From the Pastor

This is a weekly devotional space where our pastor, as well as staff members on occasion, offer reflections, spiritual insights, and words of encouragement rooted in Scripture and everyday life. These writings are intended to challenge, inspire, and draw us closer to God and to one another as we strive to live out our faith with boldness and compassion. Whether offering comfort, conviction, or a call to action, each column invites us into deeper discipleship and shared community. When The Columns does not run, there is no new entry for From the Pastor.

Aug. 16, 2026

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I thank my God for every remembrance of you, always in every one of my prayers for all of you, praying with joy for your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this: that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.


After our opening session of the Pastor’s Combined Sunday School Class in the Chapel last Sunday, that felt right.


Paul again: “For I long to see you so that I may share with you some spiritual gift so that you may be strengthened—or rather so that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.”


I have been away from Huntington this week, though I have stayed connected to the church office and thought of you and prayed for you from afar. I received an invitation that I had to accept: I was invited to the Faculty Gathering of Leadership in Ministry in Atlanta, GA. LIM is the most important pastoral work I do besides pastoring Fifth Avenue Baptist Church.


Twelve years ago, still the new pastor of First Baptist Church of Middlesboro, KY, my mentor invited me to Leadership in Ministry’s new Atlanta workshop. LIM began over 30 years ago in Vienna Baptist Church (ABCUSA) in Virginia. Meetings were held on Vienna Baptist property in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia, and in the years since, have been held across the country, from Boston, MA, to Kansas City, MO, to Portland, OR.


Since 2014, I have pilgrimaged to Atlanta twice a year, spring and fall, and done the work of developing and growing myself as a pastor and leader. I don’t miss. LIM is a nonnegotiable for me. I wouldn’t be the pastor I am today without it.


The faculty of LIM welcomed me, encouraged me, and celebrated my new call to FAB. Yay us! I learned, offered a plenary presentation, and in the future, I’ll join them in teaching and counseling other clergy in pastoral leadership. I’m honored by the privilege and responsibility given to me by my colleagues. I look forward to working with them in new ways.


LIM is the second most important ministry work I do. I do it for me. I want to keep learning, keep growing, always. I also do it for you, for I want it to be true that “we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.” I’m coming home on a ministry high note. It’s been a good week. I look forward to seeing you Sunday.


~ Rev. Zach Bay