Confident Hope!

For Tuesday, April 28, 2026:

Colossians 1:4-5 NLT: “We have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God’s people, which come from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven. You have had this expectation ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News.”

Paul is writing this Epistle to the church in Colosse. It could have been written to any group of believers. Paul could have been writing to your church today!

Church is more than a social gathering. The common denominator is what Paul calls “confident hope,” also known as belief or faith. We believe everything that Jesus told us: Everything that we know was created by God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus is our rescuer, our redeemer. Jesus forgave our sins and proved that there is life after this life. When he said, “See you later,” he was going to prepare a place for us in the eternal Kingdom. Death is not the end for us, just as it was not the end for Jesus.

Believers share unshakable faith in the promises of Jesus. When we first heard the Gospel or Good News, it made sense to us. Our devotion has only grown stronger as time marches on. Like Paul and like the Colossians, we’re blessed by sharing confident hope!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Angels & Baby!

 For Thursday, January 8, 2026:

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

These are the luckiest shepherds ever! God sent his messenger angel to them with the Good News of Jesus’ birth. It can get quite dark in the countryside away from the city, but – not to be missed – the angel shone with the radiance of God’s Glory! The shepherds were terrified!

But the Angel told them to not be afraid. “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.” Swaddled, wrapped up tightly in a package improvised from a small blanket. Baby warm, safe and secure!

Turns out that one angel wasn’t enough to herald this colossal event. A host of others showed up, all praising the Lord and declaring Peace on Earth! The angel armies had gathered to share the Good News! And having seen and heard this show of heaven’s strength, the shepherds had to check it out for themselves. “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

In the city, they found Mary, Joseph and the baby in a manger, just as they had been told. Before returning to their flocks, the shepherds told everyone about the angels and that everything was just as the angel said it would be. The angel told them that this was the promised Messiah, and there he is, lying in a manger! Praise God!

This baby was the Redeemer for all time, for those present and for believers 2,000 years later. This baby is our friend, the author of forgiveness. Jesus made it possible for forgiven believers to see heaven from the inside!

Thank you, Jesus!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Be a Shepherd!

For Friday, December 26, 2025:

Luke 2:8 NLT: “The night that Jesus was born, there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep.”

Let’s all pretend to be shepherds. The sheep are peaceful, quiet, down for the night. Everyone is relaxed, enjoying the serenity of nature. When all of a sudden this angel showed up! Big, audacious and scary! His first words are, “Be not afraid!” This messenger angel is friendly, bearing good news. “The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem.”

Suddenly, he is joined by a chorus of other angels, all praising the Lord for sending a Savior to the Hebrew people. The shepherd’s curiosity got the best of them, and soon they were off to Bethlehem to see the baby for themselves. They were told to look for an infant, swaddled, lying in a manger, and that’s exactly what they found!

We’ve all seen Christmas pageants with the manger and Jesus in the center, Mary and Joseph right behind them, three shepherds on one side and three wise men on the other. It stages well, but it’s not too accurate, so let’s dispel some myths. The group of shepherds was probably 8-20 men. They could have been pungent as they’d been living with sheep. They never met the wise men, who arrived as much as two years later. They were following a star, and stars don’t move very fast. We don’t know the number of wise men, only that there were three gifts.

But wouldn‘t it have been fun to join the Holy Family in welcoming their Son, our Redeemer? Wouldn’t it have been exciting to celebrate the first Christmas with the shepherds? It’s such a big deal, we reenact it each year! Merry Christmas!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church

Throne Room of Heaven!

 For Wednesday, August 20, 2025:

Hebrews 9:12 AMP: “Jesus went once for all into the Holy Place [the Holy of Holies of heaven, into the presence of God], and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, having obtained and secured eternal redemption [that is, the salvation of all who personally believe in Him as Savior]”

 The Amplified scripture not only gives us the text, but also explains it. Jesus returning to his Father in Heaven following his sojourn to earth only happens once. In other words, Jesus came to walk alongside mankind and then returned to the Father from whence he came. It will not happen again. God will not keep sending Jesus back and forth, hoping that mankind can ‘get it’ this time. Once should be enough!

