“O”: Open Your Eyes to Scripture

 

A Daily Rhythm Encouragement

Originally published by Church on Morgan

Throughout June we are focusing on the S.O.A.P. method of Bible study. S.O.A.P. stands for Scripture, Observation, Application and Prayer. (See last week’s Daily for a more detailed overview.)

This week we’ll take a look at Observation…pun intended.

Judaism refers to the Torah, our Old Testament, as a multi-faceted gem, one that reveals new light each time it is turned in the context of our life experiences. Maybe you’ve had the experience of reading a familiar passage and something relevant to your current circumstance jumps out to you as if you’re seeing it for the first time?

As we read the Bible we’re listening for what God is speaking to our hearts; those Spirit-led insights that we can then apply to our lives. (The good news is that He is always speaking…we just aren’t attuned to listening.)

Unlike English class or your book club, reading the Bible doesn’t require parsing everything or even understanding it all. Instead God invites us into a slow marinating process, one that allows His word to wash over us and soak in…maybe just a single word or phrase, an idea or an image of Jesus.

I have collected a few helpful tools I turn to when digging deeper into a passage that you might like to check out:

• Bible Gateway or Bible.com – Both are easy to navigate by phone or mobile device, and offer myriad translations, from King James to The Message.
• Blue Letter Bible – Look up a passage to see its root words in Hebrew or Greek, definition(s), and a concordance of places where the word or phrase is found throughout scripture.
• VerseMinder – a great app for memorizing scripture.

What resources do you like to use in making observations as you study Scripture? Share as a comment and I’ll include them in a round up in the final Daily for this month.

Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures…

Luke 24:45

Start reading from the beginning of this series: Today’s Post Sponsored by the Letter “S”: Scripture.

Read the next post in this series: “A”: Apply Scripture to Your Life.

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Each week’s email will be written by someone in our community and provide a few thoughts, insights, or experiences that have come from their own morning, meal time, and evening practices. If you would like to learn more about our “Shared Rhythm” you can read about it online or pick up a set of our “Daily Rhythm Cards” at Church on Morgan.

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