Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
August 01, 2025: SOAP #5720: Isaiah 65-66; Psalm 62; John 3

SCRIPTURE:  John (NIV) 3:34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”

OBSERVATION:   If anyone understood the life of Jesus, why He was on earth, what he was doing,  it was Father God!  Earlier in this chapter (3:16) we read that God sent His Son.  Jesus was present on a mission from the Father!  

Such great love is seen in that Jesus was willing to submit Himself to the Father and take on the assignment of dying as the payment for the sins of created humans, to bring forgiveness of their sins and allow them entrance into God’s holy heaven. 

The Father loves Jesus and desires Jesus’ mission to be successful.  He wants everyone to receive Jesus as their Savior and Lord.  Of course He rejoices over each one who receives Jesus.  And of course, His wrath will remain on all who reject Jesus. 

APPLICATION:  Seeing the truth in the verses above, the greatest joy I can bring to God is to help someone else to see their need for a Savior and accept Jesus!  If I can honor Jesus in such a way that others will see how great and loving Jesus is and receive Him as their Lord and Savior, then I will make God smile!  

I will be honoring the One He loves.  I will be honoring the One who made the greatest sacrifice.  God is greatly pleased when His Son is highly honored! 

PRAYER:   Holy Spirit, my heart is full of appreciation for what Jesus has done for me.  Help me not miss any opportunity today to honor Jesus.  May my Heavenly Father see my appreciation in my words and actions.  Amen 

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 30, 2025: SOAP #5718: Isaiah 60-62; John 1

SCRIPTURE:  John (NIV) 1:11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God — 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

OBSERVATION:   When a gift is given, there is a giver AND there is a receiver.  God gave the gift of His Son.  God is the giver; I can be the receiver.  It blesses the Heavenly Father when people receive His Son.  Some want to change Jesus, but the blessing of relationship comes to those who receive Him. 

APPLICATION:  I must receive Jesus as who He is.  He is Savior and He is Lord.  I receive Him to save me from the wages of sin because he paid the penalty for my sin.  And I receive Him as my LORD.  I trust Him to direct my life.  I trust that He knows what is best. 

PRAYER:   Jesus, I receive you into my life.  I receive you as my Savior, forgiving and cleansing me from sin.  I receive you as my Lord, leading and guiding me for my good and your glory.  Thank you for forgiving me and receiving me as a living child of God.  I receive the joy of your life in me!  I want you to enjoy living in me as much as I enjoy having you live in me.  Amen 

NOTE:  In the past 6 months, thousands of people have responded to a call to make Jesus their Savior and Lord.  If you are one, and are reading this, we welcome you.  You are joining us as “children of God.”  You should know that God has had people praying for you and many will continue to pray for you.  You are special to God and I pray that God makes this short note to be a personal note from Him to you!   😊      

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 27, 2025: SOAP #5715: Isaiah 50-52; 2Peter 1

SCRIPTURE:  2Peter (NIV) 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

OBSERVATION:   It is NOT our knowledge ABOUT Him that provides “everything we need for life and godliness,” it is our knowledge OF Him.  It is in personally knowing Him that we “participate in the divine nature.”  It is more than head knowledge.  It is heart knowledge gained by personal experience.  It happens when we confess that we are sinners and ask to be cleansed from sin by His sacrifice on the cross.  As we surrender our lives to Him as our Lord, He enters our life and we begin to “participate in His divine nature!”

It is this “participating in the divine nature” that enables me to “escape the corruption/temptations in the world.”

APPLICATION:  The only one I can be is Leon.  I can in no way be Jesus.  If I am to “participate in the divine nature” Jesus would need to come and live His life in me.  I am blessed beyond all measure BECAUSE that is exactly what Jesus does!!!  He comes and lives in me!   

PRAYER:   Omniscient Father, you knew that even though I would be forgiven of my sins, I would still need power to overcome my human nature’s tendency to sin.  Through the work of the cross in my life, dying to my old nature, and through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, I am learning to say “yes” to Jesus and “no” to satan’s temptations.  I enjoy “participating in the divine nature!”  When I received forgiveness I became your child, and now I am learning to live like your child. Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 26, 2025: SOAP #5714: Isaiah 46-49; 1Peter 5

SCRIPTURE:  1Peter (NIV) 5:10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11 To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

OBSERVATION:   In closing his first letter to believers, Peter gives this blessing.  He wants us to remember that though we are going through hard times, we have been called by our gracious God to share in the glory that will never end!  We can count on Him to get us through the difficult times.                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

APPLICATION:  Throughout all eternity, God will receive glory from what Christ has done for Him.  Sometime our focus gets stuck on what Christ has done for us.  He has made a payment for sin so perfect that it covered ALL my sins!  He has set His peace and joy in my heart.  For this I am eternally grateful. 

But consider what Jesus did for His Father!  He brought a great company of God’s prized creation into a loving relationship with their Heavenly Father.  Jesus fulfilled the mission assigned to Him by His Father.  Now all eternity the Father will be surrounded by redeemed people giving Him praise and worship!   Our presence in heaven will be a source of eternal glory for the Father!   Look at how much the Son loved the Father!  He must be a GREAT Heavenly Father to have a Son that loved Him so much!  

PRAYER:   Heavenly Father, I join with Your Son Jesus in bringing you eternal glory.  I do not want to wait until I get to heaven but I want to start now in bringing you glory through my words and actions.  May the people who know me here in this life, know that I consider you worthy of my love!  Amen                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 25, 2025: SOAP #5713: Isaiah 43-45; 1Peter 4

SCRIPTURE:  1Peter 4:10 Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.

OBSERVATION:   Most people enjoy receiving gifts.  Someone thought of them enough to give them something they did not earn.  Another part of the joy of receiving gifts is that the gift can be used to bless others.  Many times, the joy of using the gift to bless others is greater than the joy experienced in receiving the gift.  Just consider this: in giving, we are “faithfully administering God’s grace.” 

APPLICATION:  Oh, what joy I miss when I take God’s gifts selfishly.  God wants me to experience a greater joy beyond the joy of receiving.  He wants me to experience the joy of giving—so He gives me something I can give others.  He blesses me to make me a blessing. 

I believe God receives great joy in giving to His children.  He often gives us more than we need so that we too can experience the joy of giving.  Even a smile can be an avenue to give God’s “grace in its various forms.” The Holy Spirit will lead us in how to give and what to give.  No one is without a gift they can give. 

Gifts come in various forms and minister in various ways to the person receiving them.  Our gift may bring encouragement.  It may lift their faith that God will provide.  It may be a sign that God really understands what they need. 

PRAYER:   Lord, thank you for giving me gifts that You can use to bless others!  I am truly blest!   Amen. 

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 24, 2025: SOAP #5712: Isaiah 40-42; 1Peter 3

SCRIPTURE:  Isaiah (NIV) 41:17  “The poor and needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the LORD will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. 18  I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs. 19  I will put in the desert the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive. I will set pines in the wasteland, the fir and the cypress together, 20  so that people may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the LORD has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

OBSERVATION:   Why is God going to do what is mentioned in verses 18 and 19?  It is His way of revealing Himself.  He wants people to believe in Him, to know Him!

Why did God choose Israel?  Because He wanted people to see what a blessing it is to be known as His people.  When they acted like His people, living in such a way that the rest of the world would be able to identify them as people of the Living God, He blessed them. When they acted like they were not His people, He punished them.

APPLICATION:  What a great benefit it is to live like the people of God!  God, knowing us so well, knows that we cannot live that way in our own strength, so He sends His Holy Spirit to dwell within!

PRAYER:   Heavenly Father, when I accepted the forgiveness Your Son, Jesus, provided for me by dying on the cross, I received eternal life.  I now see that this eternal life is really eternal FAMILY life!  I am now in your family!  What a privilege to be a part of your family!  Holy Spirit, help me to live as an honorable child of the Heavenly Father!  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 23, 2025: SOAP #5711: 2Kings 20; Isaiah 38-39; Psalm 75; 1Peter 2

SCRIPTURE:  1Peter (NIV) 2:13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men.
16 Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. 17 Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king. 18 Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.
19 For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God.

OBSERVATION:   In the Bible, our temporary earthly status is of little importance in comparison to our eternal heavenly reward.  Our status in this temporary place cannot limit or guarantee our status in our heavenly dwelling.  In Heaven, our relationship with Christ will be all that matters, and we will be rewarded for what we have done for Him.  The hardship of living in a Third World country cannot keep a person from heaven.  The privilege of living in a First World country cannot keep a person out of hell.  All that counts is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.       

APPLICATION:  I must keep my eyes on the eternal prize.  I must live as a citizen of heaven and as a servant of the King of kings.  I am His representative here on earth.  I must have proper respect for every person created in God’s image. 
We are all working for King Jesus and we must use whatever opportunity to serve Him—our language, our possessions, our abilities, our environment, etc. 

PRAYER:   Holy Spirit, keep reminding me of these truths.  May you enjoy my work at the muffler shop in the same way you enjoy those giving their time to work with SOAPs.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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