The Builder & The Watchman

We are in the stages of looking at houses and just seeing what is available right now. We have been in several houses already and some are big, some are small. Some houses are well built and maintained, others are worn and in need of repair. Maybe the house you are living in needs some updating, remodeling, or a new coat of paint. Perhaps you are living in a brand new home filled with your favorite things. Much like these physical houses, our bodies are spiritual houses. Some of our spiritual houses are new, clean, and shiny. Others of us have spiritual houses that need repairs and are nearly in shambles. There are spiritual houses of all sizes, shapes, and conditions.

Have you ever been to a big city? Maybe you live in a big city. I come from a small town and when we moved here, our new hometown is a big city to us. In the Bible it talks about a city with a watchman on duty. Do you know the purpose of the watchman? Basically the watchman is a guard over the city. They stand on the wall and they are on the lookout for danger or suspicious people. Sometimes spies would try to gain entrance to a city and the watchmen would be on high alert for these types of people. The watchman was in charge of keeping the city safe by keeping danger outside the city walls. The watchman's job was very important.

Psalm 127:1

Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.

The Bible says that unless God builds our spiritual house, our work is useless when we try to build it on our own. We can try to become good enough to win someone's approval. We can change our behavior to fit in with a particular crowd. We can build our spiritual house any way we choose, but it's useless without the Master Carpenter building it. Our foundations crumble without God. Remember when the Bible compares the man who built his house upon the sand and it crumbled? The one who built their house on the rock stood still against the crashing waves and mighty winds. We must start with the firm foundation of our faith in Jesus. Then He will start to build the doors, walls, windows, floors, ceilings, and so forth. He will create a home we want to live in and a home the Holy Spirit wants to dwell in.

A city is filled with people and possessions. The city represents our heart's desires, our aspirations, our wants, our dreams, our hopes, and our expectations. God gives us desires so that we may pursue His purpose and His plan for our lives. If we satisfy the lusts of our flesh, which we know from the Scriptures, that it wars against the Spirit, we will not be pleasing God. Guarding those frivolous, temporal plans and agendas are useless. We must let God give us hopes, dreams, aspirations, goals, and plans. We must ask Him to be the Watchman over our desires. The Holy Spirit will watch for dangers such as, puffed up spirits, haughty attitudes, and pride. The Holy Spirit is the Watchman that warns us of the danger of being full of ourselves. Let's seek God's desires for our life. I promise they are the best gifts we can hope for.

Brothers and sisters, I truly enjoyed today's Scripture. It reminds us that we are not our own. We are bought with a price. God will build our spiritual house to please and honor Him. He will guard our thoughts and hearts as we line up our will with that of the Master. Do you trust Him enough to do that today? I am giving Him my all today. Will you join me?

I hope something I have said has given you strength for your journey and light for your way. God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

Ruth Chapter 2 Bible Study

Today we are reading chapter 2 in the book of Ruth. Ruth is in the Old Testament sandwiched between Judges and 1 Samuel. There are only four chapters in Ruth. This is a great book to study to see the hand of God leading Ruth to a new location she had never lived in, and to see how God continues to bless Ruth as she trusts in God.

Naomi’s late husband, Elimelech, had a wealthy relative. In the first verse of the second chapter, we are introduced to him. His name is Boaz. Ruth wanted to go to work right away. She requested permission of Naomi, respecting her wisdom and understanding of the area. She told Naomi that she would pick up any leftover grain the harvesters might miss. She was hoping they would allow her to follow behind and get what remained. Naomi encourages her to go.

It was time for the barley harvest. Ruth found a field to work in. We know God ordered her steps to the field belonging to Boaz. Ruth has no idea whose field she is working in. She does not know Boaz.   As she is working in the field, hoping to get food to take back for her and Naomi to eat, Boaz came back from Bethlehem. He greets the reapers in a very kind way. “The LORD be with you.” The reapers responded with, “The LORD bless thee.” This exchange between the field owner and the workers shows us what kind of person Boaz is.

Boaz notices Ruth. She looks different from the others because she is from a different country. He does not recognize her as one of the workers. Something about the way Ruth worked hard, with intention, got Boaz’s attention. Naturally he wanted to know who she was so he asked the overseers of the harvest.

