Job Search Ended!

For Sunday, July 20, 2025:

Luke 16:11 NLT: “If you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven?”

In the parable of the shrewd manager, Jesus was setting a high bar for his followers. You may recall that the shrewd manager was making gifts of his master’s wealth, thinking that when he got fired he could call in favors from those he had gifted. Jesus acknowledged the man’s skill in providing for himself, but could never condone the thievery it required.

Jesus has appointed each believer to be the manager of their personal evangelical efforts. You’ve been ‘hired’ whether or not you realize it. New believers quickly transition into seasoned recruiters and teachers. It’s all intentional, God’s plan for growth and expansion. Christian leadership didn’t just fall off of the turnip truck! (Which means it’s no accident!)

Many believers have a not-so-nice past, a time before they met Jesus. This isn’t unusual since Jesus is in the rescue business, and many good Christians really needed divine intervention to separate them from their past iniquities.

Consider the Apostle Paul, who was known for persecuting Christians. It took a personal visit from the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus to convert Paul. But he also had to sojourn to Jerusalem to convince Christian leadership that they were all on the same team. It was a tough sell. That time could have been invested in evangelism rather than in cleaning up Paul’s mess. Nonetheless, given his situation, it was necessary.

So from now on, you are the hired manager and Jesus is your master. Let’s all get to work! Be good stewards of the time, talent and resources he has bestowed upon you. Be more honest than the shrewd manager in the parable. See if you can make Jesus smile today!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Worry Not!

February 6, 2023 Monday Message:

Matthew 6:34 NLT, Jesus speaking: “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.”

My father taught me to not worry about things over which I have no control. It’s futile! Only fret over situations you have some hope of changing. I have opinions about our nation’s policies and our state’s laws, but as the legislators debate, my phone never rings! I can fire off an occasional letter or fill out a survey, but further worrying will accomplish nothing except to confound my mental health. I need to accept the status quo, and vote for someone different in the next election!

Jesus teaches us to not worry, would prefer that we didn’t worry, but he knows that humans tend to agonize over what life brings. So if you must worry, confine it to today’s issues. When tomorrow comes, there’ll be plenty of opportunity to worry about tomorrow’s challenges.

Don’t borrow trouble in advance of it happening. “What if’s” and “He/She mights” haven’t happened yet, so they don’t deserve any of your time. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. It isn’t necessarily wrong to remember the past or plan for the future. Both of those are good to a certain degree, but don’t become so focused on either that today slips away. God wants us to remember the past, plan for the future, but live in the present.

This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Ps. 118:24)

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship