The Rock Church

Grafted

In his last published book, “The Excellency of a Broken Heart,” the great puritan author John Bunyan wrote:

“Conversion is not the smooth, easy-going process some men seem to think . . . . It is wounding work, of course, this breaking of the hearts, but without wounding there is no saving. . . . Where there is grafting there is a cutting. The scion must be let in with a wound; to stick it on to the outside or to tie it on with a string would be of no use. The heart must be set to heart and back to back, or there will be no sap from root to branch, and this, I say, must be done by a wound.”

Many blessings come with God’s gift of salvation. However, there are also many troubles and pains. There is the breaking down of our earthly bodies, the desires and temptations of our sinful flesh, and satan (the prowling lion) wishing to destroy us and ruin the joy and goodness in our lives. Additionally, hate and venom are directed toward us from a world the unregenerate part of us so longs to please. 

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Trust in Him at All Times

“For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.” — Psalm 62:5-8

I’m not exactly sure what each of you is going through. But I know that, most likely, we are staring something in the face that brings us to a place of needing to trust Jesus. Perhaps in the past weeks (or in the coming weeks), you are wrestling with trusting Jesus. 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton

Smooth Stones

In a recent message, I shared an illustration that has made an unmistakable impact on my life. I found this story in the devotional by L.B. Cowman, “Streams In The Desert” (July 7 entry):

“There is a very famous “Pebble Beach” at Pescadero, on the California coast. The long line of white surf comes up with its everlasting roar, and rattles and thunders among the stones on the shore. They are caught in the arms of the pitiless waves, and tossed and rolled, and rubbed together, and ground against the sharp-grained cliffs. Day and night forever the ceaseless attrition goes on–never any rest. And the result?

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Faith Test

“These patriarchs were jealous of their brother Joseph, and they sold him to be a slave in Egypt. But God was with him and rescued him from all his troubles. And God gave him favor before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. God also gave Joseph unusual wisdom, so that Pharaoh appointed him governor over all of Egypt and put him in charge of the palace.” — Acts 7:9-10

Bad news seems to be everywhere. Without a doubt, it’s hard to have faith when things look bad. There’s tremendous turmoil in the world around us, complicated health troubles, and incredibly hard days.

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God Works for Good

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” — Romans 8:28 (NIV84)

My mom died a few weeks ago. We didn’t expect it. It happened suddenly.

Without a doubt, death is never easy. Grieving the loss of a loved one is not something we look forward to. Neither would we describe such experiences as “good.” They are really hard. They hurt.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by admin