Question: What do you think Boaz will do next? Obviously Ruth looked different, but what else besides her outward appearance do you think Boaz noticed? Do you think she may have looked like she was unsure of what to do? Do you think she was watching other workers to see what they were doing?

In verse six, the man in charge of the reapers tells Boaz all about Ruth. He explained how she requested to work behind the others. He told Boaz how long and hard Ruth had worked in the field. He said Ruth was working so hard with only a short rest break in the shelter. The man tells Boaz this is the woman from Moab who came back with Naomi. This verse tells us more about Ruth. She is a hardworking person. She wants to do a good job. She asked the overseer of the field before she jumped in. She had respect.

Boaz approached Ruth. He tells her not to work in any other field. He has told the men to keep away from her. He tells her to follow the women and work with them. He told her to get water from the vessels the young men filled when she got thirsty. She was not expecting to meet the field owner. Naomi had not told Ruth about Boaz. Ruth had no idea who he was but she was so humbled by his kindness that she kneeled down at his feet. She asked him why he was being so generous to her, a foreigner!

Boaz answered Ruth and said he was told about how she was kind to Naomi. He was told of the great sacrifice she made to leave her home, her life, her family, her culture, and her country to live in a country she did not come from, and live among people she did not know. Ruth was a woman looking to do something good for others without concern for herself. Boaz blesses Ruth. In verse 12, Boaz prays the LORD would repay her with a full reward since she has come to trust in God.

She thanked Boaz. She appreciated his friendly welcome and blessings. She tells Boaz he has comforted her. His instructions and advice was to protect her and help her. She must have been relieved to see that he was a man who trusted in God like she did. He made her feel at ease and I am sure she was encouraged to keep working.

Question: What do you think Ruth felt when the field owner came to speak with her? Have you ever had an encounter with someone in authority and it turned out to be a good thing like it did for Ruth? Boaz knows Naomi because he was related to her late husband. Do you think Boaz was kind to Ruth for Naomi’s sake?

Verse 14 says that Boaz included Ruth in the meal the workers were eating. She was invited to sit with them and eat all she wanted. Verse 15 tells us she ate until she was satisfied. Once she went back to work, Boaz tells the young men to let her glean even among the sheaves. He gave permission for her to not just pick up what she found on the ground but the stalks as well. Then he orders them to pull out some of the grain from the bundles and let her pick it up and not get on to her for it. Ruth had God’s favor on her life. She trusted in God and He was more than supplying her needs.

Imagine how Ruth felt after working so hard and so long and she sees how much barley she had gathered! The grain measured about an ephah which is around 30 pounds or 13 kilograms. That is a lot of grain! She was so happy to bring all that grain to Naomi and verse 18 says she even brought the leftovers she had from eating at the mealtime. Naomi blessed whom ever was so kind to Ruth. She asked Ruth whose field she was working in. Ruth answered Boaz.

Naomi blessed him and said he was kind to the living (herself and Ruth) and the dead (Naomi’s husband and sons). She tells Ruth that Boaz is one of their next kinsman. She explained that this was a legal term for someone who has the obligation to redeem a relative in serious difficulty. Ruth tells Naomi that he instructed her to stay close to his workers until all the grain was harvested. Naomi agreed it was best for Ruth to work only in Boaz’s field where she would be safe.

Naomi did not see the blessing in chapter 1 but in chapter 2 she is seeing God is indeed blessing her. The second chapter ends with Ruth sticking close to the women working in Boaz’s field. She helps harvest the barley and the wheat. She continued to live with her mother-in-law, Naomi.

We have made it halfway through this beautiful story. I never get tired of reading and studying this book.  I hope you will join me each Wednesday for a Bible study. We will pick up in Ruth chapter 3 next week.

Write the answers to the questions above in a notebook, faith journal, or wherever you would like. Read through Ruth chapter 2 first, then keep your Bible close as you read this devotion. Take your time to think about the questions and to understand where each one of these characters is coming from. Allow the Holy Spirit to teach you what the scriptures are saying. I read from King James Version, but you have a may different version. Just use the one you have and ask God to help you understand what you are reading.

Feel free to leave me a comment below and let me know if you’re following along with this series. I am excited to reach out to the kids in my Children’s Church class from Indiana. I hope that kids and adults can follow along with me each Wednesday and we can learn and grow as we break the bread together.

I hope something I have said has been encouraging to you. May you find strength for your journey and light for your way. God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

Car Trouble and Fish Nets

Paul and I took Javan to school this morning. His school is around 35 minutes away. After we dropped him off, we drove around, went a few places, came home, then back out to a few more places, and back over to Javan's school to pick him up. We drove to the gym and we drove to church, then we went to a restaurant for a quick bite afterwards, and then back home. Kadesia and Javan drove separately to the restaurant and then when we were going home, I got in with Kadesia and Javan rode with Paul. I thought all was well and we talked as we made our way the short distance home. We arrived in the driveway and realized Paul and Javan were not there. They had left before us and so we were not sure what happened or where they went. Maybe they were driving around, looking at something.

Kadesia got a phone call. My cell phone was in the car with Paul and Javan. The call was from Paul and Javan. The guys were stranded. They told us where and we punched it into the GPS, but instead of giving us the directions to up the road, it was trying to take us to Atlanta, Georgia! So I tried typing it in, and we made our way down the road. God led us to where they were stranded. Javan steered the best he could with no power steering. Paul and Kadesia pushed the PT Cruiser down the street, down another street, across another, and down one final street to the home we are staying in. The starter wires are intact. There is lights and power but the engine will not turn over. Paul and Kadesia are exhausted! Javan's forearms may look like He-Man tomorrow. My job was easy because I just drove behind them with my flashers on. I prayed. We are not supposed to ask anything of God, just simply thank Him, but I did. I prayed He would strengthen Paul and Kadesia because it was insane to push that car that far.

I was looking for encouragement in the Scriptures when I got home. After all, we are down here in Alabama on faith. We trust God told us to move here and we have seen His hand all over our lives here, but in times like this it can get discouraging, so I wanted to read what happened in the Bible when things did not turn out as they had planned. My Bible fell open to Luke 5 and verses 1-11 were highlighted. I'd like to share that with you now in case you might need some encouragement, too.

Luke 5:1-11

1 And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon Him to hear the Word of God, He stood by the lake Gennesaret,

2 And saw two ships standing by the lake; but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets.

3 And He entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and prayed him that he would thrust Him out a little from the land. And He sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.

4 Now when He had left speaking, He said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.

5 And Simon answering said unto Him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at Thy word I will let down the net.

6 And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake.

7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.

8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. 

9 For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken:

10 And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.

11 And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed Him.

So, Jesus is using Simon's ship to teach the multitude who came out to hear Him. The Bible says the fishermen were cleaning their nets. These men were skilled fishermen but they had a bad night. They caught nothing but debris and junk from the water. Have you ever gone fishing and caught an old shoe, or some other thing that you thought felt like the big one, but it turned out to be nothing useful? These men spent all night casting their nets out and dragging in a net full of nothing good. They wanted to use their nets again, so they were washing them, but they didn't realize Jesus wanted them to use them so soon.

Jesus instructs Simon to go out into the deep water and throw the net out for a catch. His instructions are clear. Simon was to get in the ship with his net, go out into the deep part of the sea, throw the net into the water, and Jesus said Simon would catch something. It seems simple enough, but Simon is a skilled fisherman. He must have looked at Jesus strangely. He wants to be respectful with his reply. I am sure he was tired. He was ready to get some rest. He wasn't ready to go fishing again. He explains that they already tried that all night long and came out empty handed.

There is just something different about when Jesus tells us to do something. When He gives the commands, we feel compelled to obey. Psalm 33:9 says For He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. Simon is explaining to Jesus that he had already tried to fish and nothing happened, but something about the way Jesus tells us to do a thing, it struck Simon in the heart and he was willing.

Nevertheless, Simon says. Even though we have toiled all night. Even though we caught nothing all night. Even though we just cleaned the nets and are ready to go to bed, nevertheless at Your Word Jesus, I will obey. I will let down the net. I will try one more time. I will not give up so quickly. I will do what You say.

The net was breaking there was so much fish that came into that net. The moment he obeyed Jesus, the blessing overwhelmed him. He had to motion to his partners in the other ship to come and help. Those men came to help and both ships began to sink from the weight of the catch! Can you imagine? Simon must have been blown away at the bounty! What an abundance! What a catch!

