When God decides to create something, He calls “things which be not as though they were” (Romans 4:17). So, it’s no surprise that the first time He spoke to Kenneth Copeland about “The Revival Capital of the World®,” no such place existed. The sprawling piece of land where it would one day be built existed, certainly. But no one would have mistaken it for any kind of capital.
A Revelation From God
At the time, the site God was calling His “Revival Capital” looked more like a ghost town. Once the site of a bustling military base built to test gliders during World War II, and later used as a refuelling station for various Navy and Marine warplanes, Marine Corps Air Station, Eagle Mountain had long since been abandoned. The planes that had soared over it, a distant memory; the more than 8,000 people who once called it home, all gone.
By 1970, not much remained but a few ramshackle buildings and a sunbaked stretch of runway. Yet it was that year, while flying home from a meeting, Brother Copeland heard words he’d never forget.
“It was nighttime, and I was alone in the airplane,” he recalls. “All of a sudden, I heard a voice in my spirit, as clearly as if it were coming over my radio. The voice said, Coming to you from The Revival Capital of the World.
“I thought to myself, There is an Entertainment Capital of the World—Hollywood. There is a Political Capital of the World—Washington, D.C. But where is The Revival Capital of the World?”
Puzzling over the question that night, Brother Copeland had no answer. Little did he know that the property he was flying over at the time—a dusty old airbase 23 miles north of Fort Worth on Eagle Mountain Lake that was formerly the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station—was what the Lord was calling The Revival Capital of the World. He didn’t know anything about the property. And he wouldn’t for another three years.
When There Seems To Be No Way
With Kenneth Copeland Ministries growing rapidly, by 1973 Brother Copeland knew they’d eventually need a site with plenty of space to accommodate the ministry’s expansion. When a board member of the then Kenneth Copeland Evangelistic Association heard about a choice piece of property for sale on Eagle Mountain Lake, he drove Kenneth and Gloria out to see the property. The moment Brother Copeland stepped onto the property he heard the voice of the Lord, once again calling things that didn’t exist as though they did: “THIS is The Revival Capital of the World, and you are going to build it,” The Lord said.
In the natural, that looked like an impossibility. At just six years old, Kenneth Copeland Ministries didn’t have anywhere near enough money to take on such a challenge. The cost of the land alone far exceeded the current ministry budget. Not to mention the cost of renovating the old structures on the property and adding the new ones that would be needed. What’s more, Brother Copeland and his wife, Gloria, had committed to the Lord never to borrow money.
With God, however, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26); and Kenneth and Gloria knew it. They also knew that all things are possible to them that believe (Mark 9:23). So, they took God at His word and looked to Him to make a way. Five years passed while they waited for God to show them the next step. During that time, God provided a beautiful property for KCM about 35 miles away, at Lake Arlington. “To the natural eye, it seemed ideal,” recalls Brother Copeland. “But God told me, This isn’t
the final place.”
Gods Timing is Always The Right Time
Sure enough, in 1978, the Lord directed Brother Copeland to meet with the owner of the property at Eagle Mountain, Mr. Paul H. Pewitt. When Mr. Pewitt heard Brother Copeland share his vision for the land, he caught it immediately. There was just one hitch: Brother Copeland explained that KCM still didn’t have the money to purchase the property outright, and borrowing wasn’t an option.
Mr. Pewitt sat in silence for a while, apparently considering the dilemma. “Come back and see me,” he said. “After three more visits, our dear brother Mr. Pewitt came up with a plan,” Brother Copeland recalls. Turning away other potential buyers, he offered to lease the land to KCM, apply the lease payments to the purchase price, and sell the property to the ministry in four segments so they could begin to take ownership of it quickly. To top it all off, Mr. Pewitt gave KCM permission to sell the gravel that was on the land and use the profits to help make the lease payments. The offer was nothing short of supernatural! Now is the time…get it done! the Lord told Brother Copeland.
Many people are attempting to quiet the voice of the ministry of The LORD Jesus Christ. And it is extremely important that there be a voice of victory— loud and clear.
1979-Kenneth Copeland
So, in 1979, the deal was finalised and construction began. What had been a training ground for military pilots and soldiers started being transformed into a place of spiritual training. A new base of operations was born that would deliver the uncompromised Word of God to people everywhere—from the top of the world to the bottom and all the way around the middle.
Gods Plan Restores and Makes Whole
Today, instead of being a vision that can only be seen through the eyes of faith, The Revival Capital of the World continues to grow into a visible, material reality. Old buildings that survived from World War II days—once so desolate they served as a set for a 1959 science fiction movie—stand renovated, repurposed, and surrounded by new ones.
These include: the chapel, which was the first new building on “the Mountain” to be completed and occupied; the KCM headquarters building; the Eagle Mountain International Church building that, in addition to providing a gathering place for the congregation, now houses Kenneth Copeland Bible College®, Superkid Academy and 14forty youth ministry.
Then, “down the hill” are the Partner Service Centre; production buildings; a television studio; TV department offices; BVOV and TV news studios; the Child Learning Centre; and a property maintenance centre that includes industrial and storage areas, and the completely rebuilt aviation hangar.
A Testimony to the Power of God
All those buildings are a testimony to the power and faithfulness of God. But the greater testimony is the life-changing ministry that continues to flow out of them. Because of what’s happening these days at The Revival Capital of the World:
- The Believer’s Voice of Victory television broadcast currently reaches a potential 318 million-plus viewers in the U.S. and millions internationally.
