Sabbath!

 For Sunday, April 26, 2026:

Luke 4:16 NLT: “When Jesus came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures.”

 Looking at that text, we already know about Jesus, we know about Nazareth, we know about synagogues and the Sabbath. What strikes me as the teachable moment are the words, “as usual.” It was normal and customary to attend a religious gathering, to praise God and worship him on the Sabbath. It would have been far more unusual to NOT attend!

 I know a pastor whose son asked on Sunday morning, “Dad, do we have to go to church today?”

Dad: “That‘s about the dumbest question I’ve ever heard! We don’t HAVE to go to church; we WANT to go to church!”

 Church is where we meet our best friends, like-minded individuals. Church is our community, our fellowship. But most of all, we gather to praise the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, giving thanks for our creation and rescue from sin. We worship God as the head of everything. We’re thankful for the offer of life after this life, and for God honoring us with the offer of eternity in his Kingdom. We get to hear scripture from the Bible to inspire us to face another week!

 Church is a good, safe place to invite others. Bring your new friends. Help make disciples of all nations!

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

Jesus Direct!

For Friday, February 20, 2026:

Hebrews 13:15 NLT: “Let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name.”

The key words in this scripture are, “through Jesus.” Jesus is our heaven connection. Before Jesus, Jewish priests fulfilled that function. The priests could present our petitions, good or bad, to the Lord. Mankind would seldom hear God’s response.

After Jesus, the process changed. Jesus is part of our Holy Trinity God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. So if we offer prayers through Jesus, we’re already praying directly to God. No middle-man needed! God desires a direct relationship with each of us. (Note: This scripture was written to Hebrews, who would need adjust their beliefs post-Jesus.)

Interestingly, when Jesus died on the cross and took mankind’s sins to the place of the dead, the thick, heavy curtain isolating the Holy of Holies from public areas was torn in half, top to bottom, so God had to do the tearing himself, and mankind was no longer separated from God. Again, this was God’s doing. He decreed that it should be this way.

So we can praise God directly for his goodness, exalt his omniscience and offer confessions and repentance. In return, God can offer us forgiveness and a “mulligan,” a do-over, a second chance. With Jesus, we don’t just have a religion; we have a relationship!

What a friend we have in Jesus!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Angels & Shepherds!

 Daily message of hope...For Tuesday, December 9, 2025:

Luke 2:8 NLT: “That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep.”

Being a shepherd was a challenging job. The sheep had to be guarded 24/7. Their enemies were wolves and bears, also foe to the human shepherds! On their own, sheep would stay in one place, eating the grass into the ground until there was nothing left. So each day required herding the sheep to new pasture. At night, shepherds could catch some zzzs by bedding down with the sheep, and they soon smelled just like sheep. A couple shepherds always had to stay awake, keeping the night watch for dangerous critters. If there was an incident, they would wake the others, and everyone would be up all night!

Shortly after the birth of Jesus, the night silence was broken when an angel appeared to the shepherds. Heaven’s glory radiated from the angel, who spoke the standard greeting: “Be not afraid!” He explained, “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” That angel was joined by a host of others, the angel armies of heaven, praising God! My Bible doesn’t say they sang, but they could have!

The shepherds jumped up immediately and headed into town. They wanted to see for themselves this miracle delivered by Father God!

What an incredible time to have been alive!

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

Miracle of Faith!

For Friday, September 5, 2025:

Luke 18:35 NLT: “As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind beggar was sitting beside the road.”

I love this story! I could preach on it all day. But I won’t!

As usual, a crowd was following Jesus as he made his way toward Jerusalem. A blind beggar heard the commotion and asked what was happening. He was told, “Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.”

It turns out that the blind man knew some theology and had heard about Jesus being the Messiah. It turns out that our blind man was a believer! So he shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Some told him to quiet down, but he shouted the same thing over and over, louder and louder!

Jesus asked that the man be brought to him, and then asked, “What do you want me to do for you?“ Duh! Everyone knew the man was blind. What do you think he wants? But I believe Jesus also had a little sense of humor, asking the man to state the obvious!

It also teaches us that when we need help in this life, we need to ask. Who? God! We need to pray about our problems and our predicaments. We sometimes need to restate the obvious, what God already knows. God wants to be involved in our lives, and communicating our needs shows that we consider God our friend and helper. “Lord,” said the blind man, “I want to see!”

Jesus’ response was positive. “Receive your sight! Your faith has healed you.” It’s always our faith in God’s grace that saves us. Faith in Jesus can restore sight, heal other infirmities, and give us the best gift of all, access , Praisingto the Kingdom of Heaven!

This miracle didn’t take a long time. Instantly the man could see, and he joined the others following Jesus, praising God all the way! And everyone who saw it praised God, as should we all when we receive God’s blessings!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Sabbath!

For Tuesday, February 25, 2025:

Exodus 31:13a NLT: Then the Lord said to Moses, “Be careful to keep my Sabbath day, for the Sabbath is a sign of the covenant between me and you.”

On weekdays, most of us put on our work clothes and leave home to do whatever we do to earn a living. Anything from a suit to a hard hat is appropriate, depending on our careers.

