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<\/a>I was thrilled to see this \u201cstart\u201d line near my home this week. The picture was actually taken from the window in my new\/updated office (I\u2019ll share more about that when it\u2019s complete). The start line was at one end of the street. The finish line was at the other end.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Now I didn\u2019t actually see any racing going on, so I\u2019m not sure what the kids in our neighborhood were starting or finishing. But what I do know is that they knew they needed a beginning and an end. They had to begin somewhere, which also meant they needed to stop eventually.<\/p>\n
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As adults, we recognize the importance of beginning. The moment we know we must start something. We usually start because we find there is a deficiency in our life. Perhaps you\u2019ve been in some of these situations. I\u2019m overweight, I start to eat better. I have no energy, I start to exercise. I am strapped financially, I start a second job. I feel disconnected, I start volunteering. I am disorganized, I start straightening up.<\/p>\n
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And what about feeling disconnected with God. What do you do then? Well, you start something. Whether you join a small group, or start a daily reading plan, or attend church on a regular basis, you have to start somewhere.<\/p>\n
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Our lead pastor, Shan Moyers, at Rocky Mountain Christian Church writes a weekly devotion thought. Currently at the end of each email he shares a five-day Bible reading plan. Each day he has asked our church folks to read the passage of Scripture and then focus on it through the day.<\/p>\n
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Shan uses the SOAP method to meditate on Scripture. It\u2019s not new or unique to him, it\u2019s just a good method to get started reading God\u2019s Word. So let me explain\u2026well I\u2019ll let Shan explain. This is directly from his email a few weeks ago.<\/p>\n
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Scripture<\/em><\/strong> Observation<\/strong> Application<\/strong> Prayer<\/strong> <\/p>\n Do you think this is something you could start? I\u2019m pretty sure that if you start this summer, you won\u2019t stop. You won\u2019t need that finish line. Why?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Because we find such encouragement from God\u2019s Word! Oh there\u2019s more than that in the Bible, but being uplifted on a daily basis is just about the best thing that could come our way.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Are you up for the challenge? Do you want to start something? If so, why not start here?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Day 1<\/strong>: Ephesians 1:15-23<\/p>\n Day 2<\/strong>: Psalm 121<\/p>\n Day 3<\/strong>: 1 John 4:7-12<\/p>\n Day 4<\/strong>: Psalm 100<\/p>\n Day 5<\/strong>: Philippians 4:4-9<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Do you have a Bible reading plan that you use? If so, I\u2019d love to hear about it!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I pray that you will find great encouragement through God\u2019s Word! Let\u2019s start something!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Grace and peace be yours in abundance,<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Donna<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The weather is warm. School systems are on summer break. The aroma of food cooked on grills wafts through the air. Kids are playing in the streets. Whether the calendar says it\u2019s summer or not, summer has arrived! I was thrilled to see this \u201cstart\u201d line near my home this week. The picture was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_s2mail":"yes","_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,16,20,15,17,14],"tags":[2451,2453,2450,2452,1410,2331,2448,2447,2446,2449],"class_list":["post-3250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-finding-god","category-following-god","category-hearing-god","category-knowing-god","category-obeying-god","category-seeking-god","tag-1-john-47-12","tag-bible-reading-plan","tag-ephesians-115-23","tag-philippians-44-9","tag-psalm-100","tag-psalm-121","tag-read-gods-word","tag-soap","tag-start","tag-start-something"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3250","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3250"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3250\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3253,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3250\/revisions\/3253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3250"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3250"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nOpen your Bible to one of the daily readings. Read the passage and allow God to speak to you. When you\u2019re done, look for a verse that particularly spoke to you that day and write it in your journal.<\/p>\n
\nWrite down what you think God is saying in this Scripture. What observations come to mind about the passage? Ask the Holy Spirit what he wants to teach you about knowing Jesus and loving people. Write your observations in your journal.<\/p>\n
\nPersonalize what you have read by asking yourself how it applies to your life right now. Perhaps it is instruction, encouragement or corrections for a particular area of your life. Write how this Scripture can apply to you today.<\/p>\n
\nLook back over what God has revealed so far. Now, write out your prayer for today. This can be as simple as asking God to help you use this Scripture or it may be a greater insight on how you can use this Scripture in your relationships. Remember, prayer is a two-way conversation, so be sure to listen to what God has to say! Now, write it out.<\/em><\/p>\n