Children of God!

For Friday, May 15, 2026:

Romans 8:23b NLT: “We believers wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us.”

As believers leave this life to be with the Father, every problem gets solved. Everything that was wrong is made right. Sickness and disease are the result of sin, and there is no sin around the Father. Cancer is only in the past tense. Hearts that were failing are made strong again. Each believer will be restored to better than original specs, the way we were designed from the beginning. A glorified body is part of our reward.

Of course bodies may not be required as our spirits settle in with God, his Son and the angels. After all, God is a spirit-being. But being “God,” he could take on a bodily form if he chose to. He did walk in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, and that would have required a body! Either way, we’ll be adopted into the Holy Family with all the rights and privileges of a natural-born son or daughter.

This is all a part of why believers have perpetual hope for a glorious eternity in the presence of the Lord! The future looks bright!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Name of Jesus!

 March 16, 2026, Monday Message: 

John 14:13-14 NLT, Jesus speaking: “You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!”

 When something in the Bible needs extra emphasis, it’s often repeated, written twice. Today’s scripture is a good example. It’s two verses that literally say the same thing. Anything we ask in Jesus’ name is possible. As an extreme example, you could order a mountain into the sea in Jesus’ name, and it would happen. (Mark 11:23)

 Certain rules come into play here, and this is not an exhaustive list. No showing off using Jesus’ powers, and nothing frivolous. His promise is for locked-in believers as they go about the Lord’s work. If we encounter someone who needs healing, we should take care of it. Note that our cry for healing won’t override God’s previous decision to call someone home.

 Satan, the “prince of this world,” is still free to inflict his brand of misery. Don’t take this to mean that he is equal to God, but it does symbolize the influence Satan has over human affairs and sinful choices. Did you ever notice that when Jesus healed someone, he would oftentimes cast out demons, perhaps the root cause of their misery?

 In the same way as Satan is inferior to God Almighty, he is also inferior to Jesus (Godly part of the Trinity). Therefore, Satan’s little demons are inferior to believers when we use the name of Jesus! We can cast them out, send them away using the name of Jesus.

 Luke Ch. 8 describes a group of women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. They now traveled with Jesus and his other disciples. One woman was Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. That’s a lot of baggage! Those women put their personal resources behind Jesus’ ministry, demons be damned!

Pastor Norton Lawellin
The Father’s House
Jesus In the City Fellowship
Truth & Freedom Church

Healing Messiah!

Daily message of hope...
For Wednesday, February 25, 2026:

Matthew 4:23 NLT: “Jesus traveled throughout the region of Galilee, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness.”

As he gathered his disciples, Jesus continued his ministry around Galilee. Tradition said that if a guest showed up to worship in a Synagogue, he would be invited to speak. Jesus had plenty to say!

He could tell the people to repent and return to the Lord. He could explain God’s willingness to forgive all who would call him Lord and Savior. He could explain that he was God’s Son, God’s representative on earth. He could share the knowledge that believers become Children of God, eligible for residence in the Heavenly Kingdom. He could explain assurance of salvation!

Jesus would take as much time as needed to heal all who needed healing. No disease or illness was higher than the prayers of God’s Son. Jesus would oftentimes begin by casting out the demons, which were the root of the problem. No demon is higher than God’s Son.

People were quick to notice the healings and would tell others. Although they had no television, no newspapers and no internet, somehow the word spread swiftly. Soon, all who needed healing were being brought to Jesus. He healed them all, even though that wasn’t his purpose in coming to earth.

Soon, large crowds were following Jesus around, people from Galilee, the Ten Towns, Jerusalem – people from all over Judea, even those east of the Jordan River. The Hebrew people had been expecting a Messiah, and here was Jesus!

Pastor Norton Lawellin
Jesus In the City Fellowship
The Father’s House
Truth and Freedom Church

Miraculous Signs!

For Sunday, January 25, 2026:

Mark 16:17a,18 NLT, Jesus speaking: “These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”

These are some of Jesus’ last words, his final instructions before ascending back to the Father. He first gave us our “Priesthood of all believers” doctrine, saying, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.” This isn’t optional. Every Christian is to help make new Christians. Each of us will have a different portion of that task using our God-given gifts and talents. But encouraging others in their faith should be top-of-mind for all of us.

You should be aware that there’s a supernatural spirit-world operating alongside life on Earth as we know it. A lot of it is not good. Satan and his demons reside in the spirit dimension. Our goal is to settle in the Father’s heavenly Kingdom. Satan’s goal is to derail us, to keep our souls for himself. Obviously, God’s way is the better choice.

