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!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

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!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

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!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

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!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

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!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 22, 2025: SOAP #5710: Isaiah 36-37; Psalm 76; 1Peter 1

SCRIPTURE:  1Peter (NIV) 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

OBSERVATION:   It is generally accepted that Peter wrote his first letter to believers around 62-64AD, likely from Rome.  He was writing to believers in Asia Minor.  The persecution of Christians in Jerusalem caused them to scatter throughout the Roman world. 

Wherever they were living, Peter wanted them to know that God knew where they were and that the Holy Spirit had set them apart with the blood of the crucified Jesus applied to their lives.  Now they were to walk in obedience to Jesus. 

APPLICATION:   What was true of the believers to whom Peter was writing, is true of SOAP readers today in America, Asia, Africa, etc.  What was true in 63AD is also true in 2025AD.  We too have been set apart with our sins forgiven by the blood of Jesus.  The Holy Spirit has set us apart to live in obedience and for the glory of Jesus. 

Today we live in the grace of Jesus—grace sufficient to cover all our sins!  And we enjoy peace from the Prince of Peace!    We are greatly blessed!!

PRAYER:   Heavenly Father, thank you for your abundant provision for me.  You sent your Son, Jesus, to provide forgiveness for my sins.  And you sent your Holy Spirit to guide me through each day.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 21, 2025: SOAP #5709: 2Kings 18-19; 2Chronicles 32; James 5

SCRIPTURE:  James 4: ⁷ Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
2Kings 18: ⁵ Hezekiah trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him. ⁶ He held fast to the LORD and did not stop following him; he kept the commands the LORD had given Moses. ⁷ And the LORD was with him; he was successful in whatever he undertook.

OBSERVATION:   In 2Kings we see how the success of Hezekiah was preceded by his trusting and “holding fast” to the Lord.  Then in the book of James we see the same progression.  Resisting the devil should be preceded by submitting myself to God.  Desiring God to come near to me should be preceded by my coming near to God.  Being lifted up by God is preceded by humbling myself. 

APPLICATION:  So many of the victories God brings are preceded by having the proper attitude of heart.  As I work with the Holy Spirit in winning the battle on the inside, God works in my circumstances to win the battles around me. 

PRAYER:   Lord, I draw near to you by keeping you in my thoughts; I submit myself to you by obeying you; and I humble myself before you by seeing myself as Your servant.   Amen. 

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 20, 2025: SOAP #5708: 2Chronicles 29-31; James 4

SCRIPTURE:  2Chronicles 31:21 In everything that he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered.

OBSERVATION:   Hezekiah was not living a compartmentalized life.  He sought the Lord for everything he did, not just the hard things and not just the religious things. 

Three things:  He sought God, he worked wholeheartedly, and he prospered.  He did the first two and God did the third!  The first two set him in a manner in which God would want to bless him.  It was God’s joy to prosper him!

Sometimes we try to force God to bless us; we use God’s Word for the purpose of getting a blessing.  “Lord, You said ‘If I do this, you have to do that.’”  Serving God is not manipulating Him to get Him to do something for me.  When I seek the Lord and work wholeheartedly because I just want to please Him rather than for what I can get, then God can choose to bless me because I bring Him joy; in turn He brings me joy. 

The blessings that start in God’s heart because He loves me are much greater than the blessings that start in my mind because I want something. 

APPLICATION:  I want God to enjoy making me prosper as much as I enjoy prospering.    May God enjoy blessing me as much as I enjoy His blessing. 

PRAYER:   Lord, give me the wisdom to understand how much You have already done for me.  The joy in my heart from knowing You, gives me the strength to serve you wholeheartedly.  May my love for you, bring you joy.  Amen.

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 17, 2025: SOAP #5705: Isaiah 29-31; James 1

SCRIPTURE:  James (NIV) 1:26 If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.

OBSERVATION:   Our mouth and our words are a very important part of our religion.  We enter our relationship with God by our words. Romans 10:10 says “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”  1John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  Although not the only expression of our faith, words are commonly the first expression.  James tells us that our words are important as we continue in our relationship with God.   

APPLICATION:  My words are a window through which others can see into my soul.    My words reveal my attitudes and my priorities.   My words bring the thoughts of my heart out into the open.   (Matthew 12:34)

But it is not just the words that come from my mouth, but also the words that I write in letters, even those I put on Facebook, the internet, and other “social media.”  Some people must think that since no one is listening to their speech it is ok to write their thoughts and feelings on the internet. 

We should take our words to God before we blurt them out of our mouth or write them on the internet!  

PRAYER:   Holy Spirit, help the words I speak from my mouth, and the words I write on the internet, not to be a quick response to what is happening around me, but a sure expression of Your Presence within me.    Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com

Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 15, 2025: SOAP #5703: Isaiah 25-28; Hebrews 13

SCRIPTURE:  Isaiah (MSSG) 28:24 Do farmers plow and plow and do nothing but plow? Or harrow and harrow and do nothing but harrow? 25 After they’ve prepared the ground, don’t they plant? Don’t they scatter dill and spread cumin, Plant wheat and barley in the fields and raspberries along the borders? 26 They know exactly what to do and when to do it. Their God is their teacher. 27 And at the harvest, the delicate herbs and spices, the dill and cumin, are treated delicately. 28 On the other hand, wheat is threshed and milled, but still not endlessly. The farmer knows how to treat each kind of grain. 29 He’s learned it all from GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, who knows everything about when and how and where.

OBSERVATION:   When God takes me through tough times, it can be because He is disciplining me or because He sees something that I can do better.  So He uses the plough to uproot the weeds.  His goal is not to interrupt my life, but to prepare me for something better.  After ploughing, he will plant seeds for a harvest.  He is an excellent farmer or gardener!   I am His field!

APPLICATION:  Farming and gardening work in seasons.  It takes time.  God is the expert on knowing the seasons for planting, watering, and growing.  God knows the nature of each crop and how long is needed in each season.  God has taken me through several seasons in preparing me to write these SOAPs. 

And God has carefully prepared and placed them to reach into several Muslim communities.  God loves the Muslims so much and desires that they be a part of His Kingdom!  He has carefully been scattering some SOAP seeds in the Muslim areas and many have received Jesus as Savior and Lord!  

PRAYER:  Lord, we pray for the new members of your kingdom.  They have received your forgiveness and are living for your glory.  May your word become strong in their lives.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
On Facebook:  Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
Also on:  soapsbyleon.wordpress.com