Praying for God's Will!

For Friday, May 22, 2026:

Romans 8:27 NLT: “The Father who knows all hearts knows what the Holy Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers [God’s Holy People] in harmony with God’s own will.”

Do you ever have trouble expressing yourself? Do you ever have a thought in your head, but have difficulty finding the right words to express it? That’s why we should always include the Holy Spirit when we pray. Remember, the Holy Spirit was given to help us. He can convert our good thoughts into heavenly words, and the Father is always listening.

The Holy Spirit can also guide our thoughts to line up with God’s will for us. When we do not know exactly how we should pray, the Holy Spirit can intercede for us. So don’t only pray by yourself. Be sure to include the Holy Spirit, your counselor and advocate!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Holy Spirit!

For Wednesday, December 31, 2025:

John 15:26 NLT, Jesus speaking: “But I will send you the Advocate—the Spirit of truth.”

Jesus is speaking of the Holy Spirit, the third person of our Trinity God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He’s so helpful and useful that it’s challenging to call him only one name. Bible translators have referred to him as Advocate, Comforter, Encourager and Counselor. In Greek, it’s “Paraclete.” The Holy Spirit is all these things, and more.

Jesus and his Father both said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” Since Jesus will return to the Father in Heaven, the Holy Spirit is given to mankind to hold things together until Jesus returns. If we find ourselves in a courtroom, the Holy Spirit will be our defense attorney. He will help us when we’re doing good things, and he’ll put us on the right path when we’re not. He cures depression, telling us that everything will be all right in the end. God always wins. When we feel like giving up on life, he’ll keep us going. He’ll define right from wrong in our minds, and help us make the correct choice.

As believers, we seem to not know a lot about the Holy Spirit. Mankind is fine with believing in a God we’ve never seen, and we have eyewitness testimony about Jesus’ time on earth. But the Holy Spirit? I don’t know. We need more info on the Spirit. Believers should live on faith, not just in the Father and the Son, but also in the Holy Spirit. We must trust what the Father and the Son told us: that the Spirit is a part of God, and that he can and will do what they told us the Spirit is capable of doing.

Today would be the best time to lock in your relationship with the Spirit. Become a seeker, not just of God and Jesus, but also of the Holy Spirit. God would not have sent us another helper if we didn’t need one!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Heaven-Sent!

For Friday, April 11, 2025:

John 16:7 NIV, Jesus speaking: “It is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate [Counselor, Comforter, Encourager] won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you.”

I’m always amazed at the quantity of teaching that took place between Palm Sunday and Good Friday. There’s a boat load of knowledge believers must have so that they can remain locked in after Jesus returns to the Father. He said, “I am returning to the one who sent me,” so we have no doubt as to Jesus’ origin.

"The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me.” If we critically examine Jesus’ time on earth, it’s quite obvious that he’s heaven-sent. We should absolutely believe a truth-telling miracle worker. It must have been frustrating for Jesus when eyewitnesses refused to commit, refused to buck the status quo. They were afraid of what others might think, including Synagogue leaders and Pharisees. Confessed sin can be blotted out by Jesus’ work on the cross, but an additional sin is not entrusting Jesus with this task.

There will be judgment when we die and enter the next reality. The judge will find believers not guilty, their penalty having already been paid by the Son. Unbelievers, those of the world, will fall in with the prince of this world, Satan, who has already been judged.

Thank you, Jesus, for thoroughly teaching us prior to your departure. We’ll be eternally grateful!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Holy Spirit!

March 31, 2025, Monday Message:

John 14:16-17a NLT, Jesus speaking: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate (Comforter, Encourager or Counselor), who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.”

Believers already know about our Father in Heaven. And we now read the words of Jesus, who walked on the earth alongside mankind. Jesus said he’s returning to the Father, but that doesn’t mean we’ve been abandoned.

Think about this: The Son of God said he’s going to ask his Father to send an advocate for mankind, so that advocate is someone different, a third member of the Holy Trinity. We call him the Holy Spirit. He is our unseen defender against Satan and his demons. He gives us strength and assistance when we’re trying to complete the missions assigned to us by Jesus. He can facilitate solutions that answer our prayers. He’s our lawyer in the court of judgment and a trusted advisor for everything else. The Holy Spirit, like the Father and the Son, can only deal in truth, and remember that truth is God’s opinion on everything!

Jesus said that he would never leave or forsake believers and that he would never leave us without spiritual guidance. Hence, the Holy Spirit, and the Trinity is complete!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

High Priest!

For Tuesday, October 26, 2021

Hebrews 8:6 NLT: “Now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises.”

If you were on trial, you’d want the best possible defense attorney, a spokesperson shielding you, an advocate working on your behalf. Having Jesus as our mediator gives us an edge, gives us hope!

The old covenant wasn’t working. God’s desire is that no one would be lost, so the rules needed to be rewritten, and Jesus went to work negotiating for mankind, taking the sin of the world upon himself, and making it possible for believers to see the inside of heaven! Jesus called it the “New Covenant!”

Jesus, our high priest, sits in the place of honor at the right hand of God himself. Our counselor is well-connected! Fortunately, our defender works pro bono!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship, 3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406

Holy Spirit!

For Thursday, October 8, 2020 

Acts 1:5 NIV, quoting words of Jesus: “John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

You can become a Christian. You can join a church, believe in Jesus and have assurance of salvation. And while that’s a pretty good place to be, Jesus is saying to expect even more! 

In his absence, Jesus promised an advocate, a counselor, a helper to watch over us and walk with us as we traverse this life. Jesus said, “I will never leave you or forsake you,” and here he’s fulfilling his promise that we’ll never walk alone, and that gives us hope.

The Holy Spirit fills those who seek him. So stay in close contact with God. Top off your Holy Spirit tank every day! 

Blessings and safety to all!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406