Eternity!

For Wednesday, October 2, 2024:

1 John 4:9 NLT: “God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.”

It appears that the “mankind experiment” was a failure. Soon after creation, mankind succumbed to the serpent's temptation and disobeyed God’s instructions. Furthermore, mankind could not pay the penalty for their own sin.

Consider this if you ever question the Father’s love for us: In spite of our shortcomings, God himself through his Son Jesus paid the penalty for the sins of the world. He still loved us, even in our flawed state. God’s desire is that all would repent and return to him. Jesus went ahead to prepare a place for believers in the hereafter.

Our faithfulness gift is eternity in God’s presence, quite a generous gift considering mankind’s disobedient behavior. But God’s love cannot be shaken. The Bible calls it everlasting lovingkindness. We are blessed that our God is so loving toward us!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Agape Love!

For Thursday, October 19, 2023:

Romans 12:9 NLT: “Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.”

Under the Old Covenant, mankind was to follow God’s commands. But Jesus gave us a New Covenant, whereby the laws are written on our hearts. Therefore everyone instinctively knows right from wrong. We have also been given a conscience to let us know when we’re wrong, to keep us on God’s path.

In Christianity, we hear about agape love, the highest form of love, the love of man for God and God for man. Agape love is a choice. God didn’t have to love us, but he does. Jesus spent all his time teaching heaven’s edicts and healing a great many. He loves us too. He died to pay our sin-penalty!

Some older Bible translations use a term I love: “Everlasting Lovingkindness.” In the original language, it’s agape love, and it’s forever. God’s not about to change his mind!

So when we sing “Jesus Loves Me,” we know it to be true!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Almighty God!

For Friday, July 29, 2022:

Psalm 84:11 NLT: “The Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.”

From God comes life itself, and while we are alive, God is our protector. He sent his Son to offer us eternal life. We believers are, after all, children of God, and our Father is very, very good to us!

Those on God’s side will know an abundance of goodness. The Bible I knew as a child describes God’s love for mankind as, “everlasting lovingkindness.” There is no end to God’s goodness.

"O Lord..., what joy for those who trust in you.”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

God, Our Rock!

For Friday, May 6, 2022:

Psalm 102:2a NLT: “Lord, don’t turn away from me in my time of distress.”

God is our anchor, our unchanging rock. He made mankind in his image, and declared that his efforts were “very good!” Words aren’t adequate to describe God’s love for us, but the Bible we grew up with calls it “everlasting lovingkindness.”

Think of God as the sun, and mankind as our planet. Every day we say the sun sets, but in fact the sun is right where it’s always been. It’s the planet that moved, rotated away from the sun. And like the sun, God is still right where he’s always been. It’s mankind that has turned away from the Lord, put God on the back burner, so to speak. John the Baptist heralded hope to a damaged world. He taught that the acceptable thing to do is to repent and return to the Lord, for the kingdom is at hand!

The Kingdom may be closer than we think!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Love Lifted Me!

For Sunday, February 20, 2022

Psalm 144:7 NLT: “Reach down from heaven and rescue me; rescue me from deep waters, from the power of my enemies.”

We tend to think of David as the mighty king of Israel, but a lot of his life was spent trying to claim the throne promised to him by God. David’s enemies were real; his attackers were life-threatening. How did it work out? God protected David, a man after his own heart, and David successfully led the Israelites for many years. God is good!

Each of us has battles in our own lives, which Jesus says is somewhat normal as we live among mankind. That’s when it’s time to pray for God’s everlasting lovingkindness to come to your rescue.

The hymn “Love Lifted Me” sings about God rescuing us from the deep waters and putting us back on solid ground. Life goes better when God’s in it with you!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Unfailing Love!

For Saturday, January 29, 2022

Psalm 89:2 NLT: “Lord, your unfailing love will last forever. Your faithfulness is as enduring as the heavens.”

God does not grow weary with loving mankind. Knowing that God’s ‘chesed,’ his everlasting lovingkindness is a forever promise gives us hope, even when life presents its challenges.

Jesus said that we’ll experience tribulation in this life, but to rejoice because he has overcome the world! And Jesus, his Father in heaven and the Holy Spirit created everything including mankind. God saw that it was “very good,” and he’s not about to change his mind!

Never give up on the Lord - He won’t give up on you!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Everlasting Love!

For Thursday, January 13, 2022

Psalm 103:17 TLB: “The loving-kindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting to those who reverence him; his salvation is to children’s children of those who are faithful to his covenant and remember to obey him!”

Betty White lived for nearly 100 years! People say she lived a very long life. Compared to most humans, that’s true, but on God’s calendar, it’s just a drop in the bucket!

David says that we are only dust. Like wildflowers, we bloom and then die. The wind blows, and then we are gone – like we had never been here.

Fortunately, God has offered us a life after this life. Some call it ‘heaven.’ I call it ‘eternal hope!’ When our earthly lives end, Jesus has prepared a place for us in the kingdom that never ends! God is good!

By the way, God’s promise of salvation is also for our children, and our children’s children! His everlasting lovingkindness is never-ending!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Know the Father!

For Thursday, November 18, 2021

John 14:9 NIV, Jesus speaking: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?”

Do you know the Father? Do you mentally keep an image of a strong but elderly man in a giant chair, his throne, somewhere in the sky? You’ll likely be surprised when you get to heaven! The Bible describes things in human terms so that we can understand, but the reality is likely to be far different.

I don’t know what God looks like, but I do know that we’ll know Him when we see Him! We’ll see the good, positive traits that we expect: grace and forgiveness, and a love for everything He created. Everlasting lovingkindness will be at the top of the list, along with truth, honesty and trust. Come to think of it, these are the same traits we admire in Jesus!

If you have seen Jesus, you have seen the Father!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Heavenly Grace!

For Saturday, October 30, 2021

Ephesians 2:4-5 NLT: “God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)”

Paul is attempting to detail God’s extreme love and mercy toward mankind. Words seem inadequate to explain God’s everlasting lovingkindness, and God’s rescue defies logical explanation.

The saying "don't look a gift horse in the mouth" fits here. Believers have been given the gift of eternal life in the presence of God the Father. Ours is not to question the gift, but rather to humbly accept it. We should be full of gratitude, without examining the gift or the motives of the giver.

Grace is undeserved favor, and that certainly fits the sacrifice Jesus made for believers.

We have been shown grace; we have been granted eternal hope!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Patience

For Thursday, October 14, 2021

2 Peter 3:9 NLT: “The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.”

God shows us his love, his everlasting lovingkindness, his chesed. The Bible says that love is patient and love is kind. And because all of mankind has not yet chosen to repent and return to the Lord, and because God’s desire is that none would perish, he persists in patience. He’s a God of second-chances, and that’s Good News for all of us! We have eternal hope!

Be assured that day of judgment is on God’s agenda – but not just yet. When everything is ready and the time is right, Jesus will return to personally usher all believers into eternity. He has prepared a place for us! If it were not so, he would have told us!

God is patient, so we should be too!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

God's Promise!

For Friday, August 6, 2021

Psalm 119:65 NLT: “You have done many good things for me, Lord, just as you promised.”

God has poured so much good into each of our lives. Surprised? You shouldn’t be! God loves everything he created with a love so great that it’s difficult for us to comprehend. God looked at all he created and declared it to be not just good, but VERY GOOD!

‘Chesed’ is the Hebrew word for the love and mercy of God toward humanity. The principle shows up in all the psalms. The best translation I have found is, “everlasting lovingkindness.”

Say ‘yes’ to God’s never-ending love.

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

Love One Another!

For Tuesday, August 3, 2021

John 15:17 HCSB, Jesus speaking: “This is what I command you: Love one another.”

Jesus is wrapping up his teaching on caring for one another. The Father loves him. He loves the Father. He has loved us as the Father loves him. Brotherly love is mentioned, but also unconditional love. In Greek, it’s agape love, like the love a parent has for their child. Hebrew speaks of chesed, God’s everlasting lovingkindness, a love so great it’s difficult for us to comprehend.

As Jesus prepares to leave, he’d like to see his followers being nice to one another, being helpful, adding value. I think he could have issued another commandment, something like, “Be nice,” or, “Care for others,” or, “Do what you can to be helpful!” If the whole world could adopt Jesus’ attitude, we’d find ourselves living in a better place!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Faithful Love!

For Thursday, July 08, 2021

Psalm 138:8a NLT: “The Lord will work out his plans for my life—for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.”

David is counseling us to not concern ourselves with what life holds for us. Rather, concern yourself with being a true believer, having faith in God and his Son Jesus Christ. After all, your Father in Heaven wants only good things for you.

Quirky circumstances come and go; but the everlasting lovingkindness of the Lord endures forever, and that fills us with hope.

My God is like a rock, unchanging, the same yesterday, today and tomorrow! And it’s all good! Count on it!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Love of Christ!

For Wednesday, June 30, 2021

Ephesians 3:19 NLT: “May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

Have you experienced the love of Christ? Personally experienced it? The Bible says to ask and it will be given; seek and you find; knock and the door will be opened. If you need a spiritual assist in how your life is going, don’t just lament over the situation. Bring it to the Lord. Let it become a habit!

The Lord stands ready to pour out everlasting lovingkindness when we ask, seek and knock!

Blessings to all today!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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