The Sabbath day is different. Believers wake up focused on our God, the central theme of the day. We dedicate this special day to honor the God Almighty who makes us holy. We gather with our fellows to worship and pray. Fellowship is a key part of honoring the Sabbath. Families meet with other families. Worries, cares and disagreements from the previous week are set aside as we celebrate together. Our focus is on loving the Lord and loving our neighbors! The Sabbath is a good day!

I serve at a church that, for logistical reasons, meets on Friday nights. I don’t think God is as concerned with what day of the week it is, as he is that we consistently designate a special time to worship and honor him. For most people, their work week is wrapped up and they immediately turn to the Lord, and that’s good!

I don’t ever think of the Sabbath as a “do nothing” day. For obvious reasons, priests, pastors, church musicians and Bible teachers have a very busy day. Even observant Jews in Moses’ day would have to feed and water their animals on the Sabbath. You could help with some of the Lord’s work: visit shut-ins and the sick; help at the food shelf or serve meals to the needy; be an usher or park cars at church. Think of things that would be helpful to the Kingdom. Do good!

Above all, remembering the Sabbath reminds us of the goodness of God, the one who sent his son to be the offering for the sins of the world. If we repent and return, God is willing to forgive and forget, and welcome us into his eternal kingdom! God is good!

See you at church!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Faith in God!

For Friday, January 17, 2025:

Exodus 4:31 NLT: “The Israelites were convinced that the Lord had sent Moses and Aaron. When they heard that the Lord was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped.”

The Lord had designated Moses as the point person in the liberation of the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. But the Israelites needed proof. God had given Moses a shepherd’s staff that could turn into a snake, and a skin disease cured by simply putting his hand into his cloak. Seeing is believing, and the people of Israel worshiped God for remembering their plight as they accepted Moses and Aaron to lead the liberation effort.

The Israelites weren’t free yet, but Moses had reassured everyone that God was still on their side. To the best of everyone’s knowledge, freedom was only in the planning stages. But still, they worshiped! They worshiped out of faith in a God they could not see.

Today, our faith in a God we cannot see is still what saves us. God’s desire is that none would be lost, and Jesus has prepared a place for believers in the hereafter.

God always makes good on his promises, and we are the beneficiaries of his mercy. Knowing that, we worship! That’s why we praise himßå!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Calling On the Lord!

For Wednesday, December 11, 2024:

Deuteronomy 5:11 NLT, God’s words: “You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God. The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name.”

God is always listening. If you’ve ever wondered if God hears you, the answer is “yes!” So if you shout out his name, it had better be for prayer, praise or exaltation!

When I was in grade school, (yes, I can remember that far back…) a boy routinely shouted out, “God this,” and “O God that.” He was kind of a cool kid, so I thought I’d give it a try at home. In no time at all, my parents let me know in no uncertain terms that we, being Christians, didn’t shout out God’s name for no reason. My parents weren’t very good at explaining why, but I took them at their word.

We sometimes watch TV game shows, and when a contestant answers correctly, they often shout out, “O my God!” Calling out God has been reduced to just an expression, something almost everybody says, but that’s wrong. Words have meanings, and what the person intended to say has nothing to do with our Lord.

If you call on God, let there be a good reason. Take the time to talk it over with him!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Battle Continues...

For Sunday, October 13, 2024:

1 John 5:5 NLT: “Who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.”

Christians realize that there’s a huge battle taking place as we speak. Satan and his minions are still mistakenly thinking they have a chance at owning the souls of this world, your soul and my soul, our eternal essence. They are wrong! The battle becomes more fierce the closer we come to the end of the age. Satan is running out of time, so harder and harder he keeps trying, but he will ultimately lose.

God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – looked at everything he created, and declared that it was very good! So his desire is that we spend eternity in heaven in his presence! That’s why Jesus came to rescue mankind, to offer us forgiveness. We are redeemed. The price has been paid to get us out of Satan’s sinful pawn shop. Jesus personally paid that price with his own life, forgiving mankind’s sins and opening the doors of heaven for believers!

Believers gather on Sunday to praise all the good things God has done for us, and to worship his almighty supernatural nature. We join other believers in making a joyful sound that can be heard in the throne room of heaven!

See you in church!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Sing To the Lord!

For Wednesday, October 9, 2024:

Jeremiah 20:13 NLT: “Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord! For though I was poor and needy, he rescued me from my oppressors.”

Jesus can rescue you from physical, earthly problems, like being poor and needy. And Jesus can stifle your oppressors and buy you some breathing room. If you trust in Jesus, he can also solve your spiritual dilemmas, freeing you from sin and preparing a place for you in the hereafter. That’s why he deserves our praise and worship!

So let’s wrap up our discussion of worship. Q: Are you singing TO the congregation, or leading so that THEY can sing songs of praise? I was taught to maintain 2 different song lists, one for each of those categories. The songs we LEAD – that the congregation sings – are the ones we use in our church service, like hymns in traditional worship. Songs that we sing TO the congregation are used as pre-service walk-in music, offertory, sermon support and exit music. A sermon support song is about a specific topic, reinforcing the message and scripture for the day.

All our music for church should be the best that it can be. We strive for excellence, but keep in mind that there’s a fine line between striving for excellence and OCD. Some days things will go better than others. That’s gonna happen. The important thing is that everyone tries, that everyone gives 100%. After all, this is for the Lord! If everyone tries their best and the performance doesn’t work out, I don’t chew anybody out. That performance is over – it’s history! After all, they gave their best. But next time we hit the platform, we will again give it our best, and it will go better!

As we’re rehearsing music, making suggestions and corrections, someone always comments, “It’s not a show.” True, but we have a program to lead, and it starts at 10AM! (Insert your own number.) People will be coming in, and newcomers will be getting their first impression of our church, and as the saying goes, you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression! As we present Jesus to everyone present, we need to make a strong, positive presentation, creating the impression that we’re happy to be there and that we’ve really got it together. We’re praying that newcomers like what they see, and that they would want to become a part of our church family.

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Praise & Worship!

For Sunday, September 29, 2024:

Psalm 150:2 NLT: “Praise God for his mighty works; praise his unequaled greatness!”

If we’re espousing a worship event to honor our Lord, the music and preaching should meet that goal. Let me explain.

A surprising number of so-called “Christian” songs fit God’s value system, but don’t necessarily exalt the majesty of God Almighty. Examples: “I Love My Church,” “The Cross,” and “Bless the Children,” all support Christian ethics, but don’t necessarily worship the majesty of our Creator God.

Similarly, a message encouraging us to live a good life isn’t wrong, but we need to include God and Jesus. A few years ago, some of us sat through a wonderful Father’s Day message about being a good dad. It wasn’t so wonderful when we realized the preacher never once mentioned Jesus!

God is awesome, almighty, the Creator of the universe, eternal, all powerful, omni-present and has knowledge of everything. These items are a good starting point for praise and worship!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Eternal!

For Sunday, August 18, 2024:

Revelation 1:8 NLT: “’I am the Alpha and the Omega—the beginning and the end,’ says the Lord God. ‘I am the one who is, who always was, and who is still to come—the Almighty One.’”

When there was no planet earth, no sun and no stars in the sky, God envisioned the universe in which we live. In spite of mankind’s failures, our God believed that creation of the world was deserving of his effort.

Just how big is our God? He created the stars and each of their planets. Their placement and direction keep everything in perfect harmony. He created space in which to display his creations. He placed mankind on one special planet, and equipped it with everything needed for their survival. None of what you see was conceived by any person or any government. Remember that God is eternal. He is responsible for all creation, the beginning, and will reign on the Day of the Lord, the end.

Sunday is a good day to join your fellow believers to worship, praise and thank our Father in Heaven. He has given us so much; it’s challenging to take it all in! Worship is the right thing to do!

See you at church!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

God Who Loves Us!

For Saturday, August 17, 2024:

Revelation 1:5 NLT: “Jesus Christ is the faithful witness to these things, the first to rise from the dead, and the ruler of all the kings of the world. All glory to him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by shedding his blood for us.”

Our triune God is the one who was, who is and who is to come. Our God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – is past, present and future. Jesus was the first to rise from the dead, showing us the way to glory. His blood sacrifice covered our sins, thereby cleansing believers and making us suitable for heavenly residence.

Think about it: Christ died for us while we were still sinners, so apparently rescue is more important than retribution. God granting second chances takes precedence over judgement. Saving souls is better than letting them wither and die.

We worship and give praise and thanks to the one who freed us from the bondage of sin!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Worthy!

For Sunday, January 28, 2024:

Mark 8:29 NLT: “Then Jesus asked them, ‘But who do you say I am?’

Peter replied, ‘You are the Messiah.’”

The disciples traveled with Jesus and ate meals with him. They had witnessed miracle after miracle. They were armed with eyewitness evidence, and Jesus asks if they had learned from what they saw: “Who do you say I am?”

Peter was the spokesman for the group. The correct answer was obvious: “You are the Messiah,” the Christ, HaMoshiach, which all mean “anointed one.” In any language, we acknowledge that Jesus was heaven-sent.

As we worship today, Jesus’ question is now before each of us: “Who do you say I am?” We no longer need Peter to answer on our behalf. All of us can shout out, “You are the Messiah, Son of the living God!”

That’s why we worship. That’s why we praise him – because he is worthy!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Living in Harmony!

For Friday, November 3, 2023:

Romans 15:5-6 NLT: “May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Paul has been counseling the church in Rome – rules, commandments, dos and don’ts – when suddenly he inserts a short prayer for these people. It could have been written for us nowadays!

Patience is always needed, myself included. Nothing seems to happen as fast as I’d like. When something is good and right, my instinct tells me it should be put it in motion right away, but that may not be God’s timing. God’s timing will always be the right timing, so we may need a little encouragement along with our patience!

The goal is for believers to live in complete harmony with each other, following Jesus’ example. Everyone can then be on the same page as we give praise and glory to God the Father!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship