How Kenneth Copeland Built a Global Ministry of Faith from Humble Beginnings

Few religious establishments have scaled from a living-room Bible study to a global multimedia organization in a single founder’s lifetime. Kenneth Copeland had no money, no congregation, and no guarantee of success when he launched his ministry in 1967.

At that time, Copeland was a 30-year-old former recording artist living in a small rented house in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with his wife, Gloria. Within six decades, he would build one of the largest faith ministries in the world, with offices on multiple continents, a 24-hour television network, and millions of partners and supporters.

From Billboard Charts to Bible Study

Kenneth Copeland was born on December 6, 1936, in Lubbock, Texas, but his parents moved to Abilene shortly thereafter. They lived near the WWII base, Abilene Army Air Field, later named Dyess Air Force Base. His passion for flying and eventually becoming a commercial pilot in 1959, when, as a child, he watched the planes from the base fly over his house.

Before embarking on a life dedicated to Jesus, Copeland pursued a career in music. His 1957 single “Pledge of Love” from Imperial Records reached the Billboard Top 40, peaking at No. 17. Wikipedia notes the record earned gold certification. Industry insiders promoted him as “a potential successor to Elvis Presley.”

However, his music career stalled that same year when he was drafted. Shortly after his first daughter, Terri Copeland, was born, his second marriage ended in 1961. The following year, his life changed. Copeland met Gloria Neece and married her on April 13, 1962. Immediately, they faced financial hardship. They lived in a rented apartment with a rollaway bed and kept food cold on the porch because they lacked a refrigerator.

Yet, despite the struggles, something changed—Kenneth and Gloria experienced spiritual conversions, and they believed by faith that God began to direct their steps.

How Did Kenneth Copeland Launch His Ministry in 1967

Copeland enrolled at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in early 1966, a significant decision for a 30-year-old with a family to support and no clear financial path forward.

At ORU, Copeland secured a position as co-pilot and driver for evangelist Oral Roberts. Tulsa World reported that he accompanied Roberts into prayer tents and assisted him during revival meetings.

From that vantage point, Copeland observed how a national ministry operated, from crusade logistics to broadcast production to partner cultivation. He completed a residency in large-scale evangelism while still a student.

In March 1967, Copeland walked into the dried-up bed of the Arkansas River to be alone and pray to God. There, he reported receiving a specific, life-changing calling to preach the gospel to the nations.

“God told me exactly what He was calling me to do,” Copeland later recalled. “He was calling me to preach the gospel to the nations.”

Kenneth Copeland Ministries was formally established in Fort Worth, Texas, by September of that year. KCM began with no staff, no facilities, and no scheduled speaking engagements.

Copeland operated under a self-imposed rule against asking people for money or a place to preach. He learned that listening to Oral Roberts speaking to his “partners,” people who entered into a relationship with his ministry. That’s when Copeland decided to become a partner in Roberts’ ministry, connecting his faith with supporting it to fulfill its vision. That is a covenant.

Rather than aggressive fundraising, he established that covenant partnership model in which supporters received teaching materials for free, and felt ownership of the ministry’s mission. KCM still operates on this framework today.

Copeland has frequently taught that partnership with KCM does not require a financial obligation; it only requires faith in a covenant relationship.

Radio, Television, and Conventions

With God’s provision and the support of his partners in vision to reach believers in God worldwide, KCM expanded across media platforms in a deliberate sequence. Each new channel built upon the audience cultivated by the previous one.

Copeland launched the Believer’s Voice of Victory newsletter in 1973, a four-page publication distributed to approximately 3,000 recipients. That newsletter evolved into a 32-page monthly magazine now sent to over 400,000 subscribers in more than 150 countries, according to KCM’s official history.

Radio followed in 1975. KCM began broadcasting on 10 stations in May. Within 12 months, the program had expanded to more than 500 stations across the United States and Canada.

Television came next. KCM launched a weekly broadcast, Believer’s Voice of Victory, in 1979. A decade later, BVOV became a daily program, expanding its potential audience from weekly viewers to millions of households.

Print created a subscriber base, radio expanded reach, and both channels drove attendance to live events—all from global believers in God to understand their relationship with Him and each other.

Live Events as Community Building

KCM held its first weeklong Believers’ Victory Seminar at the Anaheim Convention Center in 1979. Two years later, the Southwest Believers’ Convention began in Fort Worth and continues today as KCM’s flagship annual event and one of the longest-running religious events in U.S. history.

Conventions created community among geographically dispersed supporters, generated content for future broadcasts, and deepened ministry commitment. A partner who read the magazine, listened to the radio program, and watched the TV broadcast could finally meet other partners face to face.

From Rented Airtime to Owned Infrastructure

While media channels and platforms multiplied, KCM invested in infrastructure, shifting from renting distribution to owning it.

Building a Global Footprint

International offices opened in Canada (1976), Australia (1979), Africa and England (1982), Ukraine (1994), Germany (2005), and Colombia (2015). Each regional office adapted materials for local contexts while maintaining message consistency. This decentralized model allowed growth without proportional increases in headquarters staff.

Domestically, KCM relocated to a 33-acre property northwest of Fort Worth in the 1980s, a former Marine Corps base and airfield. Today, that lot of land has grown to 1,500 acres and houses its global headquarters, production studios, a church, and a prayer support center with phone lines open 24/7.

Eagle Mountain International Church, founded in 1986 on KCM’s campus, became both a worship community and a training ground for ministry staff. A decade later, the ministry launched KCM.org. Eventually, that led to the foundation of Kenneth Copeland Bible College in 2018, built on the ministry grounds outside downtown Fort Worth. The college trains the next generation and equips every student with practical tools for ministry and life.

Why Ownership Mattered

Being a better steward of ministry resources and partner investments is a core belief of Kenneth and Gloria Copeland’s. Owning production facilities enabled KCM to produce content at a marginal cost rather than paying studio rates. Owning distribution through its TV network meant keeping advertising revenue and controlling programming decisions.

That logic culminated in 2015 with the launch of the Believer’s Voice of Victory Network, a 24-hour Christian television channel later rebranded as the VICTORY Channel. Rather than appearing between secular content on other networks, Copeland’s teaching now sits within a curated environment of aligned faith-based messaging. Moreover, Copeland invests airtime for over 40 ministry programs. They don’t pay anything to be on the VICTORY Channel.

What KCM Looks Like Today

KCM operates offices in the United States, Canada, Africa, Australia, Asia, Europe, Ukraine, and Latin America. Publications have been translated into at least 22 languages. EMIC has thousands of in-person and digital members who join for worship every Sunday. Believer’s Voice of Victory magazine maintains over 400,000 free subscribers. Victory Channel reaches millions of viewers.

Faith and family are at the heart of KCM. To that point, John Copeland, Kenneth’s son, serves as the ministry’s CEO. John’s daughter and Kenneth’s granddaughter, Courtney Copeland, serves as CMO. Kenneth’s daughter, Terri Copeland Pearsons, serves as co-pastor at Eagle Mountain International Church and president of Kenneth Copeland Bible College. Three generations of Copelands work at various levels in the ministry, church and TV network.

Nearing 90, Kenneth Copeland still ministers in person and online, records broadcasts, and greets partners who have followed the ministry for decades. Many first encountered his teaching through a magazine in their mailbox, a radio program during their commute, or a late-night television broadcast when they needed encouragement.

“I started where I was with what I had and never looked back,” Copeland has said. “I just obeyed God.”

A man who once kept food cold on his porch because he couldn’t afford a refrigerator now leads an organization that spans six continents. The partners who believed in his message early on watched it grow from a four-page newsletter into a 24-hour television network.

For Kenneth Copeland, the explanation is faith. The record shows partners don’t feel like participants; they feel like family. Media channels reinforced the initial vision given to Copeland in 1967 rather than replacing each other, conventions made visitors, friends and partners into a community, and infrastructure investments provided the ministry control over its own future.

The ministry Copeland built from that small house in Tulsa stands as a testament to what sustained conviction and strong faith can accomplish over a lifetime.