Highland Church of Christ has called the corner of South 5th and Sayles Boulevard in Abilene, Texas home since December 29, 1929, when a small group of about fifty Church of Christ members purchased land to build a new meeting place. Nearly a century later, the same address, 425 Highland Avenue, anchors a congregation whose mission statement calls all people to God through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The church is led by Preaching Minister Shane Hughes and Executive Minister Suzetta Nutt, with a Preaching Minister's team, a staff, an Executive Leadership Team of eleven elders, and a broader eldership of thirty-three who shepherd the congregation.
Two Sunday Mornings: A Cappella and Instrumental
Highland offers two Sunday morning worship services during the school year. The 8:45 a.m. service is led by the A cappella Team, a rotating group of nine singers, two sopranos, two altos, two tenors, two basses, and a worship leader, who lift up a blend of traditional hymns and contemporary worship songs without instrumental accompaniment. The 11:00 a.m. service is led by the Instrumental Team, a full band of drums, bass, electric and acoustic guitars, keys, violin or cello, and three to five singers, who primarily sing contemporary music with the occasional hymn. During the summer and through the four weeks of Advent leading to Christmas, the two services combine into one blended gathering that features both styles of music.
Each service follows the same shape. The congregation worships God in song, lifts up prayers of the people, shares the Lord's Supper every week, and hears a sermon based in Scripture. The Lord's Prayer from Matthew 6 has been a long-standing part of Highland worship, and the words "your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" have shaped the congregation's vision for decades. Communion is observed every Sunday, and members, children and visitors are welcome at the table. At the close of the bulletin order, the worship team sings a sending song and the preacher sends the congregation out.
Worship services are streamed live on YouTube, and recordings remain available for those who miss a Sunday. A weekly bulletin is posted online, and Spotify playlists of songs from both services are updated each week for those who want to sing along at home or prepare ahead of time.
What to Expect on a First Visit
Visitors driving in for the first time will find reserved guest parking on the north side of the building, marked with black signs. There is no dress code; some people wear suits, others wear jeans or sweats, and children often sit on the floor in many of the gathering spaces. A worship service lasts around sixty minutes, and Bible classes run forty-five minutes.
On the way in, the Hospitality Ministry sets out coffee and donuts in the atrium, and greeters wearing "Hello, How Can I Help?" lanyards are stationed to answer questions. A Welcome Desk in the main atrium can point visitors to classrooms, restrooms or a Bible class. For families with children, Realm computer kiosks in the foyers check children in and print a name tag. Volunteers at the North Kid's Welcome Desk or the nursery window are ready to help with the process. If a child needs a little more space and freedom during worship, a Mom's Nursery and a Family Room are open off the South Foyer, and Buddy Bags with fidget toys plus noise-reducing headphones are available at stations around the back of the auditorium and in the south foyer.
An indoor play space in the South Foyer is open when the church gathers and at other times during the week; because it is not staffed, parents supervise their own children there.
Sunday Morning Bible Classes for Every Age
At 10:00 a.m. on Sunday mornings, the building fills with classes for every stage of life. Children's classes gather in the Children's Wing, with the nursery for babies through thirty-five months off the South Foyer near the indoor playground, preschool classes for ages three through five downstairs, and elementary classes for kindergarten through fifth grade upstairs. Student Ministry gathers all sixth through twelfth graders in Room 207 on the second floor, beginning with donuts and fellowship before moving into a biblically based lesson with time for worship.
University students meet in the University Classroom on the northwest corner of the second floor. The young adults Bible class, called Quest 209, is one option for the eighteen-and-up crowd, and the bilingual Chinese-English class, "与神同行 Walking With God," gathers in Room 101 for discussion and fellowship in two languages.
Adult Faith offerings include Abundant Journey, which nurtures a daily commitment to prayer, worship, service, study, fellowship and testimony; Celebrate Life, a Bible class and small group for new life habits; FaithSeekers, a multigenerational class for warm welcome and prayer; Living in the Promise, a large class for applying Scripture to contemporary life; the Men's Bible Study, with open discussion and accountability; More Than Conquerors, an active senior adults class; and Sojourners, a multigenerational discussion class for travelers on a spiritual journey. Pop-up classes on topics like parenting are added throughout the year.
Wednesday Nights Across Highland and the Neighborhoods
Wednesday evenings are a second rhythm at Highland. From 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. during the school year, children meet in age-based rooms in the Children's Wing, students gather for Huddles, and adult Bible classes are offered in limited series. Family Nights bring the whole church together on selected Wednesdays with shared meals and intergenerational programming, and once a month students join their parents for faith-based conversation. Playground time from 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. lets families eat dinner on site and head into their gathering refreshed. There are no Wednesday gatherings on Thanksgiving week, and the fall Wednesday season wraps up in early December.
Outside the main building, two Highland-supported faith communities meet on Wednesdays as Kingdom outposts in nearby neighborhoods. Freedom Fellowship gathers at 941 Chestnut Street in south Abilene, with a meal at 6:00 p.m. followed by worship from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. and Bible classes for all ages. Grace Fellowship meets at 910 Cypress Street in north Abilene, with a meal at 6:00 p.m., worship from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m., and children's worship during the service. Each community serves seventy-five to eighty people a week around shared tables, with a volunteer van driver picking up neighbors who need a ride.
His Kids: Children as Full Participants
Highland's children's ministry, called His Kids, holds Jesus' words in Matthew 19:14, "Let the little children come to me," at the heart of its work. Children are welcomed as full participants in the gathered church. They worship with their families in the auditorium, learn the Lord's Prayer, and join in the songs; wiggles and giggles are expected and enjoyed. The goal is for children to encounter God's story through age-appropriate experiences: babies and toddlers hear that God loves them and God made them, preschoolers learn foundational Bible stories through purposeful play, and elementary children journey through the Bible each week with praise and worship, Scripture and learning centers.
His Kids Worship, a special time designed for ages three through kindergarten, invites children to the front of the auditorium just before the sermon begins, after they have joined their families for congregational worship and the Lord's Prayer. On Wednesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. during the school year, the children's wing comes alive again with nursery care for the youngest, active storytelling for preschoolers, and grade-based rooms where K-1st, 2nd-3rd, and 4th-5th graders learn the spiritual disciplines of coming to quiet and prayer.
More than fifty volunteers serve each week in His Kids. Every volunteer passes a background check and completes MinistrySafe training, and the children's wing and hallways are monitored by a camera system that records video and sound. For children with allergies, parents note concerns at the Realm check-in kiosk, and the information prints on the child's name tag. For children with special needs, the ministry welcomes conversations and offers accommodations; the All Means All page on Highland's site lays out what's available.
Highland Students: From Faith Shared to Faith Owned
The goal of Highland Student Ministry is for students to move from sharing their family's faith to owning their faith and claiming it through baptism. Students meet in Room 207 on Sunday mornings at 10:00 a.m., gathering around donuts, coffee or hot chocolate for fellowship before a time of worship and a biblically based lesson. On Wednesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m., Huddles provide grade-based small group discussions led by adult volunteers. Sixth through tenth grade meet at Highland; eleventh and twelfth grade meet in homes. Family Nights bring students and parents together once a month during the school year to scaffold family connection and conversation.
Most students come from Abilene High, Craig and Mann, with others from ACS, Wylie High, Wylie West, Wylie East, Jim Ned, Cooper, Madison, PEAK, Triumph, Clyde, Anson and Stamford. Student Ministry partners with parents as the primary spiritual directors of their children's lives through an annual parent-student class, an open invitation for parents to join the Bible class, opportunities to volunteer at retreats and mission trips, and monthly Family Nights. Each fall, Student Ministry also produces a daily formation podcast based on lectionary readings, available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
University Ministry: Rest, Recognize, Restore
Highland University Ministry centers on three priorities: rest, recognizing God living in one another, and restorative practices. The University Classroom on the second floor is the Sunday morning home base, with Discipleship In Groups (DIG) meeting Sunday evenings at 5:00 p.m. in cohorts paired with a Spiritual Mentor couple. Monday Night Fellowship brings students together during the semester for games, movies, worship or a meal, and every Friday morning students participate in Breakfast on Beech Street (BOBS), a longstanding Highland tradition of serving breakfast to neighbors in need. University Minister Robert Lopez de Castilla and Associate University Minister Leah Kranz lead the ministry, and Highland values university students and young adults as full members of the congregation.
Adults, Tables, and Small Groups
The Adult Faith community at Highland is intentionally multigenerational. Sunday morning Bible classes form one of the entry points, and Wednesday evening classes and small groups provide another. Small groups, called "tables," are intentional communities where members come to know one another and grow in Christ together. Current open small groups include intergenerational groups that meet on second Sundays for a meal and prayer, a Sunday evening intergenerational group that shares a meal and conversation at a member's home near the church building, a prayer group that visits and shares communion with shut-ins once a month, a parents group of four families with twelve children ages six to seventeen, and a Wednesday group reading Jonathan Haidt's The Anxious Generation chapter by chapter. A post-college through age thirty small group meets Tuesday nights at 6:30 p.m. at the Highland building, and Women's Gathering groups, currently on hiatus for the semester, gather in homes for a monthly meal, conversation and prayer.
Women's ministry includes Ladies' Bible classes, Women's Gathering Dinners, and the annual Highland Women's Retreat. Men's ministry gathers for a Wednesday evening Bible class and affinity groups. Marriage ministry offers premarital counseling through the Highland Counseling Center, with each couple completing the Prepare Assessment and being matched with a mentor couple. The ten-hour premarital preparation earns a Twogether in Texas certificate.
The Pathway: Worship, Table, Baptism, Cross
Highland's Know and Be Known Pathway gives members a way to embrace the restoration of God in their own lives and join the congregation's vision. The four steps are Worship, Table, Baptism and Cross. The first step, Worship, calls people to know the true nature of God through the songs, prayer, communion and preaching of Sunday morning services. The second step, Table, invites people to find a seat at a Highland table, in a Bible class, a Huddle, a DIG group, a small group, or around a Wednesday night meal, where they are known and come to know others. The third step, Baptism, invites believers to declare Jesus Christ as Lord of their lives through full immersion in water.
Baptism is a high value at Highland, and the auditorium itself reflects it. When the current worship center was built in 1956, ninety-foot beams were brought in by railroad car from Oregon to stabilize the structure and shape the room. The beams meet in the baptistry, so the waters are the focal point and center of the sanctuary. Anyone being baptized chooses who will baptize them, often a parent, friend, mentor or minister, and there is no required script. After baptism, the congregation invites the new believer to sign a rock and write the names, details or verses that contributed to their story; the rock is placed in the baptistry as a permanent part of the room. The fourth step, Cross, calls members to take on the self-emptying attitude of Jesus and serve, joining the Restoration Vision initiatives of the church.
The Highland Counseling Center
The Highland Counseling Center, a ministry of the church, provides accessible and affordable mental, emotional and relational care for Highland members and the wider Abilene community. The center is staffed by licensed and provisionally licensed marriage and family therapists in Texas, each holding a Master's Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy, and they meet with clients at 238 Sayles Boulevard and at a second location on 526 Highland Avenue. Services include premarital counseling, marriage counseling, family therapy, divorce recovery and adjustment, grief counseling, anxiety, depression, sexual abuse trauma, and self-exploration. Online therapy through a HIPAA-compliant video platform is also available.
The counseling center hosts ongoing groups. Between Home & Here, a six-week therapy group for college-aged students, meets weekly on Saturdays and explores boundaries, self-trust and listening to intuition as students navigate expectations, guilt and growing autonomy. Sexaholics Anonymous, a closed twelve-step fellowship, meets weekly. Initial appointments are made by calling (325) 201-3030.
Highland Cares: Walking Together Through Hard Times
Highland Cares is a network of Highland members ready to share God's love during hard seasons of life. Care Contacts serve in Bible classes, small groups and ministry teams. Three rotating funeral teams coordinate meals and support for families on the day of a service. The Homebound Team maintains connection to members with limited mobility, sharing communion with them monthly. A Point Person helps streamline communication and coordinates practical assistance for someone going through a crisis. Congregants can also drop notes of affirmation in the "Share the Love" cards found in the seat backs of the auditorium; the staff mails them.
For members experiencing financial hardship, the Share the Joy fund provides matching support. For community members facing utility bills, the church community extends financial assistance through Community Ministries. Prayer requests can be submitted online and are prayed over by elders and ministry staff throughout the week. The Highland Prayer Connection, a public prayer newsletter sent on Wednesday afternoons, circulates requests to the broader congregation.
The Food Pantry: A Dignified Shopping Experience
The Highland Food Pantry, the first client-choice food pantry in Abilene, began in 1986 as a small closet in the church building that gave out one or two bags of groceries. In 1996 the current building at 701 Walnut Street was donated to Highland, and Christian Ministries of Abilene opened its doors in the renovated space. In 2013 fresh food items, produce, meats and dairy were added, and in 2018 the Freedom and Grace Community Gardens began supplementing the shelves. The pantry now stocks its shelves with non-perishable items plus industrial refrigerators and freezers of fresh food, supplied by the West Central Texas Food Bank, the Basic Needs Network, area restaurants, and the on-site gardens.
Households may receive groceries once every two months and must not have received food from another Abilene food pantry within seven days of their visit. To qualify, households must meet USDA poverty level income for a one-year certification, or households over income and in crisis can qualify on an Emergency Crisis status for six months. The pantry is open Mondays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 to 2:00 p.m., Thursdays from 6:00 to 7:15 p.m., and Fridays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Volunteers serve as Interviewers, Shopping Assistants, restockers, gardeners, and Free Meals coordinators. The Christmas Store, a separate gift-shopping experience for parents in need, runs from September through December.
The Free Meals Program partners with the Abilene Hunger Coalition to provide breakfast, lunch and dinner for Abilene ISD students and their families during the AISD three-week summer gap and during winter and spring breaks.
Jail and Prison Ministry
Highland's Jail and Prison Ministry has been active for more than thirty years and is part of the church's Restore Abilene emphasis. Volunteers lead weekly Bible studies and worship services at the Taylor County Jail, the Substance Abuse Treatment Facility across from the jail, and the French Robertson and Middleton Prison Units surrounding Abilene. A Religious Advisory Board, established in 2010 and made up of volunteers from thirteen area churches, coordinates the worship services, conducts baptisms and holds a weekly New Converts' class at the jail, where as many as 230 baptisms have taken place in a year. Several Highland members serve as Taylor County Volunteer Chaplains with permission for one-on-one inmate visits. The relationship continues when an inmate is released, through Sunday morning worship at Highland, Wednesday night worship at the Grace and Freedom Fellowships, and a network of support from Highland members and outside organizations.
Young Children's World: A Christ-Centered Preschool
Young Children's World (YCW) is a Christ-centered childcare program for children ages six months through pre-kindergarten, located at the Highland building. YCW meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. from September through May. Infants hear that God made them and Jesus loves them; toddlers explore colors, numbers, shapes and Bible stories through songs and movement; twos engage in dramatic and sensory play; threes and fours build school-readiness skills through circle time, books, centers and crafts. Each week the two-year-olds through pre-kindergarten students gather for a shared Bible time with songs and a story. Daily movement happens in the large nursery space, the indoor playground, or the outdoor playground, with older children taking part in scavenger hunts, gym time and outdoor play.
YCW is an inclusive program and accepts children ages six months to six years old. As a private institution, it requires state-recommended vaccinations and does not accept vaccination exemptions. Registration for the next school year opens annually, and many classes fill with a waitlist. The program uses the Brightwheel app for communication, check-in and billing. Teachers and substitutes work Tuesdays and Thursdays and one Monday a month, and receive a tuition discount for their own children or grandchildren enrolled in the program.
Global Partners: Southeast Asia and Brazil
Highland's Restore the World vision extends to two international partnerships. In Chiang Mai, Thailand, Highland supports the Chung Doi Church of Christ, where Ryan Binkley, his wife Ning and their family minister. Highland also supports Urban Light, an organization that provides food, shelter, basic medical care, job training and more to boys and young men living on the streets of Chiang Mai who are at risk of trafficking. In Myanmar, Highland partners with Eden and New Hope Ministries, which run neighborhood community centers providing shelter, clean water, daily meals, first aid and a safe space for children and families displaced by civil war and economic collapse.
