Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 16: Genesis 39-41; Luke 16

Scripture: Genesis (NIV) 40:6 When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected.
7 So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were in custody with him in his master’s house, “Why do you look so sad today?”

Observation: Joseph had been falsely accused and thrown in prison. He had every reason to feel sorry for himself, yet these verses show that he was interested in other prisoners who were assigned to him. His ministry to them, the interpretation of their dreams, became the key for his own release two years later.

Application: My enemy would love to keep me focused on myself and the troubles I am experiencing. As long as I am feeling sorry for myself I will have trouble having compassion for those around me. God may have allowed me to be in those circumstances so that I will be readily available when He needs me for a special assignment. God may have allowed me to be in those circumstances because He loves the people there and wants to minister to them through me. They may become the key to my freedom.

Prayer: Lord, as you died on the cross, you took time to care for your mother and the thief dying next to you. Help me be compassionate like you. Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Out of 1500+ SOAPs, this is the third one I have repeated. I have made a few changes, but this is what God is speaking to my heart.

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 15: Genesis 37-38; Psalm 7; Luke 15

Note: The younger brother who had taken his inheritance and squandered it had now returned home. The joyful father was throwing a great celebration but the older brother was jealous and would not come in to the party. So the Father goes out to him …

Scripture: Luke (NIV) 15:31 “My son,” the father said, “you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.
32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”

Observation: Talk about unused potential!!! This son had "always" been with the father! "Everything" belonging to the father was his! And yet this son had not appreciated it, nor enjoyed it. He had labored dutifully but not joyfully! He had more awareness of the absence of his brother than of the presence of His father!

Application: Many times we become more aware of what we do not have than of what we do have—we have God’s Presence in our lives. We think more about what the enemy can do to us rather than how the One living in us can protect us. Sometimes we think of what we could do if others would give us their money. We should focus on what God can do with the money He has already provided. We are living below our potential! We may only have “just a little,” but it has never bothered God to work with “just a little.” That is His starting place. Our potential is not in how much we have, but in Who is with us!

Prayer: Lord, teach me to live up to the potential that you have placed around me. Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 14: Genesis 34-36; Luke 14

Scripture: Luke (NIV) 14:1 One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched…
7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: …

Observation: In the first verse we see that people “carefully watched” Jesus, but a little later in verse 7 we see that Jesus was watching people too! Then he told them a parable that fit the occasion.

Application: Being a follower of Jesus, I should not be surprised when people seem to “carefully watch” my life. God places me where I can be seen. He wants people to learn from watching my life. AND as I am in a place where my life can be watched, I find it is also a place where I can watch those around me. Like Jesus, I should be a people watcher. Then the message I have should be appropriate to what is happening around me.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, guide my eyes to see what is taking place around me; then guide my words to speak appropriately. Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 13: Genesis 31-33; Luke 13

Scripture: Genesis (NIV) 32:9 Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, LORD, you who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’

Observation: When Jacob left home, it was to get away from his brother who was threatening to kill him. Now he is returning home and it is the night before he will be meeting his brother! He has sent gifts ahead. He has divided his family into two camps so one might escape if the other is attacked. He is fearful of what his brother might do. Now in his prayer, he reminds God of what God has promised. If God is going to keep those promises, then God will have to deal with the brother and help Jacob through the present crisis.

Application: To face trouble without remembering what God has promised is foolish. If God has given promises about my future, then I can trust God to take care of my present! If God has promised to prepare a place for me, then I can trust him to take care of the journey to get to that place!

Prayer: Lord, you are trustworthy! I can count on you to keep your word! I can trust you to take care of any problem I will face on the way to where your promises will be fulfilled! Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 12: Genesis 29-30; Luke 12

Scripture: Genesis (NIV) 29:25 When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn’t I? Why have you deceived me?

Observation: So many times I have read this but never before have I noticed at how closely Laban’s deception to Jacob resembled Jacob’s deception to his father. Jacob had pretended to be his brother Esau to deceive his father into giving him the coveted blessing. And now Jacob is deceived by Laban when the older daughter, Leah, is in the wedding garments instead of Rachael. Both deceptions had to do with identity and both involved clothing.

Application: It is a law of the harvest that I cannot change. Harvest follows sowing. Jacob reaped what he had sown. This law works with the good deeds as well as with the bad. And the reaper is not always the sower. I know I have reaped many kind deeds that were sown by my parents. May my son reap a harvest from my deeds.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for reaping on the cross the sins I have sown in my life. May you also reap blessings from any good I have done. Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 11: Genesis 27-28; Psalm 4; Luke 11

Scripture: Genesis (NIV) 28:11 When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set…
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in the place, and I was not aware of it”
17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.

Observation: The place was nothing special. Jacob would have gone elsewhere, but it was getting dark so this place would do. He was not looking for any special accommodations and not expecting anything but some sleep. Yet during the night God appeared to him in a dream. God personalized to Jacob the promises given to Abraham and Isaac. Jacob named this place Bethel which means house of God. He set up an altar and made a vow to God.

Application: Today God may change a “certain place” into a “Bethel.” He may change a place of “no expectation” into a place where heaven opens up to earth. When He makes His presence known to me and speaks to my heart, I need to pause and respond. It will be a life changing moment.

Prayer: Lord, May I not be in such a hurry that I miss what you will say to me today! Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 10: Genesis 25-26; Psalm 6; Luke 10

Scripture: Genesis (NIV) 26:25 Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD. There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well.

Observation: Here we see Isaac having the same priority as his father, Abraham. He pitched his tent, built his altars and dug his wells. (Note Genesis 12:8) When it comes to our earthly dwellings, people can tend to build them in a permanent fashion. However, they make their relationship to God fit in, temporary, easy to move from one church to another. When Abraham and Isaac picked up their tent, they left something behind because the altar was not "pitched" and the well could not be carried in their packs.

Application: When it comes time to move from my present home, or city, or planet, may I leave something behind that points people to God like an altar and refreshes them like a well. May generations to come enjoy the fruit of our labors.

Prayer: Lord, help me keep my priorities in order. Help me keep the temporary things temporary and the permanent things permanent. Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 9: Genesis 23-24; Luke 9

Scripture: Luke (NIV) 9:51 As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.

Observation: Jesus knew what lie ahead. It was not something that brought him joy. He would die a horrible death, for that was the reason He came. So He "resolutely" set out for Jerusalem. He was committed. He was moving forward. He would proceed to the crucifixion. He would endure the crucifixion. And He would come out of the tomb in glory! Yes there was joy that was set before Him, but it would not be complete until He had paid the price! It was His commitment to do the will of the Father that carried Him forward.

Application: To resolutely, determinedly, purposefully, decisively, definitely walk in the way of Jesus means that we take up our cross and follow him. To live a life of saying “no” to myself is not appealing, but it is necessary in order to say “yes” to Him. Is it worthwhile? Is it worth the inconvenience? Is it worth the struggle? Yes, yes, and definitely yes!

Prayer: Lord, like the song Andre Crouch wrote, if heaven was not promised to me, it has still be worthwhile having YOU in my life. Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 8: Genesis 20-22; Luke 8

Scripture: Genesis (NIV) 21:16 Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there she began to sob.
17 God heard the boy crying and the angel of God called to Hagar from haven and said to her, “What is the matter Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there.”

Observation: She could not watch the boy, but God could, and did! It was out of her control, but not out of God’s control. In verse 16 we see that Hagar began to cry, however in the next verse we are told that God heard the boy crying. It does not say that God heard Hagar crying, but that He heard the boy crying. The very thing that burdened Hagar had God’s attention too.

Application: My load is so much easier to carry when I remind myself that God shares my concerns. I have never had to inform him of the trouble. He is not waiting on my prayer to find out what is happening. However there are times when he waits for my prayer to allow me to be a part of the battle and the victory.

Prayer: Lord, I am glad to know you are already aware of the things that concern me. You understand the need much more than I do. I can trust you! Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer

January 7: Genesis 18-19; Psalm 3; Luke 7

Scripture: Genesis (NIV) 18:24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?
25 Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?

Observation: Abraham’s nephew was in the city that was about to be destroyed by God. Abraham knew the character of God and he prayed accordingly. It is "far" from the Lord to destroy the righteous with the wicked. Indeed the Judge of all the earth does right! And indeed God did do right as He removed Lot from Sodom before destroying it. Not even 10 righteous could be found in the city. God’s holiness did not stop God’s love. And God’s love did not stop God holiness.

Application: I can count on God being both holy and loving when he answers my prayers. He always remains faithful to His character.

Prayer: Lord, the better I know you, the better I am able to pray. Amen

Pastor Leon

Making friends for time and eternity!