“Worry Free”: A SOAP Journal Based on Matthew 6

S = Matthew 6:24-25 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

O = When people consider this well-known passage about not worrying or being anxious they usually start in verse 25. However, it is a good idea to take our clue from the first word of v. 25 “Therefore” and track back to the previous section to which it is referring (v.19-24). The passage that addresses our worries and anxiety is the result of the section that talks about the place of our investment and the person of our devotion. Having invested our life and our love wisely goes a long way towards reducing our circumstantial anxiety. The reader is encouraged to invest in heaven and be devoted to God not money because heaven is a sure deal and God values you, knows your needs, and will provide for you day by day as you seek him.

A = So I have to ask myself, what am I living for? Can it be taken away or is it beyond the reach of all grabbers, gobblers, and grunge? My heart will be where my treasure is. If it is in my hands then it is my job to protect it, preserve it, and polish it. That makes me a bit nervous. But if I realize that my true treasure, value, and legacy are in Christ then my devotion impacts the concerns that come my way. So if someone was to look at my bank statement what would it say about where my heart and devotion is? If I was to ask my friends what I am passionate about what would they say? My life doesn't consist of the things I have collected but of the love I have given.

P = O Lord, thank-you that when I trust you I have nothing to worry about. I know that I may face hard circumstances but it doesn't change who I am as your child. You love me more than I deserve and offer me a life and a future better than I can imagine. This week, show me how to love you more fully, to trust you more completely, and to walk patiently with you—taking this life one day at a time. Amen.

Joy & Peace: A SOAP Journal Based on Philippians 4

S = Phil. 4:4-7 ^“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

O = This is one of the best-known passages from epistles. This is an amazingly joyful letter that Paul wrote from a dungeon while facing certain execution to a church that began in persecution (Acts 16). Paul knew that it was in the times of suffering that you really experienced the presence of God. He was an expert in facing difficult circumstances (2 Cor. 11:23-28). So when Paul speaks about what to do in hard times I want to listen, and this passage readily yields several observations:

• Like Paul, we too should rejoice in the Lord for he is always the same and a valid reason for joy.
• In our stress, we should not treat others unreasonably or unkindly because the Lord is really near.
• Instead of wasting time worrying, it would be a better use of my time to pray about everything.
• The prayer of faith gives thanks at remembering how God has been faithful in the past. It is also thankful in advance for the answers to our current prayers.
• When I choose to trust Jesus with all my concerns, his peace will guard my inmost thoughts and feelings no matter how crazy my situation.

A = So when I read this passage its application seems very clear to me. Take what Paul says seriously and lighten up by focusing on what is true about the Lord. Am I rejoicing in the Lord today? Am I treating others as though Jesus were right with us or would enter the room at any moment? Am I choosing to worry or to pray? Am I filled with gratitude to the Lord today? Do I sense his peace, a peace that makes no sense in my situation but I am experiencing it nonetheless? Today I choose to direct my gaze upon the Lord more than upon my problems and I am thankful for the peaceful perspective it brings!

P = O Lord, you are and have always been a faithful God! I delight in your nearness and ask you to help me to treat others as if they were a gift from you. Help me to continue to bring all my concerns to you, for you are the one who can change things, and when things don’t change you change me into one who can trust you in the dark as well as in the light. Thank you for protecting my soul with your peace! Amen.

Let Us Rise Up and Build: A SOAP Journal Based on Nehemiah 2

S = Nehemiah 2:12-13, 17-19

Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. And I told no one what my God had put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There was no animal with me but the one on which I rode. I went out by night by the Valley Gate to the Dragon Spring and to the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that were broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire…

Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision.” And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good, and also of the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work. But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us…”

O = Nehemiah’s didn’t just feel bad about the condition of Jerusalem, he thought about what to do, then got permission from the king to repair the wall. After traveling from Persia to Jerusalem he carefully inspected the wall without outside interference and then cast the vision for the rebuilding project. In those days the wall of a city was very important to the security and liberty of the residents. Without a city wall, even their worship in the rebuilt temple was at the mercy of their hostile neighbors. Also I observe that they had to “strengthen their hands for the good work.” Good work isn’t usually easy. It involves investigation, planning, vision, community partnership, commitment, skill, vigilance, and endurance. There will often be rubble and rubbish from past failures that needs to be cleared away. There will also be seasons opposition by those who hate the people and purposes of God. Adverse circumstances are no indicator of God’s will. Nehemiah enjoyed both good and bad circumstances in this same project to which he was called.

A = What is it that troubles my heart (in a good way) to want to make a difference? What project is it that the Lord is calling me to do? Where are the Lord’s people being shamed and oppressed? Where are my brothers and sisters feeling insecure, defeated, and discouraged? Perhaps that answer to all these questions is the same. How can I partner with others to better represent the love and truth of God to the world? I need this be a week of investigation and revelation!

P = O Lord, you know what needs to be done to make the world more like it should be. You also know that it is completely outside my strength and ability to even make a dent in the task. I thank you that you do not call us to a life of futility, but give us the power (by the Word and the Holy Spirit) to faithfully do what you have asked. May I trust in your leading and empowering presence this week, and may you be glorified as a result. Help me to clean and build plumb in every area of my life today. Amen.