November 10, 1999

Pastor serves church 41 years
by following father's advice
___By George Henson
___Staff Writer
___MARBLE FALLS--Max Copeland believes there is no mystery as to how he has stayed at First Baptist Church in Marble Falls for 41 years or in the church consistently baptizing about 100 people each year.
___He has simply followed his father's advice given long ago.
___"My father preached for 75 years--his name was Walter Copeland--in the rural churches of West Texas. He always told me, 'Just preach the word and love the people.' That's

MAX COPELAND baptizes a young believer at First Baptist Church of Marble Falls, where he has been pastor 41 years.

what I've done," Copeland said.
___Loving people doesn't stop with those on the church's membership rolls either, Copeland's admirers say.
___"Max is 'Mr. Baptist' for the Marble Falls area," said Robert Schmeltekopf, director of missions for Hill Country Baptist Area. "He is held in high esteem by Baptists and non-Baptists alike."
___It's not some innovative program that makes Copeland so effective as a pastor, Schmeltekopf said. "In a lot of ways, he still pastors the old-fashioned way. He loves people. He helps them through their hard times and ministers to them through their grief."
___Copeland also is around for good times as well and is especially involved in school activities.
___"Even though his kids are long-gone from being school-aged, he is still faithful to many school activities, because he senses there is a ministry there," Schmeltekopf said.
___And a large dose of Copeland's time is spent in visitation.
___"Through his own efforts, he wins probably 75 percent of those he baptizes," Schmeltekopf estimated.
___Tommy Ryan, who has served with Copeland almost 30 years, disagrees with Schmeltekopf's estimate; he thinks it might be a little too low.
___"I would say he wins 90 percent to 95 percent of those we baptize here," Ryan said.
___"He's pretty much everybody's pastor. If he visits a church member in the hospital in Austin, after he's made that visit he'll go by the chaplain's office to see if there is anyone else from the Marble Falls area there and go by and see them, too."
___That penchant for being there when people are hurting opens many doors for ministry, Ryan explained. Copeland often is called upon to perform wedding ceremonies and funeral services for those who are unchurched, he said.
___While Copeland maintains an open-door policy in the church offices, catching him there can sometimes be a little more difficult.
___"He has no routine. If someone goes to the hospital, he's gone immediately--and that can often be a two-hour trip one-way," Ryan said.
___Copeland's open doors extend to his home as well.
___"He has a house with a big veranda porch, and almost every night you can see him out there counseling with somebody about something," Ryan explained.
___For Copeland, talking to people about Jesus is life's greatest pleasure.
___"I love to do personal soul winning, and I've done that since I've started preaching when I was 16 years old," he said. "I think a lot of folks could do it, but they just never get around to it."
___While Copeland's health at age 69 is beginning to slow him down some--he has had a stroke, open-heart surgery and is an acute diabetic--he is still out visiting most evenings and Saturdays.
___"I was fortunate to win a family out in Horseshoe Bay to the Lord the other day--a father, mother and three children. That was such a joy. That's the happiest time of my life, when I'm winning souls," he said.
___After his March 7 retirement, Copeland intends to stay in Marble Falls, "preach a little if I can and be the best friend the new pastor has ever had, if he will let me. The only advice I intend to give is what he asks for."
___If the pastor asks, the advice he gets probably will be something passed down from another generation: "Just preach the word and love the people."
___

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