 Jesus, Son of the Most High, did not return to the general population of heaven. The Tabernacle had a “Holy of Holies,” but the one in heaven is the “most Holy of all Holy places. It’s where the spirit of God Almighty lives. Jesus returned to that most holy place to sit at the right hand of his Father.

 This occurred not because of any animal sacrifice as mankind practiced. Jesus had shed his own blood, paying the penalty for the sins of all mankind, once and for all. All who call Jesus Messiah, Savior or Redeemer have a reservation in heaven. We call that “Assurance of Salvation.” It’s a gift from Jesus and his Father. It’s not debatable or negotiable. God said, and it is so! Salvation is for all who personally believe in Jesus. God said!

 I believe the principal goal of Jesus coming to earth was to redeem mankind. So, do you have Jesus in your heart? Does there remain any question in your mind about your eternal destination? Today is the best day to cement your relationship with Jesus, to make an irrevocable decision to call him Lord of lords!

Pastor Norton Lawellin
Jesus In the City Fellowship

Ascension!

For Friday, May 2, 2025:

Mark 16:19 NLT: “When the Lord Jesus had finished talking with the believers, he was taken up into heaven and sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.”

We’ve been looking at the 40 days between the resurrection and Jesus’ ascension. Today’s scripture talks about the last of those days. Jesus spoke, taught and preached during his final 40 days on earth. His presence confirmed that he was very much alive. Paul writes that the risen Jesus “appeared to more than 500 brothers at once, most of whom are still living.” He’s implying eyewitnesses. Just ask around. Plenty of people have seen Jesus walking and talking during the days following the crucifixion.

Jesus is doing these things himself to let believers know that salvation is possible. Death is not the end. There is life after this life. He will prepare a place for believers in his Father’s house, God’s Kingdom. Satan may be after your soul, but those aligned with Jesus will be spared Satan’s torture. Jesus is our key to eternal life in God’s presence. Eternity is a very long time!

After his final words, Jesus was taken up into heaven. I dream about what that will be like, gaining entrance to the Kingdom. In my mind, I say, “I’m with that guy over there, the one just to the right of God. He’s my Redeemer!”

Jesus came to rescue all who would believe!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Worship!

For Saturday, September 28, 2024:

Psalm 150:6 NIV: “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. (Hallelujah!)”

I once asked a Jewish lady if she could pick up her project on a certain day. She replied, “No, that’s the Sabbath (Shabbot).”

"What about the day before?”

"No.”

"What are you doing then?”

"Getting ready for Shabbot!”

Worshiping God on the Sabbath is that important! It’s a time to re-prioritize your life, a time to put the Lord “first.” Next comes family and loving your neighbors, being kind and helpful.

Put yourself on the Sabbath list too. God knew that we’d benefit from having a day off, a day to rest up and relax; a day to take the pressure off and recharge our batteries, so to speak.

But above all, celebrate the awesomeness of God, the Creator, and his Son Jesus, the Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit who lives with us day-to-day. Remember that God is wondrous on his own. He doesn’t need us to worship him, but personally I choose to be among those that do!

Choose wisely! See you at church tomorrow!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Palms lifted up!

For Sunday, March 24, 2024:

Matthew 21:9 NKJV: “The multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: ‘Hosanna to the Son of David!’ ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ‘Hosanna in the highest!’”

Jesus and his disciples were headed for Jerusalem and the Temple. Passover would soon be starting.

As they neared the city, Jesus sent two of his disciples to borrow a donkey and its colt. “The Lord has need of it.”

Entering the city, they put their clothes on the beast, and Jesus climbed aboard. People lined the parade route with more clothing and with palm fronds. That’s why we call it Palm Sunday. As they processed, the people cried out, ”Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

Hosanna is a Greek word which literally means, “Save now.” That’s quite important. Think about it. You wouldn’t walk up to just anybody on the street and ask them to save you, to redeem you. There has to be a reasonable expectation that they’re able to do it! Which tells us that a great many people in Jesus’ path believed that he could save them, that Jesus was the redeemer, the Son of God!

