📧 In today’s email..

• 📕 Today’s reading

• 🙏 The SOAP Devotional of the day

📕 TODAY’S READING
Matthew 25; Micah 5-7

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🙏 SOAP DEVOTIONAL
SOAP: scripture, observation, application, prayer

For each day of Bible reading, we do a SOAP devotional to go deeper into the word of God. We always provide an example SOAP from one of our authors, but we highly encourage you to do your own SOAP with today’s reading. God wants to speak to you personally, and will highlight a passage of today’s reading that’s just for you.

Here’s how it works:

S – SCRIPTURE
Physically write out the Bible verse
You’ll be amazed at what God will reveal to you when you
slow down to write or meditate on what you are reading!

O – OBSERVATION
What do you see in the verses you’re reading?
Who is the audience? Is there a repetition of words? What words stand out to you? What is the main lesson or theme?

A – APPLICATION
When God’s Word becomes personal
What is God saying to me today? How can I apply what I just read to my life? Are there any changes I need to make?

P – PRAYER
Pray God’s Word back to Him
If He has revealed something to you during this time in His
Word, pray about it. Confess if He has revealed some sin that is in your life. Take time to thank Him for His goodness in your life.

Today’s SOAP Devotional

By Ryan Miller

S - SCRIPTURE: Matthew 25

O - OBSERVATION: What a fascinating chapter! Jesus tells us two stories about how to prepare for the return of the Lord with two very clear instructions to the Christian.

1. Keep oil in your lamps

   In the parable of the ten virgins, Jesus paints a vivid picture of anticipation and readiness, urging us to be prepared for His return! He illustrates this by emphasizing the importance of keeping our lamps filled with oil—a powerful symbol of the Holy Spirit's presence in our lives. This oil fuels the fire of our faith, sustaining our relationship with Christ and deepening our intimacy with Him.

2. Keep a Kingdom mindset

   The next parable Jesus tells us is one of stewardship. He tells us the parable of the talents, where a master entrusted each of His servants with money while he went on a journey. Jesus is making it clear that He has given different measures of gifts to His children, but what He cares most about is that we think how we can bring the Kingdom to earth, with the treasure, time, and talents He has given us.

A - APPLICATION:

What’s truly remarkable about these two lessons is the order in which Jesus presents them. I believe this was intentional. First, He emphasizes the importance of relationship, and then He shifts to the fruit that grows from that relationship. This echoes the Kingdom principle of abiding—when we remain deeply connected to Jesus, our lives naturally begin to reflect His. So, how does Jesus want us to prepare for His return? By cultivating a deep, intimate relationship with Him now, where our roots grow strong and our lives bear the fruits of the Spirit.

P - PRAYER:

Jesus, we eagerly awake your return by acknowledging that you are here with us now. Make us more aware of your presence in our lives! We love you so much and can’t wait to see you one day, face to face.