Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 23, 2026: SOAP #6076: 2Kings 20; Isaiah 38-39; Psalm 75; 1Peter 2

SCRIPTURE:  1Peter (NIV) 2:21  To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” 23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

OBSERVATION:  A thought came strongly to my heart as I was reading this passage.  This letter was written to people who did not have a Bible.  In the Jewish synagogue they would have had access to some scrolls of Jewish scripture.  They may have had access to copies of some letters that had been sent to the early churches. 

Letters like this taught them about the church being the body of Christ in whom the Holy Spirit lived.  Passages like the one above taught them who Jesus is and what He had done for them.  Holy Spirit anointed preachers and teachers used such passages to proclaim truth, but the scriptures had not yet been gathered into one authoritative book. 

APPLICATION: Surely God would have had a plan to help those whose sins had been forgiven to live as His children!  Yes, He did!  He sent the Holy Spirit to live in the heart of each new believer! 

His presence within gets excited when we hear and follow truth.  His presence within draws back when we start to slip into error.  He guides us into truth.  We may not have a Bible, but we all have the Holy Spirit!   We must learn to listen to Him! 

PRAYER:  Holy Spirit, Father God, in His wisdom, sent you to live in our hearts to teach us and help us recognize truth.  Guide my thoughts and my steps.  Show me truth and help me glorify Jesus with my whole life. Oh, the joy of having you in my life. Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 19, 2026: SOAP #6072: 2Kings 17; 2Chronicles 28; Psalm 46; James 3

Scripture:  Psalm 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,   though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. Selah

OBSERVATION:  Why is it that we will not fear?  It is not because the reasons mentioned are not frightening.  Surely the earth giving way and the mountains falling into the sea are frightening.  In the natural, it would be impossible not to fear when seeing such calamity.

The reason for not fearing is found in verse one.  We do not fear because we have Someone Who is better than “ever-ready.”  (In the USA “ever-ready” is the brand name of some flashlight batteries.)  I have had some “Ever-ready” batteries that were useless to me because they were home in the drawer when I was stuck on the side of the road with a dead flashlight.  But it is not that way with God!  He is not only “ever-ready,” He is “ever-present!”

APPLICATION: I may have to wait for a police officer, or an ambulance, or a fire truck; but I never have to wait for God to arrive, He is “ever-present!”  I may be called the “first responder” to an emergency, but I can rest assured that the “Ever-present” One is not only with me as I travel, but that He is already there when I arrive. 

PRAYER:  Lord Jesus, You are my “ever-present help.”  Remind me of Your Presence when I get anxious about my limitations to meet what is needed.  Amen. 

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Nore #1:  This was my first full day home from the hospital.  I stayed in the house all day.  I have had a few complications but am so much better than yesterday and have improved through the day.  I am looking forward to worship in the morning. 

Note #2:  Jesus is the one who started me writing SOAPs.  I depended on Him to write the SOAP when I was in the hospital.  If you have received any blessing while reading the SOAPs, give all the glory to Jesus!  He died for our salvation and the scriptures tell us that it is by HIS strips we are healed.  The Holy Spirit is present among us to work out things beyond our control and ability.  God alone gets all the glory!  

Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 18, 2026: SOAP #6071: Isaiah 32-35; James 2

SCRIP6URE: James (NIV) 2:22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.

OBSERVATION: As the pendulum swings from side to side, so the church world has swung from faith to works to faith to works… Even as individuals, we can find ourselves swinging back and forth. However, we must all remember that balance is the key.

Works without faith will not save you; AND faith without works is dead. How important it is for us to grow in these two areas. Unseen faith is made visible by our works. True faith will always find a way of expression in the way we talk and act, and especially how we respond to troubling situations. I do not know of any specific good deed that can be accredited to faith, I do not think there is a list of works that we can check off to prove our faith. It is just doing at the moment what we think would please and honor God.

APPLICATION: Both love and faith are made visible by works/actions. If I want the world to see Jesus in me, it will be through my words and my actions. As Jesus pointed many times to His works, we should do the same. It is one thing to point to Jesus works, but we should also be able to point to our works. (John 10:25, 37-38) (Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.) How will my faith be seen today?

PRAYER: Lord, prompt me by your Spirit not to forget the works. May others see you working through me. Amen.

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!
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Praise the Lord, we made it home today. The doctor told me he was quite certain it was not cancer and no further treatment would be needed. However, I will need to see a pathologist when the biopsy report is ready. Then we will determine what, if any further treatment is needed. The Lord gave many opportunities to witness. If your path requires hospitalization, do not ask the Lord to go with you. Instead tell Him that you are going with Him! Then let Him take the lead! 😊

Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 17, 2026: SOAP #6070: Isaiah 25-28; Hebrews 13

Worth more than money!

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews {NIV}  13:5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
6 So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

OBSERVATION:  Verse 5 gives two different thoughts.  The first about money and possessions and the second about what God has said.   They are joined together by the word “because.” The second phrase gives the reason for the first.

That second phrase—what a major, wonderful, encouraging, comforting TRUTH!  “Never will I leave you; Never will I forsake you!”  And the word “Never” means this truth dose not just apply to money, but to wherever we are; at home. at work, at school, in prison, or in the hospital (like I am tonight}.  (I am enjoying good fellowship with Mike, my nurse born in Kenya.)

APPLICATION:  So, what is the application?  It is given in verse 6.  With boldness we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, Why should I ever fear what man can do to me!” 

PRAYER:  Lord, what an appropriate verse for me today.  Your Presence is worth far more than money or anything else!  May that truth be seen in my life today. Thank you for being with me today when I was frustrated by the delays.  Thank you for my son, Doron, speaking truth to me.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Thank everyone who prayed for me today.  The doctor, with the cardio-vac, made it into my heart but did not find a clot, but a tumor.  He took a biopsy and made a successful exit.  I have not gotten to speak to him. But Doron said he sounded quite positive after the surgery/procedure.  I am still in ICU.  Will get an x-ray in the morning.  I am expecting to return home tomorrow, so I will give an update with tomorrow’s SOAP.   😊

Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 14, 2026: SOAP #6069: Isaiah 29-31; James 1

SCRIP6URE:  James (NIV) 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

OBSERVATION:  If I want to please my wife, I need to know what she thinks and likes.  And If I want to please God, I need to know what God thinks and likes.  In this passage, we see something that is very important to Him. 

What is important to God, should be very important to me!   I need to become an expert in knowing what pleases God, and what dis pleases God.  He has taken up residence in my life as an honored guest.  His likes and dislikes become very important to me!  

APPLICATION: How we treat those who are dependent on others for their livelihood (like orphans and widows in their distress) is important to God.  This verse tells me that I need to know those I am helping—know them well enough to help them personally and appropriately.  If “their distress” is hunger, I should feed them.  If “their distress” is clothing, I should cloth them.  If “their distress” is loneliness, I should visit them and spend time with them.  Some “distresses” can be helped with money, but all need personal involvement. 

AND there is more.  Pleasing God means that I “keep myself from being polluted by the world.”  How I think, speak, and act is also very important to God!  It is too easy to pick up the world’s attitudes.  Those attitudes are like the “hitchhiker” stickers that stick to my clothes when walking through a field of weeds.  Afterwards I must sit down and carefully pick them off one at a time.

PRAYER:  Heavenly Father, pleasing you is my daily goal.  Holy Spirit help me bring a smile to my Father’s face.  Help me bring joy to His heart.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 13, 2026: SOAP #6066: Isaiah 15-18; Hebrews 10

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 10:22 Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and have our bodies washed with pure water.  23 Le us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised if faithful.        

OBSERVATION:  First, the sacrifice made for me was sufficient to meet all the requirements of The Holy God! 
Second, the sacrifice for me was made by the only One who had no sins of his own for which to pay.  In love, He agreed to pay for mine!! 
Third, it was a sacrifice that ended in a resurrection!!! 
Fourth, the One who died for me, now lives for me, and lives in me!!!!  That is why I can draw near to God with joy and not fear!     

APPLICATION:   We can come to God in sincerity and in full assurance that the sacrifice made for our sins is more than sufficient to cover our offense against God.  When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior we find that His sacrifice is so sufficient that it even removes our guilty conscience!  

PRAYER:  Lord, when I asked you to forgive my sins and to live in me as my Lord, you did that and more.  You also lifted the burden of my guilty conscience. I am never alone for you are always with me.  What a change you brought into my life.  I am so thankful!    Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 12, 2026: SOAP #6065: Isaiah 11-14; Hebrews 9

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews *NIV) 9:25 Nor did he [Jesus] enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest [in the Old Testament] enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. 26 Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

OBSERVATION: I am so thankful that Jesus only needed to die once for my sins! I am sorry He had to die at all, but there was no way I could have ever enjoyed eternity in heaven without His death being the payment for my sin. There is no way I could live a life free from guilt. He forgives me and enables me to forgive others; I do not carry the heavy burden of resentment and the need to “get even” with those who have hurt me.

APPLICATION: Jesus died for me! He lives in my heart! What does that mean to me? It means I am forgiven and I can forgive others. It means I no longer carry the burdens of sin; I can live a life full of joy. It means that no matter how bad my circumstances are, I have a source of joy living inside me! It means I am blest and can bless others. It means I have peace in my heart and God can use me to bring peace to others. It means I look at creation around me and have a heart of appreciation to Jesus, my Lord.

It means everything has become new; I am a new creation in Christ Jesus!

PRAYER: Lord, you have done so much for me. Use me. Use what you have put into me. Use what you have given me. Use it all for your glory. May you be glad that I made you the Lord of my life. May my life bring you joy. Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!
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Pastor Leon’s SOAP:  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer
July 11, 2026: SOAP #6064: Isaiah 8-10; Hebrews 8

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews (NIV) 8:10 This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

OBSERVATION: The Old Testament covenant centered around laws written on tablets of stone. We call them the Ten Commandments.  Motivation was very self-centered — there was a reward promised if it was kept.  AND there was punishment promised if it was broken. 

The New Testament Covenant is not written on stone tablets, but on hearts of flesh.  Jesus’ forgiveness removes the fear of punishment.  AND His Presence is better than the rewards.  The more we know Him the more we love Him. Our motivation changes from selfishness—from the fear of punishment and hope for reward.  Our motivation changes to love.  

Once we were being forced into a mold by an outside influence; but now we live to please Him because we love Him.  Our motivation comes from the heart where He dwells.  We love having Him with us 24 hours each day, 7 days a week! 

APPLICATION: How can I not love the One Who loved me so much that He took my penalty.  Of course, it is my desire to please him — to bring joy to His heart, to bring a smile to His face.

PRAYER:  Jesus, I want to live my life in your honor.  You paid the penalty of my sins by dying on the cross in my place.  I want to please you and make you smile; this is my daily goal.  Amen

Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!   
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