The Rock Church

Finding Rest

One of the more frustrating things for me in life is not being able to fall asleep. I don’t often have trouble with this, but I have gone through spells of it. Sometimes, it happens when I first get in bed. Other times, it’s when I wake up in the middle of the night (and can’t fall back to sleep). Instead of finding rest, my mind races, thinking about all there is to worry about in life. 

In the still of the night, it’s so easy to reflect on those things that scare us or give us anxiety. Or, perhaps we go through items on the to-do list that we missed that day. Health, relationships, finances, parenting, news of war, what does the future hold? Admittedly, it can all feel paralyzing. 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Purpose for the New Year

A new year is upon us. For many, it’s a time for assessment, introspection and resolutions. A lot of this personal analysis can be boiled down to re-evaluating two questions: “What is my purpose?” and “How do I fulfill that purpose?”

I believe the answer to those two questions is found in the Great Commandment (Matthew 22). Jesus said the greatest commandment of the law was (vs 37-38), “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

One Thing

Recently, I spoke about prayer at our monthly meeting for The Rock Men. Preparing for it reminded me how important prayer truly is. I was challenged by this question, “What is one thing I can set in place to pray more?”

Prayer really is a lifeline for Christians. Martin Luther said, “To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.” It is such an essential and powerful part of our lives. Sadly, it can too easily be put on the back burner in the craziness of life. Simply put, we live in the most distracting time in the history of the world. We have enough content in our phones to fill multiple lifetimes. So, how do we pray more? How do we implement that “one thing”?

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Giving Up to Gain

Jesus’ call on His disciples’ lives was clear — radical, but clear. In Luke 9:23 Jesus says, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.” In a nutshell, Jesus says it’s a call to give up everything for Him.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

What the Lord has Done

I recently had the opportunity to attend the National Worship Leader Conference in Tennessee. Pastor Steele taught a workshop at the conference, so another brother and I decided to tag along to support him! During the week, we had a lot of fun being together. We talked about Jesus and laughed. Furthermore, we met several new friends and had numerous opportunities to tell people, “this is what the Lord has done in our lives.”

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Freedom

“For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” — Galatians 5:1

Wow! That is an amazing truth for you and me — ones who walk in faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone for our salvation. You are free, so live like it. We are sons and daughters of a Holy God, not slaves who have to work for the favor of our Master. Indeed, we stand firmly free before a God who looks at us and is pleased — because of what Jesus has done.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

On The Rock

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.” — Matthew 7:24-25

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

God’s Timing is Not Our Timing

I’ve been reading through the Exodus story this past week. I was struck by this important idea — God’s timing is not our timing. This is a truth we often learn through difficult circumstances. Certainly, this was no different for the Israelites. Though they were enslaved and tormented in Egypt, God was at work, fulfilling His promises. 

“…the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.” — Exodus 2:23-25

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Different Opinions

My wife and I have recently had a number of conversations with people who hold different opinions than ours. These discussions have been equal parts challenging, encouraging and a little perplexing. 

Consequently, I have come to realize that it can be too easy to make assumptions from afar. I’ve found that most of us have been presuming what others are thinking or believing (many times based on narratives of the world) rather than respectfully asking questions and seeking to understand the other side. I have also come to realize that our enemy (the devil) loves to make us believe we are the minority and everyone else is against us. 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Walk by Faith

To walk by faith is not the same thing as merely being entertained by Jesus. Christian author Paul Tripp put it this way, “There is a radical difference between amazement and faith. Faith is a commitment of your heart to a reality that changes the way you live.” 

What will it take for us to go from amazement to faith? It can be so easy for our fickle hearts to forget the Lord’s faithfulness in our lives. We quickly forget what Jesus did just last week or even yesterday. 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton