America. He gets there, and again works very hard to save enough to pay for divinity school. Upon graduation, he is called to serve as pastor at a rural church in Covington, Georgia.