January 31, 2016:  SOAP #2250 

Scripture:  Exodus (NIV) 28:29 “Whenever Aaron enters the Holy Place, he will bear the names of the sons of Israel over his heart on the breast piece of decision as a continuing memorial before the LORD. 30 Also put the Urim and the Thummim in the breast piece, so they may be over Aaron’s heart whenever he enters the presence of the LORD. Thus Aaron will always bear the means of making decisions for the Israelites over his heart before the LORD.

Observation:  The breast piece of the High Priest’s garment was a square piece of cloth attached to the front of his robe.  There were 12 precious stones attached representing the 12 tribes of Israel.  There was a front panel and a back panel, making a pouch in which the Urim and Thummim were placed.  They were stones to help them make a decision when they did not know what was right.  One meant “yes” and the other “no.”  They would take their question before the Lord and the High Priest would reach into the “pouch” and take out one of the stones.  They accepted that as God’s yes or no.

Application:   My attention was fastened on the fact that the “breast piece of decision” and the “means of making decisions” was “over the heart” rather than somehow attached to the turban on the head.  When it comes to making a tough decision, it is a “heart” matter more than a “head” matter.  It is a “relationship” matter rather than a “knowledge” matter.  My head may have already come up with two or three good and acceptable answers.  Determining which is the will of God requires God’s peace in my heart.  I do not have two stones in a pouch over my heart; I have the Holy Spirit inside my heart.  His two stones are “peace” or “no peace.”

Prayer:   Holy Spirit, thank you for your presence and revelation.  Thank you for being concerned that I know your will!  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 30, 2016:  SOAP #2249:   

Scripture:  Acts (NIV) 6:2 So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3 Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”

5 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. 6 They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

7 So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.

Observation:   Church growth happened naturally as the leaders made “prayer and the ministry of the word” their priority.  They delegated some necessary responsibilities to others so that they would be able to take care of this priority.  They organized themselves out of other important issues so that this priority would not be neglected.

Application:   In my individual life, I must make arrangements to keep prayer and the Word as a priority in my life.  In the church, leaders must do the same.  Sometimes that requires organizing myself out of important ministries so that I can give proper diligence to this most important ministry.

Prayer:   Holy Spirit, help me keep the main thing the main thing. Show me how to organize myself out of the responsibilities that limit my efforts in the priorities you have assigned me. Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 29, 2016:  SOAP #2248:

Scripture:  Acts (NIV) 5:12 The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade.  13 No-one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people.  14 Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number.

Observation:   The church growth program of the early church relied on the presence and works of the Holy Spirit.  The book of Acts shows the church age started with an emphasis on the Holy Spirit; I am thinking the church age will end with the same emphasis.

Application:  Three things that come to my mind:  1.  I should be walking in communion with the Holy Spirit, offering my life as a channel for His works.  2.  I should be praying for church leaders as in scriptures they seem to be the ones most used to express the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  3.  I need to support and encourage leaders who are actively seeking the presence and working of the Holy Spirit.

Prayer:   Holy Spirit, you are desperately needed.  May you find many of God’s children willing to surrender to your leading and empowering. Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 28, 2016:  SOAP #2247:   

Scripture:  Acts (NIV) 4:18 Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. 20 For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

Observation:   Peters response was not that they were being asked to do something they would not do, but something they could not do.  What they knew about their risen Lord could not be locked inside.  It became a part of their everyday life and conversation.  They definitely were going to be talking about Jesus!   They had something on the inside that could not be kept a secret!

Application:   The more I know Jesus, the more I talk about Him.  He fills my heart, my mind, my mouth.  He fills my days with an awareness of His presence.  I see Him everywhere!  I find that I not only talk to Him, but I talk to others with an awareness that He is present, listening, and being a part of the conversation.
Prayer:   Lord, what a joy to be filled with your Holy Spirit! You walk with me and you talk with me. It is impossible to keep you hidden inside my life.  I want you to make yourself known through me.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 27, 2016:  SOAP #2246:   

Scripture:  Exodus (NIV) 17:1 The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin, travelling from place to place as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.  2 So they quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses replied, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the LORD to the test?”  3 But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?”

Observation:  Lacking water for 6 million people would be a great problem.  No question!  But instead of considering what God had done for them to free them from Egyptian bondage, and in bringing them through the Red Sea, they now complained about the lack of water.  They should have been saying, “Look what God has done; He will surely take care of this problem too!”   Instead, they accused Moses of bringing them into the wilderness to die of thirst.  But as we read on, we see that this problem also was not too big for God.

Application:   When troubles come my way, I need to take a glance back and see how God has brought me through the troubles of the past.  Like the song says, “He did not bring me this far to leave me; He did not teach me to swim to let me drown.”
Prayer:   Lord, help me apply past lessons to my present struggles!  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 26, 2016:  SOAP #2245:   

Scripture:  Acts (NIV) 2:46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

Observation:   They met together in public places.  They met together in private homes.  They shared meals together.  They were glad to be a part.  It was important to them.  They were known for their praise and worship.  The blessing in the church overflowed to those outside the church.  It was difficult to find fault with them.  NO WONDER the Lord added to their number!!!

Application:   When I become convinced that the life of God is really in me and I allow Him to live His life through me, He will use me for His glory.  When the church understands the Life that makes them the church and lets that Life express himself through the members of the church, the Lord will add to the church.  The church just needs to be what the church is and just do what the church does.

Prayer:   Lord, forgive me for not allowing you to be who you are in me.  Help me to become an open channel through which you can flow unhindered to others. Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 25, 2016:  SOAP #2244:   

Scripture:  Acts (NIV) 1:14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

Observation:  Jesus, the Passover Lamb, was in the grave three days, then was among them 40 days (Acts 1:3) before ascending into the heavens.  While with them, Jesus told them to wait in Jerusalem until they were filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5) which happened on the day of Pentecost.  Pentecost came 50 days after Passover.  So this would leave about 7 days in between Jesus’ ascension and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost.  In these middle days the disciples and those with them “joined together constantly in prayer.”  During this time Peter called a meeting in which Matthias was chosen to take the place of Judas.  (Acts 1:15-26)

Application: “In-between times” should be times of prayer.  When I do not know what to do, I know what to do—pray!  Waiting time should be prayer time.  Obviously I do not need to spend all of my time on my knees with my hands folded and eyes closed, but I should be in an ongoing conversation with God.  I need to keep myself aware of His presence and be expecting Him to talk to me.

Prayer:   Holy Spirit, after completing one assignment and waiting for the start of the next, help me to spend my “in-between” time in a keen awareness of your Presence. Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 24, 2016:  SOAP #2243:   

Scripture:  Luke (NIV) 24:27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.

Observation:   Two disciples were walking down the road to the village of Emmaus.  Jesus joins them, unrecognized, and they begin discussing what had happened recently in Jerusalem, the crucifixion and the missing body.  Then from the first books of the Old Testament and on through the prophetic writings Jesus explained how they spoke of Him and what He had just accomplished.

That must have been a walk they remembered for the rest of their lives.  They must have tried to recall each word He said and each passage of scripture He quoted.  They had been listening to Jesus tell His own story from the scriptures!

Application:   As much as I would have liked to listen into to that conversation, I readily admit that what I have is much better!   Jesus walked with them; the Holy Spirit lives inside me!   Jesus spent several hours with them; the Holy Spirit is with me 24 hours every day!

And, they only had portions of the scriptures that they had memorized; I have many complete translations of the Bible, several that are on my cell phone from which I can recall any passage in the Bible at any time of the day.  If they had a personal copy of the scriptures, it would have only been the Old Testament.  I have both the Old and New Testaments.

Prayer:   Lord, forgive me for not appreciating what I have.  Forgive me for the days I did not take time to read your Word.  Thank you for the Holy Spirit that reveals Yourself to me in Your Word.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 23, 2016:  SOAP #2242:   

Scripture:  Luke (NIV) 23:22 For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore, I will have him punished and then release him.” 23 But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. 24 So Pilate decided to grant their demand. 25 He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.

Observation:   Pilate was convinced of the innocence of Jesus.  There was no crime worthy of death.  But the crowd would hear nothing of what Pilate had to say.  Their chanted demand for crucifixion ruled the day and ultimately brought Pilate to their side.

Application:   Like Pilate, I have faced situations when the arguments of those around me overruled what I knew to be true in my heart.  The allure of temptation may seem irresistible.  But I have something that Pilate did not have.  I have the presence of the Holy Spirit.  Greater is He that is in me than the crowd around me…than the temptation before me.

Prayer:   Holy Spirit, thank you for living inside me.  Together we face the crowd and the temptation.  I depend on you for strength and wisdom.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!

January 22, 2016:  SOAP #2241:   

Scripture:  Luke (NIV) 22:31 “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat.  32 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” 33 But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.” 34 Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the cock crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”

Observation:   Jesus was about to die.  He was preparing Himself for this most important task He had been assigned by His Father.  During this time, He speaks to Peter.  He saw that Peter would soon betray Him.  He saw that Peter’s faith would be tested.  But He also saw through Peter’s denial.  He saw Peter on the other side of the trial.  There was something for Peter to do when it was over.

Application:   I cannot count how many trials and temptations and failures that God has brought me through.  He strengthened me when I trusted Him and He forgave me when I confessed my sin.  He not only saw me through the trouble, He saw through the trouble.  He had something for me to do on the other side of the struggle.  My life did not end in the struggle.

Prayer:   Lord, in helping people, teach me to see through the trouble. Help me to give them a vision of being useful after the struggle is over.   Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!