About Us
ROG Vision & Mission
vision: a picture of a preferable future
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.
Matthew 28:19-20
Making more Christians and becoming better Christians. That is our preferable future. Since everything about us is about Jesus (Colossians 1:16)—and since he has commanded us to make disciples—in obedience to him we at River of Grace are trying to make more and better Christians. That’s how we see things.
Mission: the way we go about getting the job done
Gospel
God made us for his pleasure and our joy. Our distrust of his goodness and subsequent rebellion from his ways has left us a mess. We’re all sinners, made in God’s image, but broken at entry level. God is love and He is just. His compassion moved him to come to our rescue, making his son Jesus the hero of eternity. Jesus came as the God-man to show us the truth of the Father and to satisfy God’s justice by sacrificing himself as a substitute for the punishment we all deserve. Jesus not only took on our sin, but conquered our other great enemy, death, through his resurrection. The only response appropriate to this message about Jesus is humble confession that “yes, I am a wreck” and the simple declaration, “Jesus you’re my only Savior.” This not only saves us but continually transforms us a we live with this gospel as the center of each day.
Missional
Suggesting Christians be Jesus in their world. ( 1 Peter 2:12 ), and speaking Jesus to our world ( Acts 1:8 ). All Christians are meant to be missionaries where they are.
Community
We aspire to be the family of God by creating an accepting, loving, caring environment centered on the presence and grace of Jesus. ( Hebrews 10:24-25 ). His word provides everything we need to direct us how to live in this community. We learn from it to love like Jesus loves. The primary way we promote this sense of family is through our Missional Community.
Learn more about our Missional Community Groups
Discipleship
Our goal is to become more and more like Jesus; Maturity in Christ ( 2 Timothy 2:2 ) Discipleship is learning from God’s word, through God’s Spirit, in God’s family. We grow in knowledge (head), in virtuous character (heart) and in skillful service (hands).
Our Values
Values are what we identify as most important. In a few words, these are the things we see as most important for followers of Jesus.
Learners
Our Beliefs
The Scriptures
ROG believes the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the verbally inspired Word of God. It was written by men who were “carried along by the Holy Spirit” 2 Peter 1:21. The Bible is free from errors and without fault in its original writings. The Scriptures are “God-breathed” 2 Timothy 3:16, meaning… when the Bible speaks, God is speaking. The Word of God is the story of Creator God redeeming mankind back to Himself for harmony and relationship. Therefore, all Scripture is totally true, trustworthy, and is the final authority for faith and life.
The Triune God
ROG believes that God exist in three Persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit Matthew 28:19. He is eternal in His existence. He is the One and only one true and living God. He is the Creator of all, He is perfect, holy, just, righteous, Redeemer, and Ruler of the Universe. God is all-present, all-powerful, and all-knowing.
The Person of Christ
ROG believes that Jesus is the eternal Son of God. He became man without ceasing to be God. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary with the purpose of revealing God and redeeming sinful humanity Luke 1:35. Jesus never sinned. Through complete obedience to the Father, and His substitutionary death on the Cross, He made provision for the redemption of humanity from sin Romans 3:24 Ephesians 1:7. He was raised from the dead with a glorified body and appeared to many followers for forty days. His resurrection from the dead was proof that God the Father had accepted the sacrifice that Jesus had made on our behalf. He ascended into Heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of the Father where He is our Mediator and is constantly making intercession for Christians Hebrews 7:25 1 John 2:1-2. Jesus is the only name in Heaven and on Earth by which mankind can be saved Acts 4:12. One day, He will return in power and in glory to judge the living and the dead 2 Timothy 4:1.
The Holy Spirit
ROG believes that the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, fully divine. He convicts the world of sin and righteousness Ephesians 4:30. He is the Supernatural Agent in regeneration, baptizing all believers into the body of Christ, indwelling and sealing them unto the day of redemption Romans 8:9-11 Romans 8:14-16 Romans 8:26-27. He also inspired holy men to write the Holy Scriptures, and He also enables believers through illumination to truly understand those Scriptures 2 Timothy 3:16. His main ministry is to exalt Christ. He “grows and matures” the believers and bestows Spiritual Gifts upon them by which they serve God through His church 1 Corinthians 12:3-11 1 Corinthians 12:13. He enlightens and empowers the believer and the church in worship, evangelism, and service.