What if Simon stopped before the "nevertheless?" What if Simon said he was too tired to try again? What if he ignored the Lord's instructions? He would have missed out on a beautiful blessing that two ships could not even contain!

Once Simon Peter saw what Jesus did, he fell at His knees and confessed he was a sinner. When we finally take Jesus at His Word and believe it, we will see the rewards and blessings. Then when we see that His plan works, His way is best, we realize we are in the presence of the Savior and we are sinners. The realization sets in that Simon Peter is in the presence of a Holy man. He tells Jesus to leave him because he doesn't feel worthy to be next to Him.

I love that Jesus tells Simon Peter to fear not. He does not agree with Simon Peter and list all his faults and failures. He doesn't say, "I told you so!" He calms his fears and promises him that from that point on he would catch people instead of fish. The Bible says they forsook everything and followed Jesus.

When God told us to move to Alabama, we left everything. We left our home, the kids' schools, our family, our friends, our lives, our jobs, everything! I do not regret moving here. I do not see this car trouble as a sign we missed God somehow. I know that He will help us with the car issue. I know He will make a way where there seems to be none. I know that He will work everything for our good and I am trusting Him completely. He is in control.

I am grateful that He shared this Scripture with me tonight so I can share it with you all. I feel comforted and hopeful again. I feel joy down deep in my soul and a peace that I cannot explain. I have no fear, no doubt, and no worry. God is in control and whatever the outcome may be, I am trusting Him to see us through.

May something I shared give you strength for your journey and light for your way.

God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

Paul's Prayer for Ephesus and YOU

I opened my Bible to read Ephesians 3:20. It's a wonderful, familiar verse about God doing exceeding abundantly more than we ask or think. I enjoy that verse so much, but then I started reading some of the verses just prior to that and I decided to share that with you today.

Ephesians 3:14-19

14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,

16 That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man;

17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,

18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;

19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

Paul is writing a letter to the saints in Ephesus. He says the reason he bows his knees to God in Jesus' name is to pray for them! He is asking God to grant them strength in their inner man according to God's glory by the Holy Spirit. Why would he be concerned about strengthening their inner man? The inner man is the spirit. He wants Jesus to live in their hearts by faith so that they are firmly planted in His love.  He desires for them to experience the immeasurable love of Jesus. The measurements are beyond what we can imagine. This experience will enable them to be filled with all the fullness of God. 

This letter is an example of what Jesus wants us all to experience. He granted Paul's prayer to the saints at Ephesus and then reached through the expanse of time and granted it for every believer in the body of Christ. He wants to show us the breadth, length, depth, and height of His great love for us. As we become rooted and grounded in that great love, we will be filled with all the fullness of God.

Every good gift, every perfect gift is from the Father. He withholds no good thing from His children. It is His pleasure to give us the Kingdom. If you are a believer, this prayer was granted for you, along with the saints at Ephesus. Have you truly experienced the unconditional, unending, everlasting, overwhelming love of God? You do not earn it. It is not what you do or say that makes you more lovable to God. He loves you completely because He made you. You are His creation. You are His child if you have accepted the free gift of salvation paid for by the precious blood of His Son, Jesus Christ.

If you have never accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you can do it today! Just admit that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Repent of the things you have done wrong whether knowingly or unknowingly. Confess that Jesus is the Son of God and if you believe in your heart you are saved. Tell someone about it. Welcome to the family of God. Find a good church to go to that preaches the truth without compromise. This love is so wonderful that you have to experience it for yourself.

I hope that today's reading has encouraged you in some way. I pray that it has given you strength for your journey and light for your way.

God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

The 5 S's of Contentment

During the first week of July, my husband and I took the kids to Mobile, Alabama. This was the first time we had visited Mobile and we knew God was calling us to live there, so we prayed and felt like God was telling us to go during the week of Paul's shut-down. In our prayer time God told us to attend a church service while we were there. We just didn't know where. We spent the first part of our vacation enjoying the sights, the ocean, the beautiful area, and we were always in prayer about which church God wanted us to go to. We had been driving around looking for a church and I asked Paul to pull over so we could pray. He pulled into a parking lot with a strip mall building. As we were about to pray, we held hands, and I glanced over at the building. The door on one of the store fronts had a picture of wheat on it. My book I am hoping to publish soon is called Who Wants the Bread? so I was intrigued. I told him to drive over closer so I could see what that was. It was a church! Something in my heart stirred. The hours and contact information was on the door so I had my daughter get out and take a picture of it with her cell phone.

We attended a breakthrough service that Friday night and we were never the same again. God made a divine appointment for my family and me to attend and He blessed us more than we could ever know. That is when we met Pastor Yvette Tate for the first time. She told me that when I came back down to Alabama she wanted me to speak at her church. I had not done any speaking engagements in a long time and my heart soared with excitement.

We moved to Alabama on August 1. God has blessed us so much. She asked me to speak at the first breakthrough service in September. The breakthrough services are the first and third Friday nights of the month. I was nervous and excited. God gave me the message in August. I was so excited to share this wisdom with the people because it had changed me and taught me so much, just as I was studying it.

Two nights ago, September 6, I stood in front of the church during a beautiful breakthrough service and shared five steps on how to be content. The message is called the 5 S's of Contentment; Little Is Much When God Is In It. Many of you reading this blog will not have had the opportunity to hear me speak, so I am sharing the link with you to listen to the message. I pray that it transforms you like it has me.

God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

Perfectly Imperfect

It's so easy to get caught up in looking at other people, especially at church, and without meaning to, pass judgment. You may look at the song leader, the youth minister, or the pastor and think they have it all together. It is easy to assume because someone is in leadership that they have somehow arrived and have the world by the tail. The truth is that we are all works in progress. God is still molding and shaping us every single day. No one in your church is perfect. No family is perfect. No group of people are perfect. We are all striving to run this race the best we can, and sometimes we just need to remember that.

My dad was a minister all of my life until God called him home. He was an evangelist and then later a pastor. As I grew up, many people in the church needed counseling and prayer. It did not matter that my dad was not paid by the church. It did not matter that he worked a full-time job as a truck driver. My dad was called late at night, in the early morning hours, and throughout the day. He worked weekends and holidays for the people in the church. He would make himself available and people were always dropping by the house to talk to my dad and get prayer. We might be having supper and they would come in and usually they were pulled up to the table next to us, but there was always plenty and my mom was, and still is, an amazing cook!

I noticed through the years, that people would treat us differently than other people. We were the preacher's kids and so as a young child, I was expected to know the scriptures in depth. At the age of 9 I remember getting my own Bible. It was a dark brown Bible and I loved it. The cover and pages were stiff as I carefully turned each page. Only a few years ago did I replace that Bible. I still have my tattered and worn Bible. I love and cherish it, but it needed to be replaced and my new Bible shows great signs of wear already as I cling to that Holy book like none other. The expectation for me to know the scriptures and to give advice never left me.

I remember at the age of 16 years old, I asked my Sunday school teacher a question. I cannot remember what it was, but I know I always asked difficult questions because I desired to know more. I had a hunger and thirst for the things of God that could only be quenched by more of Him. My Sunday school teacher told my dad and the pastor of that church and a few other men in leadership that he was no longer going to be teaching my class and that I should teach it because I knew more than he did! I was shocked! But the next week, sure enough, I was teaching the class to kids my own age. That expectation was that I should know it.

Sometimes it was lonely growing up in a church where my family played musical instruments and sang and my dad was in the ministry. It was hard to get close to people who thought your life was perfect. It was far from perfect and I have the scars to prove it, but don't we all have a story? Today I want to encourage you, if you are in the same place I have been in so often; or maybe you are the person who goes to church and sort of has your pastor and other leaders on a pedestal. I want to share with you a passage of scripture that reminds us that no matter how big of a following we may have, none of us have arrived at the place we need to be in God. We can always go deeper, seek Him more, and do more to show the world His love.

Philippians 3:13-14

13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Paul tells them in the book of Philippians that he does not consider himself to have some special understanding. He says the key to living for God the way he has been doing it, is to forget the past! Forget the failures. Forget the mistakes. Forget the regrets. Forget the yesterdays. Stop looking back and rehearsing all the things you did wrong. Stop replaying situations in your mind over and over again, thinking of how you wish you would have done things differently.