In Itu, Brazil, Highland partners with Crescimento Limpo, a ministry founded by Mark and Ali Kaiser that gives people experiencing homelessness a home, a family, meaningful work in a garden and cafe, and a farm. Crescimento Limpo envisions an end to systemic homelessness in the same way Highland works toward that end in Abilene. Highland also partners with the Itu Church of Christ, a long-standing relationship in the region. Arab Baptist Theological Seminary in Beirut, Lebanon, is a further expression of the Restore the World vision; Highland supports Khebz W Maleh, meaning "Salt and Bread," a ministry that creates a space for young people of different faiths to share meals together.
Beliefs
In 2000, a group of Highland members wrote a Statement of Faith that names what the congregation believes about God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. The statement begins with one all-powerful God of love who made the world good and made humankind in his image. It confesses that human beings sin against God and one another, ruining relationships with God, with neighbors, and with nature. Yet, in justice and mercy, God has acted to redeem his creation, choosing a covenant people to bless all peoples of the earth.
About Jesus, the statement affirms God's only Son, fully human and fully God, who came to preach good news to the poor, release to the captives, healing for the sick, and forgiveness of sins. He was crucified for us, and on the third day God raised him from the dead, defeating the powers of evil and death and securing forgiveness of sins by grace alone through faith alone in him alone. He instructed his followers to observe the Lord's Supper in his memory and will return to judge the living and the dead.
About the Holy Spirit, the statement affirms the Spirit as the gift of God promised through Christ. The Spirit convicts the world of sin and is the pledge of adoption as God's children. The Spirit claims believers in the waters of baptism, in which the believer is immersed for the forgiveness of sins and united with Christ in his body. The Spirit binds believers together with the church of all times and places and calls and empowers men and women for ministry. The Spirit inspired the prophets and apostles to speak God's Word, guiding the preservation, study and proclamation of Scripture, both Old and New Testaments, as the authoritative guide for faith and life.
The Restoration Vision: Restore Highland, Restore Abilene, Restore the World
Highland's vision is called A Restoration Movement, with three tenets: Restore Highland, Restore Abilene, and Restore the World. The vision names a series of initiatives, each prefixed with "Re": Re|newed hospitality, including a south foyer remodel with a children's welcome entrance; Re|vive, prioritizing students and young adults through a partnership with Fuller Theological Seminary; Re|kindle, expanding the small group ecosystem with evangelism incubators, affinity groups and a new young adult expression; Re|vealed, committing to the inclusion of women in every aspect of leadership and to reflecting the demographic make-up of Abilene through intentional staff hires; Re|deem, committing approximately $500,000 to a Restore Abilene project; Re|fresh, combating food scarcity through mobile food providers; Re|birth, partnering with local child advocacy and protection organizations such as CASA and Foster 325; Re|new, expanding ministries at Freedom, Grace and Community Ministries of Abilene and developing neighborhood community centers around Highland campuses; Re|store, welcoming the homeless in Brazil through the Itu church and Crescimento Limpo, combating human trafficking in Southeast Asia, and serving as partners with Arab Baptist Theological Seminary in Beirut.
At the center of the vision is the conviction that God's Kingdom is present in the here and now of everyday life and that the congregation is called to partner with God, through the Holy Spirit, in the work of restoration. The Lord's Prayer continues to shape the church's life: "Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
How to Get Connected
Visitors and newcomers are invited to fill out a Connect Card, either online or at the Welcome Desk, and a staff member will follow up. The Avenue, Highland's weekly newsletter, goes out at 7:00 a.m. on Fridays and is the best way to know what is happening across the congregation. The Prayer Connection sends out prayer updates on Wednesday afternoons. Realm, Highland's online ministry database, allows members to register for events, manage online giving, join Bible class groups, and look up contact information. Realm can be used for online giving without an account, though having one makes giving easier to track.
Giving can also be done by cash or check placed in the offering boxes at the back of the auditorium or turned in at the church office. Business hours are Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 to 5:00 p.m., and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The church office can be reached at (325) 673-5295 or info@highlandchurch.org.