Salvation
Christian Holiness and Concern
Baptism
Jesus makes a big deal about baptism. It isn’t necessary to get to heaven, but it is an essential step of obedience if one is to follow Jesus. If you are being prompted to consider being baptized, work through our Baptism Bible Study, and then talk to one of the church leaders.
Membership
We are a family where every member matters. While some attend River of Grace’s public gatherings and home groups, many have committed to making RoG their family. This is done through our Covenant Partnership process. While not complex, we feel it’s meaningful and significant and we ask members to renew their membership covenant each fall.
Our History
The River of Grace is eclectic, multi-generational, evangelical, historic, multi-denominational, curious, devoted, imperfect, biblical, spiritual, broken, hungry and most of the time fun. The River Church started in 2002 as a church plant with Acts 29 Church Planting Network. In 2005 The River was approached by Grace Bible Fellowship about merging. GBF had been in existence since the early 90’s and was in need of “missional leadership.” In October that year these two different congregations merged to become River of Grace Church, believing we could do more together than we could do apart. In 2015 RoG was approached by New Hope Fellowship in Campton about being adopted as a second location of River of Grace. From early 2016 through 2018, the two churches’ (Concord and Campton) work together ended in December, 2018.
Our Leadership
Elders: Eliot DeLorme, Don Rayman, Ben Sprague, and David Pinckney
We practice the biblical leadership strategy that entrusts to the Elders the authority and responsibility for overseeing the church. (Acts 20:28-35; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; 1 Peter 5:1-4). Our elders act as Church dads, with the goal of modeling character, protecting the flock and urging all believers to serve like Jesus serves. Our Elders have delegated ongoing leadership to a full-time pastor who is called, gifted and trained to provide leadership to the church family. Specific ongoing ministry oversight is delegated to both paid staff and volunteer ministry leaders. These ministry leaders fulfill the biblical role of deacons (Acts 6:1-7; 1 Timothy 3:8-13).
David Pinckney, Lead Pastor
Don Rayman, Pastor
On February 1, 2022 Don Rayman joined the elders at River of Grace. Don comes from the Pittsburgh, PA area and attended Geneva College. He earned his Masters of Divinity at Southern Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky and served for six years as an assistant pastor at Medway Community Church in Medway, MA. Don is married to Nicole and they have a son, Gavin and a corgi named Wendell. Don will assume to the Lead Pastor role at River of Grace on July 1, 2022.
Eliot Delorme, Church Planting Resident Pastor
Moving his family to New Hampshire in 2020, Eliot is serving as pastor for ROG with the intension to transition to lead pastor for a planned Henniker church plant. He spends roughly 75% for ROG pastoral duties. The other part is focused on church planting efforts for Henniker where he lives.
Eliot Delorme grew up in Massachusetts and moved to Minnesota for college in 2009. In Minnesota, he met Jesus, his wife Olivia, and ate some cheese curds and tater tots along the way. In 2020, he graduated from Bethlehem College and Seminary with a M.Div. While in seminary, he sensed a call back to New England. The DeLorme’s moved to New Hampshire in the Summer of 2020 to join River of Grace. He and Olivia have three delightful kids and are happy to call Henniker home.
Ben Sprague, Elder
Born in Lansing, Michigan, Ben has lived in several other places throughout his life, including Minnesota, Finland, Alabama, and now New Hampshire! Ben has a Math degree from the University of Minnesota and works for Fast Enterprises, LLC, implementing tax software for state government.
Ben writes “I enjoy board games, reading the Word, Star Wars, Marvel, and worshiping Jesus! Tacos are my jam, as well as a good cheeseburger. I have a wonderful and beautiful wife, Brittany, and three kids, Eowyn, Elias, and Rowan. I’m so excited to be a part of the River of Grace team and pray that God would give me wisdom along with the other elders to point us in the right direction.”
