1980 - Present

In 1991, Mike Cope was invited to become Highland's ninth pulpit minister and to lead the church into the 21st century. Mike, Diane, Matt and Megan came to Abilene from Searcy, Arkansas, where Mike was preaching for the College Church. Christopher was born in 1992, and Megan passed away in 1994 with pneumonia. Mike and Diane have strengthened the faith of the Highland Church as they struggled with raising a special needs child and shared their grief after her death. Mike's emphasis on being Christ-like and counter-cultural and living between the cross and the second coming has had a broad appeal among all age groups.

During 2001, we completed a $4.5 million addition to our facilities, which provided much needed classroom and fellowship space. In 2002 we have completed a wonderful new nursery area for our children's ministry for kids under 2 years of age.

At the end of 2003, Bill Nash retired as Highland's Special Needs Minister, after serving in this role for 20 years. Bill is credited with changing the heart of the Highland church by modeling and teaching the members the importance of loving those who are less fortunate. Bill's spiritual journey is a tremendous testimony to God's faithfulness, and his ministry to the Abilene community has been widespread.