Yesterday I mentioned mob mentality. This mob wanted Jesus to save them! But the mob on Thursday night/Friday morning would be shouting, “Crucify him!” That’s why we need to collect all the information we can, and think things through to their logical conclusion. When I die, I want to be with the group shouting, “Save us now!”

Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Messiah!

For Wednesday, December 27, 2023:

Luke 2:26 NLT: “It had been revealed to Simeon by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.”

Obedient, Mary and Joseph brought their first-born male child to the Temple, dedicating him to the Lord. But their heads must have been spinning as they lived through all the supernatural events surrounding Jesus’ arrival.

Mary conceived but hadn’t ever been with her husband. An angel appeared to the couple explaining what was to come, saying, “Fear not!” As Jesus was born, a heavenly chorus appeared directing shepherds to visit and worship the newborn. Then the shepherds left to tell everyone that the Messiah had arrived! Caesar regarded this baby, “the King of the Jews,” as a threat to his power. He wanted to murder the child, forcing the family to flee to Egypt. And now, back at the Temple, both Simeon and Anna called Jesus “Messiah, Redeemer of Israel.”

Mary and Joseph were both consistent and persistent. Their faith in God the Creator never wavered, and in spite of all the anomalies, they persisted in doing the right thing. But Mary was keeping track of all that happened. The Bible says that Mary treasured up all these things, and pondered them in her heart, wondering what lay in the future.

We are blessed that Luke had the tenacity of an investigative reporter. His goal was to author truth, to leave an account for the world of everything that occurred in the life of God’s Son. Therefore we don’t need to take years to discover the truth. By reading Luke’s account, we can quickly gain wisdom! Perhaps we all should re-read some of it today! Blessings!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Christmas Eve!

For Sunday, December 24, 2023:

Luke 2:7 Phillips: “So it happened that it was while they were there in Bethlehem that Mary came to the end of her time. She gave birth to her first child, a son. And as there was no place for them inside the inn, she wrapped him up and laid him in a manger.”

We’re on our way to Bethlehem, the city of David. It seems like everyone is going to Bethlehem, since Caesar Augustus required that everyone register for his census in their hometown, and Joseph was a descendant of David. Traveling from Nazareth to Bethlehem was an arduous 70 mile journey as the crow flies, but more like 90 miles after winding through mountains and avoiding parts of Samaria. Thankfully, tradition shows Mary riding a donkey!

While in Bethlehem, it became time for Mary to deliver her baby, but every hotel was flashing “No Vacancy” signs. The couple took refuge in a stable amongst the livestock. Since a stable has nothing to accommodate a new baby, Mary swaddled the newborn and placed him in a feed trough, a manger.

The couple named their baby “Jesus” as the angel Gabriel had directed. “Jesus” is the Greek form of Joshua, which means ”the Lord saves.” Others called him “Immanuel,” meaning “God with us.” Those names define Jesus’ mission statement in coming to earth. In time he would take the sins of the world upon himself, leaving believers sinless and pure, prepared to spend eternity with our father in heaven. Jesus is our Savior, our Redeemer!

So now we take a day to celebrate God’s goodness, God’s rescue of mankind. God’s desire is that none would perish, and Jesus is the one to open the door of forgiveness for all believers! Thank you, Jesus!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Son of God!

For Wednesday, December 20, 2023:

Mark 2:10 NLT, Jesus speaking: “I will prove to you that the Son of Man (Jesus) has the authority on earth to forgive sins.”

Critics of Christianity claim that Jesus never identified himself as the heaven-sent Messiah. They’re wrong! As this scenario unfolded, Jesus told the paralyzed man that his sins were forgiven. But everyone present believed that only God could forgive sin. And here was Jesus, claiming to have powers like God! “Blasphemy,” they all said.

So to make his point and to establish once and for all who he was, Jesus told the man, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!” What happened next was this: “The man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers.” Stunned indeed! They had been standing face to face with God, but failed to recognize him! It was time to re-think their position!

And if you don’t recognize Jesus as the Son of the Most High God, it’s time to re-think your position. Confidently knowing who Jesus is and believing he’s heaven-sent is the most important decision you’ll get to make in your lifetime!

Settle the matter by choosing wisely!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship