Frequently Asked Questions

Why has Rock Bridge Dalton chosen to stay downtown and not go out and just buy land?

(This question is asked mostly by those who do not go to Rock Bridge.)

The short answer is God brought us downtown and kept us downtown. In 2002 when we were preparing to launch we looked at meeting everywhere but downtown (Trade Center, 7th Day Adventist Church, a funeral home, a school theater).  The door closed on each potential meeting site and with a little over a week until our 1st scheduled preview service, we had no place to meet.  The newly renovated Wink Theatre was set to reopen at about the same time and we saw an update on its renovation in the newspaper so we called the owner and went to meet with him.  He said, "I can think of nothing better to be in here [the Wink] on Sunday mornings than a church."  We agreed on a price, shook hands (no signed contract), and Rock Bridge started in the Wink Theatre.

When we were about 2 years old we starting looking for land and/or other options for long-term property.  We inquired about 2 pieces of property.  One in particular was the old Lowe's building in Dalton (near the Shaw Offices).  We visited the property, consulted with several people, and prayed because this building had enormous potential.  But after a lot of prayer and wise counsel our leadership all believed it was a "No" from God and that for the time being we should stay downtown.  Then in the Spring of 2004 the Wink owner said he was interested in selling to us if we were interested ... which we were.  However, we prayed all summer, held a church "town hall" meeting to see where our church stood, and not until a consensus was reached through prayer and a church wide vote (97% in favor) did we purchase the Wink.

So bottom line is we are downtown because a door opened to get us downtown, doors have shut to keep us downtown, and most importantly, our prayers have revealed that God wants us to be in downtown Dalton.