Jesus doesn’t throw us to the wolves. He leaves believers with his power and authority to deal with evil. We can bring back to life the victims of premature death. We can lay hands on our fellows and, in Jesus’ name, cure any sickness or disease. We can cast out demons, the source of much of the world’s trouble. Cast out the demons first, because they might be the root cause of the illnesses. That’s what Jesus did!

We are saved by grace through faith. Faith is the cornerstone of our salvation. Take a high view of the Bible. Every God-inspired word is truth, and every incident happened just the way the Bible says. Pray, do things in Jesus’ name, and repent of nonconforming scenarios. Know that this life is temporary, and have confidence that Jesus is preparing an eternal place for you. If you’re with Jesus, life couldn’t be better!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Cleanliness!

For Wednesday, March 12, 2025:

Leviticus 15:1, 2b NLT: The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Any person who has a bodily discharge is ceremonially unclean.”

Cleanliness is next to Godliness. We know way more about communicable diseases nowadays than they did in Moses’ day. God wants to keep his people safe, alive and well, so we are told to stay clear of bodily discharges. That includes clothing the unclean person may have worn, their bedding and places where they may have sat.

If someone has been exposed to a disease, they are told to wash themselves and their clothes in water. Nowadays the instruction would probably include anti-bacterial soap!

Remember when Covid-19 was a big issue in our country? We experienced a shortage of N-95 surgical masks. Many chose to protect themselves from the disease. But surgical masks were designed not to protect the wearer, but rather to protect the patient. We don’t want a doctor or nurse accidentally sneezing into invasive surgery, so mask up! In other countries, masks were the law. No one was allowed outside their residence without protection. We have since learned that those masks have a 2-way benefit. Also, if you entered a business or restaurant, someone at the door squirted you with hand sanitizer! (I never liked that gooey stuff!)

God says that the way to avoid disease is to limit exposure and keep everything clean. Nowadays this is just common sense, but it was news back then, God caring for His people!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Health and Wellness!

For Tuesday, March 11, 2025:

Leviticus 13:1-2 NLT: The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “If anyone has a swelling or a rash or discolored skin that might develop into a serious skin disease, that person must be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons.”

Lacking antibiotics, leprosy was a serious problem in Moses’ day. It was not only a possible death sentence for the victim, but was thought to be highly contagious. So the priest was also tasked with having medical knowledge, determining the proper course when a skin disease was discovered.

So God charged spiritual community leaders with protecting their congregants. There is currently a measles outbreak in Texas and New Mexico. Apparently, it started in a Mennonite community, a religious group which isolates itself from society in general. We were all told that measles was eradicated in the US, but apparently what we heard was incorrect. Thankfully, so far only two people have died. Covid-19, a relatively new contagious disease about which we knew nothing, resulted in 1.1M deaths, peaking in October 2021. That’s how bad it can sometimes get. Seems like only yesterday!

Disease is Satan trying to throw a monkey wrench into God’s plans. Health and wellness are God’s plans. He’ll call believers home in his own good time, and not a moment sooner!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Baby!

March 10, 2025, Monday Message:

Leviticus 12:7c NLT: “These are the instructions for a woman after the birth of a son or a daughter.”

Birthing can be messy. Moses’ people didn’t have doctors and hospitals like we do nowadays. The Bible doesn’t say, but I’ll bet they had midwives or doulas, people to assist with childbirth. Blood gets everywhere, and blood can carry diseases. Best to isolate the woman and her newborn until everything is cleaned up and healed. Also, the woman who gave birth is somewhat weakened and is susceptible to illness. And the baby is building natural immunity from the mother. Therefore isolation protects the mother and the baby until they have their feet on the ground.

The good news is that God anticipates, even expects childbirth! All God’s creations were told to go forth and multiply, and that never ended. Despite slavery, Egypt, Pharaoh and one heck of a desert trek, God still planned for his people to increase.

Celebrate newborns in your family and in your church community!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Include God!

February 5, 2024 Monday Message:

Mark 10:27 NLT, Jesus speaking: “Humanly speaking, salvation is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.”

Jesus is wrapping up his discussion of a rich man’s odds of seeing heaven. He concludes with lessons for us all.

Jesus wants us to realize that none of us can get to heaven on our own. Mankind is prone to sin, and sinners don’t get to live in God’s kingdom. But if we repent, return and call on Jesus for forgiveness, he can get it done FOR us. He WANTS to help us. After all, that’s his mission in coming to earth.

"Everything” means just that – all things. The power of the Father and his Son isn’t limited to obtaining salvation. With God’s help, diseases can be cured and injuries repaired. Demons can be sent packing. Provision will be found where none existed. In short, life will go better if we include God in our plans!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship