The Rock Church

You Are Not Forgotten

“But this is what the LORD says: I would no more reject my people than I would change my laws that govern night and day, earth and sky.” — Jeremiah 33:25–26 (NLT, excerpt)

I recently visited a church in Phoenix, Arizona, with my son. Time to tour colleges and explore some options for his future education. We then decided to attend a local church on Sunday morning.

A few things stood out to me during our visit that were incredibly meaningful.

First, even though we didn’t know a single person in the building, we somehow felt at home.

The same familiar language of praise and adoration filled the worship center. We also heard the same expressions of love and dependence upon Jesus that we experience every weekend at The Rock Church. The church celebrated baptisms, just as we celebrated changed lives through baptism back home that same weekend. The pastor preached about Joshua. He reminded the congregation of God’s promises and our absolute dependence upon Him.

Different city, church, and people.

Same Jesus, Spirit, and family.

And as I stood there worshiping, something beautiful struck me.

Though I knew no one, in a very real sense, I knew everyone. God’s children surrounded me as I stood among them. I was not a stranger, but part of the family. Surely God has not forgotten me, but He loves me. At the same time, I was not distant, but connected through a common faith in the living Christ.

Church, do you realize not only WHO you belong to in Jesus, but also WHO you belong WITH?

Church With A Capital C

I’m talking about our local church family, of course. But also the Church with a capital C. The family of God that extends far beyond the walls of our own building, our city, our country, and even our generation.

Have you ever experienced this?

Maybe you stood in line at a grocery store and struck up a conversation with someone. Only to discover that you both know Jesus. And suddenly, there’s a familiarity there. A connection that goes beyond a casual conversation.

Possibly, you’ve experienced it on a mission trip. Worshiping with believers halfway around the world (who don’t even speak your language). Or perhaps, in an Uber, an airport, or some unexpected place, you’ve met someone and thought, I know that Spirit. I know that love. I know the Jesus they belong to, because He’s the same Jesus I belong to.

Isn’t that amazing?

And yet, isn’t it also true that sometimes we feel terribly alone? The daily demands of life sometimes overwhelm us. Indeed, we carry burdens, face disappointments, and struggle with uncertainty. Sometimes. we quietly wonder, “Does anybody really know what I’m going through? Am I the only one? Has God forgotten about me?”

Church, listen to the promise of Jeremiah 33.

He Speaks

God is speaking to His people about His faithfulness. He reminds them that His covenant is as certain as the laws that govern day and night. In other words, as surely as the sun rises and sets, God will remain faithful to His promises.

He has not forgotten His people.

And He has not forgotten YOU.

One of the beautiful reminders of this truth comes through the small, but all-too-real miracle of belonging to the family of God.

Think about it. How is this possible? Take people who have never met. They come from entirely different backgrounds, live hundreds (or even thousands) of miles apart. But they can stand together in worship and experience such a profound sense of kinship and love.

Is it simply tradition? Shared religious customs? Familiar songs and language?

Oh, Church, I think our spirits know it’s something much deeper than that.

It’s the Living Lord. Living in, among, and through his people. Christ reminds us that He is at work. That He knows us, loves us, and never leaves us alone. He is always building us together into something far greater than ourselves.

What An Incredible Gift

So, the next time you feel isolated, forgotten, or overwhelmed by the circumstances of life, remember this: you belong to Jesus. And because you belong to Jesus, you belong to a family that stretches across the entire world.

The Spirit of the Living God unites our family. Not geography, personality, preference, or tradition. On the contrary, the Spirit of the Living God unites us.

And if the Lord is faithful to uphold the very laws that govern the heavens and the earth, you can trust Him to remain faithful to you.

God knows you. He loves you. God never forgets you. And, Church, you are never alone.

May we never take for granted the miracle of belonging to Christ. And through Him, to one another.

Belonging with you, 

Steele

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church

Where Are Your Eyes?

“Sensible people keep their eyes glued on wisdom, but a fool’s eyes wander to the ends of the earth.” — Proverbs 17:24 (NLT)

Notice that Solomon doesn’t separate the wise from the foolish by intelligence in this verse. Instead, he points out that it’s connected to where they’re looking. The fool isn’t necessarily ignorant. He’s distracted. His eyes roam to the ends of the earth, always scanning for the next thing. A fool wants the far-off answer, the life he assumes is happening elsewhere. He always thinks the grass is greener somewhere else. The wise person, by contrast, doesn’t have to search to the ends of the earth. Why? Because wisdom isn’t far away. Moses told Israel that God’s word was “very near you” (Deuteronomy 30:14). The New Testament goes further: wisdom is not merely a principle but a Person. Christ Himself is “the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24).

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Tony D'Amico

Hope When Everything Is Stripped Away

When I tragically lost my father five years ago, I began a journey through grief that I never would have chosen for myself. And every now and again, I’ve tried to write down some of the things the Lord has patiently taught me along the way. This is the next entry in my journal through the valley of grief.

Grief has a way of stripping life down to what is real.

It can reveal that the things you once leaned on can’t hold you. Also, it often forces you to come face-to-face with things you’ve done everything possible to avoid. Sometimes, it leaves you wrestling with realities you cannot change, explain, or escape. You become desperate to find relief. There must be something to make the aching stop. And when you find yourself there, you ask,

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church

Proven Character

“But you know that Timothy has proved himself… he has served with me in the work of the gospel.” — Philippians 2:22 (NIV 1984)

A few years ago, I sat across from a young couple I was counseling. They had been married just three months—and were already talking about divorce. As we talked, the wife said something that stuck with me: “I just can’t handle him… he’s so untidy. He always leaves his socks on the floor. I didn’t know he was like this.”

