The Rock Church

An Amazing Covenant by Caleb Yetton

“When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram…” — Genesis 15:17-18

Genesis 15 shows an amazing covenant ceremony between God and Abram. God directs Abram to bring a heifer, a ram, and a goat. He is to cut each of them into two pieces and lay the sides opposite each other. This was a traditional covenant ceremony in the days of Abram. When two parties were about to enter into a contract, they would cut an animal (or animals) in two. Next, both parties would walk between the halves. 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton
Tags: Abraham, abrtam, animal, animal sacrifice, approval, bargain, belief, caanan, caleb, caleb yetton, ceremony, Christianity, clean, comfort, covenant, cross, dove, faith, fire pot, galatians, genesis, goat, heifer, missions, patriarch, perfect, perfection, pigeon, Propitiation, ram, righteous, righteousness, the rock church, torch, unclean, Works

Noel Christmas Series by The Rock Church

The word “Noel” has several meanings. Most notably, it communicates the news of God’s goodness and love expressed through the birth of His son, Jesus Christ. 

Posted in News, Series by The Rock Church
Tags: carols, Christmas, christmas music, christmas season, christmas series, Church, Family, Holiday, Kids, News, noel, rock church, Series, Sermon Series, sermons, the rock, the rock church, topical series, Utah

The Comfort of The Suffering Servant by The Rock Church

One of my best friend’s son has recently been in the hospital for several weeks. It has been heartbreaking to see their family walk through so much pain and uncertainty. In moments like those, when the weight of our struggles feels overwhelming, I find myself praying. I pray for the Lord to help us see that suffering, while deeply painful, is never without meaning. Equally important, we are never beyond the reach of our Great Comforter.

A quote (often attributed to Augustine of Hippo) comes to mind: “God had one Son on earth without sin, but never one without suffering.” 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: Brian, Bryan, Bryan D. Edwards, bryan edwards, child, Children, christ, comfort, comforter, crown of thorns, death, depression, God's work, grief, hebrews, Hope, hopeless, hospital, Isaiah, jesus, near, pain, sacrifice, see, seen, Servant, serve, sick, Sickness, Son, strength, suffer, suffering, tear, tears, tempted, the rock church, trial, uncertain, work

The Paths We Pave by Tony D'Amico

Proverbs 5:21-23 gives us a sober reminder: “For the Lord sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes.”

Think about the truth of that verse for a second. Without a doubt, we live in a world where it’s all too easy to curate a perfect image on social media. An absolutely perfect outward appearance. In fact, we edit our feeds and filter our photos. Along with that, we keep a smile on our faces and make our lives look picture-perfect. It happens not only online but also in real life. But, even if we fool our followers and neighbors, God isn’t deceived. He sees everything. Because of this, no filter, highlight reel, or act we put on for others can hide the truth from Him. We’ve exposed our motivations, mistakes, and struggles to the One who examines every step we take.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Tony D'Amico
Tags: act, appearance, captive, direction, disguise, enslaved, evil, examine, fake, faux, filter, followers, fool, foolish, Grace, highilght reel, identity, image, jesus, known, lead, lie, mask, paths, pathway, pave, perfect, picture-perfect, power, proverbs, psalm, reality, relationship with God, self-control, social media, steps, the rock church, Tony, tony damico, trajectory, Wisdom

Guarding Our Words and Building Community by Tony D'Amico

The Book of Proverbs (6:16-19) gives us a list of seven things God really hates. It’s undoubtedly a serious call to avoid the stuff that tears down what He values. Verse 19 talks specifically about behaviors that wreck trust and unity. The ESV says, “one who sows discord among brothers,” and the NLT describes “a person who sows discord in a family.” Additionally, the NIV widens it to “a person who stirs up conflict in the community.”

Now, think about that for a second. Causing division and conflict—just by what we say—is labeled as an abomination to God. That’s obviously huge! Why? Because breaking unity certainly goes against His command for us to love one another and live in harmony.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Tony D'Amico
Tags: actions, behavior, build, building each other up, caring, community, conflict, conversation, division, drama, genuine, golden rule, gossip, honest, kind, lips, love, love your neighbor, loyal, lying, negativity, positivity, proverbs, slander, stir, stirring up, talking, the Body, the rock church, thoughts, Tony, tony damico, trust, unity, words

All by The Rock Church

“ALL means ALL, and that’s ALL ALL means.” If you’ve been going to The Rock Church for very long, you have probably heard this catchy saying. And you’ve also probably heard that today is Election Day. Perhaps, if you’re like me, you may even feel a sense of relief that this day has finally arrived.

The current political environment reminds me of the time an undertow in the ocean caught me. I am a capable swimmer but I felt somewhat out of control as the waves tossed me head over heels under the water. As the tide rolled away, I could stand and get my bearings again. In much the same way, no matter how this day unfolds, I know where to find my bearings. I believe we ALL will remain under the authority of King Jesus. These verses help me immensely. I have used the NLT version and capitalized and underlined the word ALL for emphasis.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: all, america, Authority, election, election day 2024, Ephesians, Future, Good, Hope, Jude, king, king jesus, kingdom, Mac, majesty, Matthew, nations, need, ocean, Peace, political, politics, power, Presidents, Psalms, Rest, Romans, Savior, sovereign, Steve McInroy, the rock church, trust, undertow, US, USA

But Let the One Who Boasts… by The Rock Church

“This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the Lord.” — Jeremiah 9:23-24

Without a doubt, we live in a culture full of boasting, don’t we? There is no need to go further than our phones, computers, news feeds, billboards, television, radio (or even our mirrors) to see how prevalent boasting is.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: acceptance, accomplished, boast, boasting, compare, comparison, content, culture, discontent, envy, happiness, humble, humility, identity, inner self, insecure, insecurity, jealousy, Jeremiah, joy, longing, love, made to worship, more, narcisisstic, pride, satisfaction, satisfy, Secure, security, self love, selfish, someone, steel, Steele, Steele Croswhite, strong, the rock church, The Rock Music, TRM, value, waiting, weak, wealth, weight, Worship, worthy

Election Day by The Rock Church

The election is less than two weeks away (November 5). Earlier this year, we took six weeks to study what the Bible teaches about politics in our King Jesus series. We specifically covered several important lessons during that time. Here are a few significant reminders as we approach election day. 

• First, if you aren’t registered to vote, please register before Friday, October 25. 

It says in Jeremiah 29:7, “But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” More Christians voting biblically is a significant way we can bring good to our city, state, and country. 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: candidate, city, country, Daniel, Daniel 2:20, election, Election 2024, intercession, Jeremiah 29, jesus, Josh, Josh Whitney, king jesus, Lords Prayer, November 5, officials, Peace, political, pray, Presidential Election, Presidents, Romans, state, the rock church, UNited States, vote, Voting day, welfare

English Club has been well attended! by The Rock Church

English clubs have been going well. We’ve had over 70 people sign up for them so far, and we’re hoping to have 100 people sign up by the end of the week. Everyone has been very enthusiastic, and we’ve all loved getting to know the university students. God is fostering the foundations for deeper relationships already, and he’s brought several people for each English Club level, so we have our hands full each day with English clubs!

We haven’t had anyone else yet get saved that we know of, so if you could please be praying that we would continue to have Gospel conversations and see more people pass from death to life, it would be much appreciated!

Here are the general plans for the rest of the week. 
We’re having a cooking class tonight and teaching them how to make pancakes! This should be a very fun time. Also, as this is the middle of the week, it’s likely we’re going to get into deeper conversations with the students, and the same for the rest of the week. It will be the standard English club format for Thursday and Friday, although, on Friday, we’ll hold a sort of “graduation” party to celebrate the end of the week.

On Saturday, we’ll be going on an excursion to the town of Chiavenna! We have already begun to invite the students, but please pray that the majority of them will want to come with us and be able to so we can continue to shine the light of Christ in their lives and love on them! 

Church, we’re so grateful for your continued support while we labor here with the Apisas and the Lehtonens. Have a wonderful day!

Grace and peace, Abbi

Posted in Missions by The Rock Church
Tags: europe, italy, mission team, mission trip, missions, short term mission trip, the rock missions

Longing for Our Heavenly Home by The Rock Church

“Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” (Hebrews 11:16 NIV84)

Mary and I recently returned from a delightful vacation in one of our favorite places — Boothbay Harbor, Maine. We had a fantastic time; however, I must admit, the many lobsters I enjoyed didn’t have the same fate!

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: 1 Corinthians, afterlife, Bill, Bill Young, Boothbay harbor, Corinthians, eternity, Future, Harbor, Heaven, hebrews, Home, Hope, house, imagine, incredible, Lobster, longing, Maine, reality, seafood, the rock church, vacation, wait, waiting, Witch, Witches Island