Never Before Project, 1055 N. Main Street, Madisonville, KY (2026)

06/22/2026

Jennie Knight, who has served as instructional leader at West Hopkins School for the past three years, has been selected as the school’s new principal. She is an experienced educator with more than 20 years in the field, including 14 years in Hopkins County Schools.

“I am deeply honored to be selected as the new principal of West Hopkins,” Knight said. “I want to sincerely thank Dr. Fleming and the WHS Site-Based Decision Making Council for placing their trust in me. I am stepping into this role ready to support our educators and serve our students. The community here is so special to me, and I am genuinely excited for what the future holds.”

Congratulations! To learn more, go to https://hopkins.kyschools.us/112557_2?articleID=68450.

06/14/2026

When You Pass Through the Waters

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”
Isaiah 43:2 (ESV)

Isaiah 43:2 is one of those verses that comforts the soul, but it also corrects something we often misunderstand about the Christian life.

God does not say, “If you pass through the waters.”
He says, “When you pass through the waters.”

That matters.

The Lord never promised His people a life untouched by trouble. He never promised that faith would keep us from every deep river or fiery trial. In fact, Scripture tells us again and again that the people of God will walk through suffering, opposition, sorrow, pressure, and seasons we cannot control.

But here is the promise: “I will be with you.”

That is the anchor.

God does not merely promise explanations. He promises Himself. He does not say we will always understand the waters. He says we will not walk through them alone. He does not say the fire will never feel hot. He says it will not consume us. The presence of God does not always remove the trial, but it sustains His people in the trial.

This is important because much of modern religion teaches people to measure God’s faithfulness by how quickly He removes difficulty. But biblical faith learns to trust Him even when the waters rise. Sometimes God parts the sea. Sometimes He carries us through the river. Sometimes He shuts the mouths of lions. Sometimes He walks with us in the furnace.

But He never abandons His own.

The words of Isaiah were spoken to a people who needed to remember the covenant faithfulness of God. They had failed. They had sinned. They had often wandered. Yet God reminds them that He is their Redeemer. Their hope was not in their strength, their worthiness, or their ability to hold themselves together. Their hope was in the God who had set His love upon them.

That is still our hope.

For the believer, this promise finds its deepest certainty in Jesus Christ. At the cross, Jesus entered the flood of judgment we deserved. He endured the fire of divine wrath in the place of sinners. He was not merely an example of endurance. He was the substitute for His people. Through His death and resurrection, He secured our redemption.

So when we walk through suffering now, we do so as people who have already been purchased by Christ. Our trials may be painful, but they are not punishment for our sin. Christ has borne that. Our suffering may be confusing, but it is not outside the hand of our sovereign God. He is working even when we cannot see it.

The waters may rise, but they will not finally drown you.
The rivers may roar, but they will not overwhelm you.
The fire may burn hot, but it will not consume what God has redeemed.

That does not mean we pretend pain does not hurt. It means we refuse to believe pain has the final word.

The Lord is with His people. Not just when life is calm. Not just when prayers are answered quickly. Not just when the path is clear. He is with us in the waters, in the rivers, and in the fire.

So take courage today. You may not know how long this season will last. You may not understand why the Lord has allowed it. You may not feel strong enough for what is in front of you.

But your strength is not the foundation.

God is with you. Christ has redeemed you. The Spirit sustains you. And the flame will not consume what belongs to the Lord.

The Bearded Pastor

06/11/2026

Ask God for Wisdom

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”
James 1:5-6 (ESV)

James writes to believers who are facing trials, pressure, hardship, and uncertainty. That matters because this verse is not given in a calm, easy moment. It is given in the middle of difficulty. James has just told us to count it all joy when we meet trials of various kinds, because God is producing steadfastness in His people. Then he tells us what to do when we do not know how to walk through those trials faithfully.

Ask God for wisdom.

Wisdom is not merely intelligence. It is not having a quick answer, a strong opinion, or enough life experience to figure everything out. Biblical wisdom is the ability to see life under the rule of God and respond in a way that honors Him. It is knowing how to live faithfully when the path is hard, when the answer is unclear, and when our emotions are loud.

And James says if we lack wisdom, we should ask God.

That is humbling because it admits we do not have what we need in ourselves. We are not as strong, clear, or steady as we sometimes pretend to be. Trials have a way of exposing that. Suffering reveals our limits. Pressure reveals our weakness. Confusion reveals how desperately we need the Lord.

But the command to ask is also deeply comforting because of the kind of God we are asking.

James says God “gives generously to all without reproach.” God is not irritated by the cries of His children. He does not shame His people for needing help. He does not roll His eyes when we come again in weakness. He gives generously. He gives because He is gracious. He gives because He is Father. He gives because every good and perfect gift comes from Him.

But James also adds a warning: “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting.”

This does not mean we must have perfect emotions or never feel weak. Faith is not pretending we have no questions. Faith is not acting like the trial does not hurt. Faith is coming to God because we believe He is who He says He is. Doubt, in this context, is not a struggling heart bringing weakness to the Lord. It is a divided heart that wants God’s wisdom without surrendering to God’s rule.

We cannot ask God for wisdom while reserving the right to reject His answer.

That is where we must be honest. Sometimes we want guidance, but only if it agrees with our preferences. We want wisdom, but only if it protects our comfort. We want clarity, but not necessarily obedience. James will not let us treat God as a consultant. He is Lord.

The gospel reminds us why we can come boldly and humbly. We do not approach God because we have earned the right to be heard. We come through Christ. Jesus is the wisdom of God, the Savior who lived perfectly, died for sinners, and rose again in victory. Through Him, we have access to the Father.

So ask.

Ask when you are tired. Ask when you are confused. Ask when ministry is heavy. Ask when parenting is hard. Ask when the decision is complicated. Ask when you do not trust your own heart.

But ask in faith. Come ready to listen. Come ready to obey. Come trusting that the God who saved you by grace will also guide you with wisdom.

The Bearded Pastor

06/10/2026

Wait for the Lord

“Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!”
Psalm 27:14 (ESV)

Waiting is one of the hardest classrooms in the Christian life.

We would rather move, fix, solve, answer, defend, decide, and control. Waiting feels weak to us. It feels unproductive. It feels like nothing is happening. But Psalm 27:14 teaches us that waiting on the Lord is not passive resignation. It is active trust.

David says, “Wait for the LORD.”

Not wait for better circumstances.
Not wait for people to change.
Not wait for the pressure to lift.
Not wait until you finally feel in control.

Wait for the Lord.

That means our hope is not anchored in timing, outcomes, or explanations. Our hope is anchored in God Himself. The believer does not wait because life is easy. The believer waits because God is faithful. He is sovereign over the delay, wise in the silence, present in the valley, and good in the process.

David knew what it meant to wait. He knew enemies. He knew fear. He knew uncertainty. He knew what it was to cry out and still have to keep trusting. Yet he does not tell us to hurry God. He does not tell us to panic. He says, “Wait for the LORD.”

Then he says, “be strong, and let your heart take courage.”

That tells us something important. Waiting on God is not for the spiritually lazy. It takes strength to trust when the answer has not come. It takes courage to obey when the path is not clear. It takes faith to believe that God’s hand is still working when your eyes cannot see it.

But where does that strength come from?

Not from ourselves. Not from positive thinking. Not from pretending we are not tired. Strength comes from the Lord. Courage rises when the heart remembers who God is. He is not late. He is not confused. He is not limited. He is not indifferent. He is the covenant-keeping God who never abandons His people.

The gospel gives us the deepest reason to wait with courage. At the cross, it looked as though everything had gone wrong. The disciples saw suffering, shame, darkness, and death. But God was accomplishing redemption. What looked like defeat was the very means by which Christ would save sinners.

SincGod was sovereign at Calvary, He is sovereign in your waiting.

The Lord may not explain every delay. He may not move according to your schedule. He may not answer in the way you expected. But He has already proven His love in Christ. He has already shown His faithfulness at the cross. He has already secured the future of everyone who belongs to Jesus.

So do not confuse waiting with abandonment.

The silence of God is not the absence of God. The delay of God is not the denial of God. The hidden work of God is still the work of God.

