Christian Focus!

For Thursday, March 12, 2026:

Romans 7:21 NLT, Paul speaking: “I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong.”

Paul is living in a world filled with sin, and as much as he tries to honor God by doing right, frustrations of this life find him slipping back into his old behavior. Remember, when he first set out, Paul was armed with a letter from the Temple leaders authorizing him to stop these radical new Christians, to return them to Jerusalem in chains! The risen Jesus stopped him on the road to Damascus, striking him blind and helpless, saying, “Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?” This was enough to make Paul do a 180, to realize that Jesus was indeed the heaven-sent Son of God. Paul became a Jesus advocate. He was brought into the city and his sight restored by a believer. Paul was immediately baptized and became an instant evangelist! (By the way, “Saul” was his Hebrew name, like King Saul. “Palus” was his Greek name, which we translate into English as “Paul.”)

God gave mankind the power to think and reason. If we were forced to follow Jesus, our loyalty would mean nothing. Therefore, God lets us choose, wants us to choose Him! We’re taken off track by Satan and his demons shouting, “Pick me! Pick me!” At first, sin seems to be fun and exciting, but it never works out in the long run. God’s desire is for everyone to repent and return — repent of our sins and return to the roster of believers. When this life ends, we want to find ourselves on God’s short list, unwavering in our commitment to the Father and his Son.

The longer we’re Christians, the easier it will become to stay on the high road. God wants us to succeed!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Decision!

For Saturday, June 14, 2025:

Luke 12:57 NLT, Jesus speaking: “Why can’t you decide for yourselves what is right?”

God gave mankind brains. He gave us the ability to reason, to reach a conclusion about something after rigorous examination. Jesus wants us to put those skills to work. Examine everything, make your own decisions and form your own conclusions. No longer is, “We’ve always done it this way,” a valid response.

Jesus, known as the Prince of Peace, doesn’t want us to go along just to get along. The religious leaders of his day had missed the boat on a number of theological points, and Jesus came to shake things up, to set the record straight and to get religion back on track. This would prove controversial enough for those with religious authority to plot his demise.

Therefore, identifying with Jesus’ teaching will result in division, not unification. Adult children may disagree with their parents. Best friends may disagree about whether abandoning the status quo religion in favor of following Jesus is the right thing to do. It is!

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” He is the one way to heaven, and the only way to the Father. He can get us to the life after this life. But most importantly, he is truth. Think it through for yourselves. “Truth” is the prize on our scavenger hunt!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Think!

For Thursday, September 7, 2023:

Romans 8:5 NLT: “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit.”

God has given us better topics to fill our minds. His agenda is fed to us by the Holy Spirit! If we need to clean out our minds, it’s not easy. But I believe there’s a limit to the number of things we can keep top-of-mind. Therefore begin filling your mind with the good stuff, Godly stuff. Read your Bibles daily. Serve others and put their needs on your hearts. Hang out with “church people.” If we immerse ourselves in goodness, the bad stuff will fall by the wayside!

Ask yourself, “What do I think?”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Think!

For Saturday, August 20, 2022:

Luke 10:27 NLT: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind - and love your neighbor as yourself.”

God gave every human a brain, to think, to reason and to figure things out. When we enter church, we shouldn’t check our brains at the door! Don’t merely listen to God’s Word. We should use our minds to think about what is being read and come to fully understand it. Then we should make a personal plan to put God’s instructions to work in our lives.

Ask yourself, if I truly love the Lord, how can I show that? If I truly love my neighbor, how can I put that in motion? Use your mind – figure out the best way to personally fulfill God’s commands. We do these things because that’s what Jesus did!

When Jesus said, “Do this and you will live,” he was speaking of eternal life!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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