The reading for Thursday is Mark chapter 7.
When it is time to read, please start first by praying and thanking God for His many blessings. Be specific.
Record your thank you’s on paper or on the computer.
Next present your requests to Him. Ask Him for whatever you want and need. As you do, record your requests and questions on paper or on the computer.
Third, ask Him to guide you in your reading, so that you will hear his message for you today.
After you read, record your SOAP observations and then listen for five minutes. Set a timer and just listen to what he might be sharing. Don’t ask. Don’t thank. Just listen. (You can pray more after you listen, if you like.)
Here is what I heard in the reading:
Don’t just follow the traditions
Scripture: Mark 7: 8
You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on the traditions of men.”
Observation:
Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees, who have asked him why his disciples eat without ceremonially washing first.
Jesus points out that the Pharisees are going through the motions of the ritual, yet they aren’t truly living their lives in honoring ways.
Application:
Ritual and tradition can be beautiful things. If they are done without meaning, though, the beauty is just superficial.
It is important to think about why we do the things we do, pray the prayers we pray, sing the songs we sing, observe the holidays we do and more. If we are just going through the motions, we might as well not do any of them.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us beautiful ways to serve you. Please keep me constantly thinking about why I do what I do to serve you, though, so that I keep your will and you first and ceremony second. Help me to follow your commands and not just our traditions.
How do you be sure to follow His teachings and not just our traditions?
What else did you see and hear in your reading of Mark 7?
Feel free to leave your thoughts, or a link to post with your thoughts, in the comments. If you do link a post, please include a link in your own post back to this post so your readers can see what others had to say, as well, and potentially join us.
Didn’t start reading or Blogging Through the Gospels with us? That’s okay, join in anytime. Each Sunday evening I post the reading schedule for the week ahead and each evening I post the next day’s reading assignment and devotional. Feel free to jump in where we are anytime and blog or journal along using the SOAP format. Feel free to share your thoughts on Twitter using the #Gospels hashtag, too.
If you would be interested in sharing your own SOAP observations on MomsToolbox as a guest SOAP’er, please send me an email using the contact button on the top right. I’ll be in touch soon to discuss the details.
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