Maybe you are waiting on direction. Waiting on healing. Waiting on restoration. Waiting on provision. Waiting on a prodigal. Waiting for the burden to lift. Waiting for the next door to open.

Wait for the Lord.

Be strong, not because you are strong in yourself, but because He is strong for you. Let your heart take courage, not because you know how everything will work out, but because you know the One who rules over everything.

And when your heart grows weary, preach the verse to yourself again:

“Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!”

The Bearded Pastor :::

Instagram Version

Wait for the Lord

“Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!”
Psalm 27:14 (ESV)

Waiting is one of the hardest classrooms in the Christian life.

We would rather move, fix, solve, defend, decide, and control. Waiting feels weak to us. It feels like nothing is happening. But Psalm 27:14 teaches us that waiting on the Lord is not passive resignation. It is active trust.

David says, “Wait for the LORD.”

Not wait for better circumstances.
Not wait for people to change.
Not wait until you finally feel in control.

Wait for the Lord.

That means our hope is not anchored in timing, outcomes, or explanations. Our hope is anchored in God Himself. The believer waits because God is faithful. He is sovereign over the delay, wise in the silence, present in the valley, and good in the process.

Then David says, “be strong, and let your heart take courage.”

Waiting on God is not for the spiritually lazy. It takes strength to trust when the answer has not come. It takes courage to obey when the path is not clear. It takes faith to believe that God’s hand is still working when your eyes cannot see it.

But that strength does not come from ourselves. It comes from the Lord. Courage rises when the heart remembers who God is. He is not late. He is not confused. He is not limited. He is not indifferent.

The gospel gives us the deepest reason to wait with courage. At the cross, it looked as though everything had gone wrong. But God was accomplishing redemption. What looked like defeat was the very means by which Christ would save sinners.

Since God was sovereign at Calvary, He is sovereign in your waiting.

So do not confuse waiting with abandonment. The silence of God is not the absence of God. The delay of God is not the denial of God. The hidden work of God is still the work of God.

Be strong, not because you are strong in yourself, but because He is strong for you.

Wait for the Lord.

The Bearded PastorX Version

“Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage…”
Psalm 27:14 ESV

Waiting on God is not passive resignation. It is active trust.

The silence of God is not the absence of God. The delay of God is not the denial of God.

Wait for the Lord.

The Bearded Pastor

06/06/2026

Delight Yourself in the Lord

“Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Psalm 37:4 (ESV)

Psalm 37:4 is often quoted but easily misunderstood. Many read it as though God is promising to hand us whatever we want if we add a little religion to our lives. That is not what David is saying.

This verse is not a blank check for selfish ambition. It is an invitation to find our deepest joy in God Himself.

“Delight yourself in the LORD.”

That is the command. Before David ever speaks of desire, he speaks of delight. The heart must be reoriented before the hands are filled. The Lord is not a means to our dreams or a tool for getting the life we already wanted. He is the treasure.

That matters because fallen hearts do not naturally delight in God. Apart from grace, we delight in control, comfort, approval, success, pleasure, and self. We may want God’s gifts, but we do not naturally want God as our greatest good. That is why we need more than behavior modification. We need new hearts.

The gospel does not simply forgive our sinful desires. It transforms them.

When God saves a sinner, He does not leave that person enslaved to the old loves. By His Spirit, He begins to reshape what we value, what we pursue, what we hate, and what we treasure. The Christian life is not merely avoiding bad things. It is learning to love the Lord more than the things that once ruled us.

Then David says, “and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

This does not mean God is obligated to fulfill every craving. It means that as our delight is truly in the Lord, our desires are increasingly brought into alignment with His will. He changes what we want. He teaches us to desire what honors Him. He makes holiness beautiful. He makes Christ precious. He makes obedience a joy rather than a burden.

God is a good Father. He knows how to give what is best. Sometimes He grants the desire. Sometimes He denies it. Sometimes He delays it. Sometimes He changes it completely. But in all of it, He is not withholding joy from His people. He is training our hearts to find joy where it can never be lost.

In Christ, we see the fullness of this truth. Jesus is the beloved Son who perfectly delighted in the Father. He obeyed where we rebelled. He trusted where we doubted. He surrendered where we demanded our own way. Then He went to the cross to redeem people whose desires were broken by sin.

Now, through Him, we are brought near to God.

So today, bring your desires before the Lord, but do not stop there. Ask Him to search them. Ask Him to purify them. Ask Him to reorder them around His glory. Do not merely ask God to give you what you want. Ask Him to teach you to want what is holy, lasting, and pleasing to Him.

The greatest gift God can give us is not every desire we have ever imagined. The greatest gift is a heart that delights in Him.

The Bearded Pastor

05/23/2026

How Will They Hear?

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?”
Romans 10:14 (ESV)

Romans 10:14 presses a question on the conscience of the church. It does not allow us to treat gospel ministry as optional, casual, or secondary. Paul is reminding us that people cannot call on the Lord if they have not believed in Him, and they cannot believe in Him if they have never heard of Him.

That means someone must tell them.

The gospel is not good advice for people who want to improve their lives. It is the good news of what God has done in Christ to save sinners. We are not sent into the world with vague encouragement or religious clichés. We are sent with a message.

Christ has come.
Christ has died.
Christ has risen.
Christ saves sinners.

That message must be heard.

Paul’s question humbles us because it reminds us that salvation belongs to God, but God uses means. He opens blind eyes. He raises dead hearts. He grants repentance and faith. But He has chosen to send His people with His Word. We do not save anyone, but we are commanded to speak of the One who does.

This should remove both pride and passivity.

It removes pride because we cannot convert a soul by our cleverness, personality, emotion, or effort. Only God can bring the dead to life. The power is not in the messenger. The power is in the gospel.

But it also removes passivity because God has appointed the preaching, teaching, and sharing of the gospel as the ordinary means by which sinners hear and believe. We do not get to say, “If God wants to save them, He will do it without me.” That sounds spiritual, but it is disobedience dressed up as theology.

The sovereignty of God never cancels the mission of the church. It fuels it.

Because God saves, we speak. Because Christ has sheep who will hear His voice, we proclaim His Word. Because the gospel is the power of God for salvation, we do not need to manipulate, entertain, or water it down. We simply need to be faithful.

This matters in our homes, our churches, our workplaces, and our communities. There are people around us who are religious but lost, moral but dead, hurting but hopeless, and busy but empty. They do not simply need a better week. They need Christ. They need to hear of His holiness, His mercy, His cross, His resurrection, His grace, and His call to repent and believe.

And the question remains: how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard?

Maybe the Lord has placed someone in your life who needs to hear. Maybe you have been praying for them but avoiding the conversation. Maybe fear has kept you quiet. Maybe you have assumed someone else would say what God has burdened you to say.

Do not let fear silence faithfulness.

Speak with humility. Speak with love. Speak with patience. Speak with Scripture. But speak. Tell them that sin is real, judgment is coming, Christ is sufficient, grace is available, and salvation is found in Him alone.

The results belong to God.
The message belongs to God.
The mission has been given to us.

So let the church be bold again. Let ministry be more than activity. Let compassion move beyond good intentions. Let us love people enough to tell them the truth.

How will they hear?

The Bearded Pastor

05/21/2026

Fear God, Not Man

“The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.”
Proverbs 29:25 (ESV)

In this verse, Solomon puts a mirror in front of the heart. It reminds us that one of the greatest dangers to faithful ministry, gospel witness, and obedience to God is not always open persecution. Sometimes it is the quiet fear of what people will think.

“The fear of man lays a snare.”

A snare is a trap. It catches, restricts, and holds back. That is exactly what the fear of man does. It keeps us silent when we should speak. It makes us soften truth when we should be clear. It makes us chase approval when we should be faithful. It tempts us to measure obedience by how well it is received.

And if we are honest, we have all felt that pull.

We know someone needs the gospel, but we hesitate. We sense the Lord calling us to encourage, confront, pray, serve, or speak truth, but we start thinking about how they might respond. What if they reject me? What if they think I am strange? What if I say it wrong? What if this changes the relationship?

Those questions can sound wise, but often they are fear wearing a mask.

The fear of man is dangerous because it shifts our eyes from God to people. It makes their opinion feel heavier than God’s command. It makes their approval feel safer than God’s pleasure. But Scripture says that is a snare.

The gospel frees us from that trap.

If we are in Christ, our identity is not built on applause. We have already been accepted by God through the finished work of Jesus. Christ bore our sin, took our shame, satisfied the justice of God, and brought us near by grace. We do not need to be ruled by the fear of rejection because our deepest acceptance has already been secured in Him.

That does not make us harsh. Gospel boldness is not arrogance. It is not rudeness. It is not speaking truth without love. The same Christ who sends us with the message of salvation also teaches us humility, compassion, patience, and gentleness.

But love cannot stay silent while people remain lost.

If the gospel is true, then people do not merely need encouragement. They need Christ. They need forgiveness. They need repentance and faith. They need to know that sin is real, judgment is coming, grace is available, and Jesus saves sinners.

The fear of man says, “Stay quiet. Keep it comfortable. Do not risk the relationship.”
Trust in the Lord says, “Speak the truth in love. Be faithful. God is able.”

Proverbs says, “but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.” Safety here is not the promise that everyone will like us, understand us, or respond well. Faithfulness may cost us something. But trusting the Lord places us where we truly belong: under His authority, in His care, and within His will.

Ministry requires this kind of trust. Helping people requires this kind of trust. Sharing the gospel requires this kind of trust. We cannot control outcomes. We cannot open blind eyes. We cannot raise dead hearts. Only God can do that. But we can be faithful with the message He has given us.

So today, ask the Lord to free you from the snare of fearing people more than you trust Him. Ask Him for boldness that is humble, courage that is loving, and faithfulness that is rooted in the gospel.

There is someone who needs truth.
There is someone who needs prayer.
There is someone who needs help.
There is someone who needs Christ.

Do not let fear keep you silent.

Trust the Lord. Speak the gospel. Love people enough to point them to Jesus.

The Bearded Pastor

05/20/2026

Saved by Grace

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Ephesians 2:8–9 (ESV)

Ephesians 2:8–9 is one of the clearest statements in Scripture about how sinners are saved. Paul does not leave room for pride, performance, or self-congratulation. He puts the spotlight on God.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith.”

Grace means God saves the undeserving. Salvation does not begin with our goodness, our effort, our morality, or our religious activity. It begins with God’s mercy. Grace is not God rewarding the worthy. Grace is God rescuing the guilty.

That matters because Ephesians 2 does not describe humanity as spiritually weak but basically alive. Paul says we were dead in trespasses and sins. Dead people do not raise themselves. If we are saved, it is because God acted first. He made us alive together with Christ.

Then Paul says this salvation comes “through faith.” Faith is not a work that earns salvation. Faith is the empty hand that receives what God freely gives. We are not saved because faith is impressive. We are saved because Christ is sufficient. Faith looks away from self and rests entirely on the finished work of Jesus.

And Paul makes it even clearer: “And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.”

Salvation is God’s gift from beginning to end. The grace that saves us is from God. The Christ who redeems us is from God. The faith by which we receive Him is not a reason to boast.

That is why Paul says salvation is “not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

The cross silences boasting. We do not stand before God with a résumé. We come with empty hands, confessing that Christ alone is our righteousness. Our prayers, church attendance, giving, serving, preaching, teaching, and trying harder do not save us. Good works matter, but they are the fruit of salvation, not the root of salvation.

If works could save us, Christ died for no purpose. If we could make ourselves right with God, Calvary would be unnecessary. But the gospel tells the truth. We were guilty, helpless, and unable to save ourselves. So God sent His Son. Jesus lived the righteous life we failed to live. He died the death our sins deserved. He rose again in victory. By grace, through faith, sinners are saved.

This is humbling, but it is also freeing.

You do not have to pretend you are stronger than you are. You do not have to build your assurance on your own performance. You do not have to wonder if you have done enough to make God accept you. If you are in Christ, your hope is not in what you have done for God, but in what Christ has done for you.

So let this verse crush your pride and comfort your soul.

You were not saved by grace so you could boast in yourself. You were saved by grace so you could boast in the Lord.

The Bearded Pastor

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