First Baptist Church NBC welcomes youngest-ever pastor

SAN MARCOS, Texas - A decades-old church in San Marcos has welcomed its youngest-ever pastor and will soon welcome a new name.

Pastor Colby Cotton is the younger pastor in First Baptist Church NBC's history.

"I mean, I was truly humbled to even get that opportunity. I've always dreamed of pastoring this church," said Cotton. "When I was a kid, I would…as soon as church was over, I would go home, and I would do the 'I know he's all right'."

Cotton began his journey through the sounds of the gospel.

"Drums. Piano. Organ. Leading the music ministry, played at Texas State for the Gospel Version Association Choir," he said.

Cotton says after working in several churches around Central Texas, God called him home.

"It's truly amazing how God works. See what God has done just in my life through this ministry. And now I'm in the position of the senior pastor," Cotton said. "I'm truly grateful. Something that I didn't ask for or something I didn't…can't say I didn't want it, but I knew I was called to do it."

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His story is now being etched into the nearly 160-year history of the church, formerly known as the Colored Baptist Church Zion, which began in 1866. After standing for just seven years, tragedy struck the congregation.

"The KKK burned down our building. And so we didn't have an edifice for a while," Cotton said.

According to the church's history, the fire was started in an attempt to capture a Black man thought to have been hiding inside. In 1908, the church was rebuilt on Martin Luther King Drive in San Marcos. 

Donna Perkins now works in the church's finance office, but she reminisces about the good old days of driving from San Antonio to go to church with her grandparents.

"I just remember it being a lot of fun here. The food was awesome! It was just like a family. I mean, we had a lot of fun," Perkins said.

In the 1980s, First Baptist needed major repairs, but the city denied their permit to renovate, prompting the congregation to vote to buy land and relocate. The church is now located just blocks up the road on South Mitchell Street. This is where you'll find the historical marker bestowed upon the first Black church in San Marcos.

"Nobody can ever take that away from us. We were here. And we're going to be here, forever," Cotton said.

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Over the past nearly 16 decades, the church has experienced four different name changes, and this year, will go through one more. Pastor Cotton said the congregation is reviving the original name with a twist.

"We are new, and so why not be the New Zion Baptist Church? I think God is calling us to honor our history," Cotton said.

The name brings a new beginning for a new generation of leadership.

"I want people to experience the difference," Cotton said. "I want people to say, you know what? When I was at that church, my life changed."

To learn more about First Baptist Church NBC, click here.