I wanted to share with you my go to Bible study method. It’s called SOAP which stands for Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer. Often I will SOAP the verses in my morning devotional. The devotional gives me a starting point and then the SOAP method helps me to dig a little deeper.
I love it because it is quick and you still get a good study of the Word. All you need is your Bible, paper, pen, and about 15 minutes of time. That’s it!
S-Scripture
If you’re reading a longer passage of scripture, you can simply write out the one or two verses that stand out to you.
O-Observation
What stands out to you about the passage? I generally just do a bullet point list of what I observe. Don’t worry that you’re being too obvious! If it says “Jesus told the disciples to go out in the boat” write exactly that! You never know what is going to suddenly stand out to you. That’s part of the reason why I love this method. There are so many times where you suddenly see something in the Word that you hadn’t before!
A-Application
This is where you are thinking of how this passage applies to YOUR life. Is there a command given? Is there a list of what not to do? Attributes we should have as Christians? I usually list these in question form (i.e. Am I being…?). Try to be as practical as possible.
P-Prayer
The last step is to pray. Pray God’s Word over your life. Pray about change that may need to happen. Praise God for His Word and for speaking to you through it. Pray that you would apply His Word to your life. Usually, the application gives me some conviction and I pray through that.
I hope you’ll try out this method and to help you get started, I have a free printable for you!
This is good
Right?! I love this method! Once I discovered it, it made a big difference in being able to study (and have time to do so!) 🙂