- VICTORY Channel® carries the life-changing truth of God’s Word to people worldwide, 24/7, via Roku®, DISH®, DIRECTV®, Spectrum® Cable TV, YouTube®, and the Go Victory app and other social media platforms.
- People hungry for truth can hear news they can trust, reported in the spirit of faith, through KCM original programming like VICTORY News and FlashPoint.
- Hundreds of thousands every month, in more than 150 countries, receive Believer’s Voice of Victory magazine, absolutely free.
- Well over 1,000 local members of Eagle Mountain International Church are joined each week by 10,000 more online from at least 35 countries for worship, prayer and the bold preaching of the uncompromised Word.
- Calls by the hundreds of thousands (a half million just this year) are answered by KCM prayer ministers who provide callers with encouragement, support and the prayer of agreement for every kind of need.
Word-packed teaching materials are constantly being sent to people eager to learn how to live in victory. (The total number of products distributed since the ministry began reached 80 million this year!)
The Revival Capital at Eagle Mountain also serves as a support base for KCM’s international offices in Canada, Australia, Africa, Europe, Ukraine, and Latin America. Plus, it’s the point of origination for all the KCM conventions, meetings, and evangelistic outreaches held throughout the year.
Keeping the Vision On Track
Even with all that’s being accomplished, there’s more to be done and less time left to finish it. As Brother Copeland said 43 years ago when he first announced the vision for The Revival Capital, “The end of this age is staring us in the face. Jesus is coming so soon! There is no time for compromise in any form.
“In this day and hour, many people are attempting to quiet the voice of the ministry of The LORD Jesus Christ. And it is extremely important that there be a voice of victory—loud and clear. Right now, as never before, I have an urgency in my spirit to get the job done without delay. I intend to utilize this property to its fullest. It will be used for the production of God’s uncompromising WORD in every form that the heart can imagine. Plans are on the drawing board now.”
Watching most closely over those plans these days is Terri Copeland Pearsons. As Brother Copeland’s eldest daughter, she is a seasoned veteran when it comes to putting substance to the vision God has given him. In 1979, she helped launch the first Believer’s Voice of Victory television broadcast. For 13
years she developed the broadcast as its first producer, helping establish Brother Copeland
as a forerunner in television ministry. In 1993, she and her husband, George, accepted the
call to pastor Eagle Mountain International Church.
“We’re determined to follow Brother Copeland’s direction to get more faith programming out. But the more we do, the clearer it becomes that we don’t have enough studio space.”
—Terri Copeland Pearsons
“Everyone pretty well knows that I’m Pastor Terri,” she says, “but not everyone knows that I’m also the chief visionary officer at Kenneth Copeland Ministries.” Why is such a position needed? “Because we’re overflowing with vision here and someone has to get it all together and keep it on track.”
Living In The Vision
Currently on the drawing board, for example, is the new VICTORY Studios media complex. The complex is key to fulfilling the next phase of The Revival Capital vision. With the recent expansion of VICTORY Channel’s audience potential, the great need now is to increase the ministry’s production potential, Pastor Terri explains. “We’re determined to follow Brother Copeland’s direction to get more faith programming out. But the more we do, the clearer it becomes that we don’t have enough studio space.”
For the past several years, even without that space, the VICTORY Channel team has found ways to keep moving forward. Using faith and creativity, they’ve turned old, (sometimes-leaky!) storage buildings into temporary studios. When there were no more old buildings left to convert, they used closets. Desks were pushed aside so that TV equipment could be wedged into people’s offices.
“Nothing is safe,” Pastor Terri says laughingly. “Anywhere we can fit two chairs and a camera is in danger of being turned into a studio. But going forward we need real studios. We have in our hearts so many more programs to produce—not just preaching programs but other kinds like VICTORY News and FlashPoint. Programs that will touch people where they are and help them engage their faith as they confront the challenges of this world.
“People need to see that the Word of Faith isn’t just something we talk about from behind a pulpit. It’s something that can be integrated into your very life, day in and day out.”
Seeing Plans Come to Life
Already, VICTORY Studios is taking shape on the drawing board. In meetings she calls “scribble scrabbles,” Pastor Terri and her team pore over architectural renderings provided by an engineering group. As they seek the guidance of the Lord, the excitement is tangible, Pastor Terri says. Questions and exclamations abound: “What about this?” “What about including an area for that?” “Oh goodness!” Outside, all that can be seen on the site where VICTORY Studios will be built is the pile of dirt where the ministry recently broke ground on an empty field. But when Pastor Terri stands there, sharing on camera her vision for its future, the sparkle in her eye makes it clear that she doesn’t see just a vacant plot of ground. Looking through the eye of faith, just as her father did when all this began, she sees the plans for The Revival Capital of the World coming to life.
“The vision is explosive around here. The process of bringing it to fruition takes time, prayer and a lot of money. But that’s OK because we know how to sow, how to reap, how to believe God—and so do our Partners.”
—Terri Copeland Pearsons
She sees a 9,000-square-foot master soundstage, 15 edit suites, six studios, a movie studio and more. She sees a media complex that will give glory to God and meet the needs of the people well into the future…and calls things that don’t exist as though they did.
“We have all kinds of great inspiration and ideas that the Lord has given us,” she says. “The vision is explosive around here. The process of bringing it to fruition takes time, prayer and a lot of money. But that’s OK because we know how to sow, how to reap, how to believe God— and so do our Partners.
“Philippians 1:6 says that He who has begun a good work in us will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. So, we can also be sure that He who began a good work through us will complete it. With the help of our Partners, VICTORY Studios will become a reality. We will expand our production teams and start producing the great programs we have in mind. For this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith!”
