The Rock Church

Overcome Evil With Good

The idea of overcoming evil with good has been on my mind lately — I’d like to share some of my thoughts with you. You know, when someone affects you in a negative way, it’s easy to spin your attitude into payback mode. You want to show those who offended (or hurt) you, that you can do the same thing to them. The easy way to deal with your enemies (real or perceived) is to bash, abuse, sue and slander them. You want to avenge the evil they have inflicted on you. But, the Bible is clear that this isn’t the way…

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

Fellowship

On Labor Day, an old friend invited me to go to a BBQ at his house. I hadn’t seen him in years and he told me a few of our old friends were going to be there. I decided to go and catch up. It was great to be with people that I’d experienced so much of my young adult life with; after a few minutes of small talk, it was totally natural to be with them again. We spent five hours standing around the kitchen eating, laughing and reminiscing about the stuff we used to do together. I drove home that night with a smile on my face, thinking about how intertwined our lives used to be and one word kept coming to my mind. Fellowship. 

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I Will Never Leave You!

My grandson, Lewis, recently fell off some monkey bars and broke his arm. I was super excited to hear that he wanted to spend the day at our house a day or so after the accident — rather than go boating with his family. He knew he wouldn’t be able to swim with his friends and siblings; he also knew that at four years old, a whole day with grandpa and grandma could be a bunch of fun, especially with a lame arm. More than likely, there would be a movie or two (as well as treats) and of course, grandpa’s lunches are off the hook.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by admin

Test of Tests

This past week I had to take a test. It was not just any test, however. This one had been nicknamed “the test of tests”.

Let me back up. About seven years ago, I was at pastor’s conference, and was challenged and convicted by a teaching I heard. The speaker encouraged the pastors to pray about developing a skill that could be used to help others in the Church and in the world.

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Our Finest Hour

“But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” — 1 Corinthians 15:57-58 (NIV84)

 “Houston, we have a problem.” These were the immortal words spoken by Apollo 13 Mission Commander James Lovell on April 13, 1970. A mysterious explosion rocked the command module of their spacecraft halfway to the moon. The blast destroyed one oxygen tank and punctured a second, effectively crippling both the mission and its crew.

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Night Sky

Recently, my son and I had a chance to go camping with some friends for a few days. Anytime I get to go camping, looking up at the night sky is always a big highlight for me. Two of the nights we were there were no exception.

In the city, there are a fair amount of street lights, etc., so it’s sometimes difficult to see the night sky in all of its glory. However, camping in the middle of nowhere, you see it all — the planets, Milky Way galaxy, constellations, satellites and a few shooting stars.

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Give to God What is God’s

“And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said, “Caesar’s.” Then He said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” — Matthew 22:20-21

As I see the election cycle starting to ramp up, I am reminded of one of Jesus’ interactions regarding the Roman Emperor, Caesar. We looked at it during our TLC: Political Disunity message.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Three Lessons Learned from Giving

From my title, I’ll bet some of you are thinking this is going to be about tithing, aren’t you? It’s funny what comes to our minds when our hearts are pricked just a little. By the way, it’s not about tithing, so please keep reading.

In Acts, Paul writes to the leaders in Ephesus and ends with this verse:

“’In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” — Acts 20:35

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

Fire!

A few days ago, my wife Ashley and I were sitting in our living room while I played the guitar and she sang some worship songs. It was refreshing and encouraging. You could say we were literally distracted from the world, because right across the street from our house, a neighbor’s tree was on fire! 

By the time we finally noticed the fire, there were people (from up and down the street) with fire extinguishers and a hose, spraying down the tree. Less than a minute later, two fire engines and an ambulance pulled up with lights flashing and firefighters ready to do their jobs. 

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Hold Tightly!

“Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” — Hebrews 10:23-25

I am so thankful for the challenge in these verses to “hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm.” I see at least three things we can glean from them so we can “hold tightly” in our own lives. They are so incredibly important for the times we are living in.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by admin