I remember thinking… socks?

But it wasn’t really about socks. It was deeper. They had unmet expectations, felt frustrated, and didn’t endure when things got hard. Sadly, they divorced. And it reminded me: many people want the blessings of commitment. But far fewer are willing to pay the price to build the kind of character that sustains commitment.

That’s what Paul highlights about Timothy. In what looks like simple travel plans (in the verses), we discover something powerful. Timothy had proven character. Not flashy talent or temporary passion. Instead, he had steady, tested, reliable faithfulness.

Here’s the truth: you don’t build character in moments—you reveal it over time.

Anyone can be kind for a day. They can certainly serve for a season. But proven character shows up again and again. And so it shows up when it’s inconvenient, unnoticed, and frustrating.

Timothy stood out because he cared deeply for people and put Christ first. Equally important, he stayed consistent and remained loyal. Because of that, Paul trusted him completely.

The Long Haul

So, here’s the question: “Are we becoming people who others—and God—can trust?”

In a world of quick results and easy exits (like a microwave), God does something different. He doesn’t instantly form lives; instead, He slowly forms them over time.

Microwaves are fast… but shallow. Crock pots take time… but produce something rich and lasting. Without a doubt, that’s how God builds character.

He’s looking for people who don’t bail when it’s hard or quit when it’s inconvenient. They don’t walk away when life gets messy (even if there are socks on the floor 😉).

The Lord is looking for people who stay. Who grow. And who also endure. People who are in it for the long haul. Because in the end, it won’t matter how gifted you were. It will matter how faithful you were.

Don’t just aim for success this week. Aim for proven character.

In it for the long haul,

Bill

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church

Trusting God for the Growth

“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.” — 1 Corinthians 3:6–7

Seventeen of us recently returned from a 10-day short-term mission trip to the Winter Olympics in Arco and Milan, Italy. Throughout our time there, we saw God show up in incredible ways. Whether at our TRM concerts or through street busking evangelism, many on our team had meaningful Gospel conversations. I am still processing all the ways we saw and experienced God’s provision, goodness, and sovereign plan.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Whose Fish Are These?

“He told them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’” — Matthew 9:35-38

Our church has undeniably been blessed with LOTS of new people. Attendance is at an all-time high. New people are just about everywhere! In fact, over the past six years, we are averaging 856 new people/year, 71 new people/month, and 16 new people/weekend. Assuming half of the new attendees don’t even turn in programs, you can perhaps double that number.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church

Don’t Put This Light Away!

Christmas is indeed the most wonderful time of the year! But, the day after Christmas… not so much. Admittedly, all the excitement that went into putting up the Christmas lights is now nonexistent. The time has finally come to take them down.

But certainly, don’t let December 26th be the day you put all of the excitement of Christmas away until next year. Instead, ponder the incarnation of God in the Lord Jesus Christ. It means He has come to illuminate our lives today and forevermore.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church

Jesus is a Promise Keeper

The Bible is amazing. It’s all one story that points to the New Covenant ushered in by Jesus Christ. From its first pages (with the brokenness and mess of human sin) God had His eyes on His ultimate promise to His people — Jesus. We can look throughout the Bible and see how God fulfilled His promises and covenants through Jesus. Undeniably, Jesus is a Promise Keeper!

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Do Not Lose Heart

Have you ever prayed to God and seemingly nothing happened? How about praying 10 times? 100 times? Maybe you felt like you didn’t even deserve the gift you asked for? I recently read the first chapter of Luke and empathized with Zechariah. God spoke to me in a new way — to not lose heart when I pray. I had three takeaways I wanted to share with you.

Remember These Things:

1. Be faith-filled and pray continually.

Think about how long Zechariah and Elizabeth prayed for a child. Being advanced in years and well beyond the age of having children (Luke 1:18), they must have prayed thousands of times to have a child. They continued to have faith and pray even though their prayers seemed unanswered (Luke 1:6).

2. Gifts from God are good.

When God answered their prayer for a child, Zechariah didn’t believe it. I can certainly empathize with that feeling! There are times I feel like I don’t deserve a blessing from God. In fact, it leads me to doubt the prayer will be answered. God shook Zechariah a bit by removing his voice until his son was born. It was as if God needed to get his attention (in a drastic way) for him to understand the depth of the gift he was about to receive. Being mute drove Zechariah to an even closer relationship with God than he had before (Luke 1:67–79). Take heart, even when things seem like they are “bad”, God is working it for good.

3. God loves us and will answer us.

He hears us and answers according to His will for our lives (Luke 1:13). Certainly, our prayers aren’t always answered the way we want. That’s because our Father knows what’s best for us. I know there have been times I’ve specifically prayed for something and it didn’t happen the way I wanted. But God knew what was best.

When we faithfully pray, we are heard and loved by Him. He will answer us according to His will for our lives. With this in mind, don’t lose heart while you’re waiting. Sometimes, just like for Zechariah, God needs to grab our attention during the process. Take heart.

Learning to pray continually,

Tony

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Tony D'Amico

Drought, Rain and Prayer

“The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.” — James 5:16b-18

Utah is experiencing a severe drought. In fact, 88% of our state is under extreme drought conditions. Due to this, back in June, Governor Cox said, “Because there is power in prayer, we are asking all of you and your congregations to join us in a weekend of prayer this coming weekend, June 4-6.” (On a side note, when I mentioned the governor’s prayer request to pastors in other states, they found it remarkable.) 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by admin