Paul says switch your focus to what is just ahead of you. Better days are coming. Great things await. Your best days are in front of you, not behind you. Stop looking back, because you are not going that direction! You must look ahead. Look to the future. It is bright and exciting because God is there with an armload of gifts and mercies and grace to share with you. He is ahead of you making crooked paths straight. He is going before you and clearing your path.

Paul said that he presses toward the mark. He doesn't just randomly go through life, hoping for the best, not really sure how things will turn out. No, he is intentional about his choices. He is intentional about the way he spends his time, what he chooses to think about, and who he is spending time with. What is the mark? The prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. The prize is eternal life with the God of all creation. The prize is an endless life with the Master, the Savior, the King of all kings, and Lord of all lords. 

No matter whether you are in the ministry and others have thought you were perfect, or whether you are the one looking around putting people on pedestals they don't belong on; remember this, we are all in the race together. We are all in a battle to the end, and we are fighting the good fight of faith against powers and principalities. We are not in a war with each other. We are in competition with no one but ourselves. We must try to be better today than we were yesterday. We must look to the future and forget our past. Learn from the mistakes but leave the shame, guilt, and condemnation behind. We must look to the future and all that God has in store for us.

Press on brothers and sisters. We are almost home. We are nearing the finish line. We are closer now than when we began. Lift one another up and let's stay in the race to win! I hope something you read here today has given you strength for your journey and light for your way.

God bless you!
~Bridgett Owens

Free Bible Study Printables

Hey everyone!

I have had so many questions and comments on my Bible study videos here and here that I thought I would come up with a free printable you all could use to make your S.O.A.P. Bible study time a little more fun and creative!

For those of you that are not familiar with this type of Bible study method, the S.O.A.P. acronym stands for Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer. First, you pray and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you to the text that He wants to teach you. Write out your scripture, for example: 

S. Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the the end of the world. Amen.

Next, you would journal what you observed in this scripture. For example:

O. Jesus is speaking. He said all power is given unto Him in heaven and earth. So that means whatever situation I am facing, He has the power to triumph over it. Then He gives us the Great Commission: to GO, to TEACH, to BAPTIZE. He says to do these things in the name of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Then He gives us the promise that He is with us always, even to the end of the world. Amen.

Third, you would journal how this applies to your life today. How is it relevant for you? An example would be:

A. Jesus, all-powerful, is asking me to go out into the world I am living in, to tell others about Him, and baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He equips me to do these things because He is always with me. I need to be more bold in sharing my faith with those in my life.

Finally, end in prayer. You can simply write out a simple prayer to ask God to help you apply what you have learned to your life. It could look something like this:

P. Jesus, I thank You for coming to this world, living among us, dying to save us, and offering us the gift of eternal life. I was a mess when You found me and I am so thankful You set me free. Please empower me to be a bold witness to those You place in my path today and each day forward. Help me to share my faith with those whose faith is faltering or lacking. Guide me where to go, help me to teach, and when the time is right to baptize those who have given their life to You. Thank You for always being with me and promising to be there until the end. I love You Lord Jesus. Amen.

It's that simple! Just a short illustration of what your S.O.A.P. Bible Study may look like. I just use a notebook, but you can do this on your computer, in a diary, a planner, a traveler's notebook, a binder you create, or whatever you want to do. It is so important to write out your study like this because you can go back and read through previous studies and see how much you have learned, how far you have come in your faith walk, and to be encouraged again if you find yourself in a situation where you need guidance in a particular area.

My son is 12 years old and he has been doing this S.O.A.P. Bible study method for three or four years now. You can get fancy and use alphabet stickers, or make your own labels. You can be artistic and draw out the letters in fancy font. You can just use a pen or pencil and notebook paper, or you can print out this free study printable.

S.O.A.P. Bible Study Worksheet

S.O.A.P. Bible Study Bookmarks

I did not create this method of Bible study. It has served me well through the years. I do not do every Bible study like this, but there are times when a passage is difficult to digest and I simply break it down. I may spend a while in one particular passage, breaking it down verse by verse. It can help when you prepare a sermon or message for a small group. It is a terrific way to study the scriptures.

These printables are available to you for free. Please feel free to share the link back to this blog post when sharing these free printables with your family and friends. I had a lot of fun creating this worksheet and these bookmarks; one for you, and two to give to friends! Thank you all so much for the prayers and continued support! God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens