October 2, 2026
WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — After 19 years and 4 months, Fred McCoy is concluding his ministry as pastor of Houston Lake Baptist Church. He has emphatically emphasized that he is not retiring, just recalibrating and ready to write a new chapter in his life of service for Christ.
Houston Lake Baptist Church was founded in 1836, and McCoy’s tenure of nearly two decades at the 191-year-old church is a record, according to the congregation’s history. He concluded his ministry at the Warner Robins church on Sunday, Nov. 2nd.
McCoy claims that his years at Houston Lake have brought him great joy. He declared, “I have had to grow, develop, and keep pushing myself to be able to stay that long. However, my greatest joy is the length of my pastorate here, the long-lasting friendships I have developed, and the ministry God has allowed me to fulfill here in Warner Robins."
McCoy explained, "A lengthy pastorate permits the pastor to preach through books of the Bible and do series of sermons to strengthen and edify the congregation.”
McCoy asserts that at Houston Lake he has preached at least one sermon on every book in the Bible and has preached through many New Testament books and a goodly number of Old Testament books.
McCoy believes it is important to preach for results, and through the years, he has been privileged to see many people saved, and numerous others grow and develop in the faith. He has also watched children grow up and become adults with a solid biblical foundation and bedrock convictions.
Jonathan Peacock, student pastor of the Houston Lake Church, testified, “Pastor McCoy has fully supported me and my ministry. He has a great heart for evangelism. He is a very caring pastor and always takes the high road in his relationships and leadership.”
Angela McIntosh, who united with the church in 2017, said, “Our pastor is a wonderful preacher. He has a great heart for evangelism and has a passionate desire to see everyone go to heaven. His sermons always include an appeal for people to trust Christ.”
McCoy's spiritual journey started on November 7, 1971, when he was saved in a revival meeting in Albany, Georgia. His father, Fred McCoy, Sr., was pastor of the Mercedes Baptist Church in the city, and Embry Williams, staff evangelist at First Baptist Church in Dothan, Alabama, during the pastorate of Harper Shannon, was the preacher.
McCoy said, “I came under deep conviction on Sunday night, and on Monday night I went to the altar and made my profession of faith in Jesus as a twelve-year-old boy.”
As a teenager, McCoy referred to himself as a modern-day Jonah. He explained, “I sensed that God wanted me to serve Him, but I rebelled and ran from God, but He hemmed me up and got my attention. On a Sunday morning in 1979, I went forward in the church my father was serving in Hinesville, Georgia, and announced to my dad and the congregation that God had called me to preach the gospel.”
It was not long until McCoy’s father asked him to preach at a Wednesday night prayer service. Other invitations were extended to the young preacher in the following months. In August of 1980, McCoy left home to enroll in the Baptist Bible Institute in Graceville, Florida, to prepare for the ministry. McCoy’s wife, Jackie, worked in the Bible School during his years of study there.
In 1982, at age 23, McCoy was called to serve as pastor of the Oakie Ridge Baptist Church in Chipley, Florida. Five years later, he sensed that God wanted him to be a full-time evangelist. Over the course of the next 15 years, he preached in over 400 revivals in 18 different states as well as in Moldova, Guatemala, and Cuba.
McCoy indicated that his most meaningful and impactful revival took place in The Palestine Baptist Church in Grant, Louisiana, in the Bayou Country. He explained, “There were two men in that church who were seeking to be elected as the sheriff in that county. Their rivalry became marked by rancor and animosity, which had impacted the spirit of the church. Half the membership supported one man, and the other half had pledged their allegiance to the other one.
“However, on Sunday night, the two men got right with one another, and some of their children and grandchildren were saved. The spirit of the meeting was immediately transformed by the power of God. There were nights when 15-18 people were saved, and by Friday night, the attendance had grown to the extent that the church could not accommodate all who came. The windows were opened so those sitting on the steps of the church and others who sat on the hoods of their cars could hear the message.
“It was a wonderful meeting,” recalled McCoy, “because those families were reconciled. There was revival among the saved, and the salvation of many who were outside the fold of God. It was a memorable, joyful, and glorious week for me.”
After fifteen years as a vocational evangelist, McCoy was called to be the pastor of the Broad Street Baptist Church in Hawkinsville, prior to his nearly two decades at Houston Lake Baptist Church.
McCoy looks to the past with gratitude and fulfillment, but now he looks to the future with anticipation and the desire to continue to serve the Lord wherever He opens a door. He said, “I hope to stay busy. I will not sit down, quit, and do nothing. I have always been a busy and working pastor; and I believe God still has work for me to do."
The recalibrating pastor remarked, “One of my heroes as a young preacher was Dr. R. G. Lee, who said, ‘A lazy preacher in the pastorate is as much out of place as a monkey with an acetylene torch in a gun powder factory.’ I believe that is true.
“I don’t believe the call of God has a shelf life," McCoy continued. "I want to preach revivals. I want to do pulpit supply. I want to do interims. I want to go on mission trips. I want to do all I can in this last quarter of my life to serve my Lord and Savior until He calls me home."
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