Scripture is very important to Christians. It is where we hear the voice of Jesus.  Jesus told his disciples in that they lived in him and his word lived in them, they could be confident of his continuing presence (John 15:7 A paraphrase from the Jerusalem Bible).

It is vital that we immerse ourselves in Scripture.  Many people try to read the entire Bible in a year, and while that is an admirable goal, it doesn't leave much time for reflection and spiritual formation.  So, instead of reading 5 to 7 chapters a day, it is better to read less and have time to reflect and ask those important questions:  What does it mean?  What does it mean for me today? How can I apply that reading to my daily life? If we don't ask and answer those questions, then we haven't gotten from the Bible what we really need.

S.O.A.P.Y. can help. S.O.A.P.Y. is a way of reading that gives you time to ask and answer those questions.  The letters stand for:

S stands for Scripture.  Read the daily reading. It may help to read aloud. Take your journal and write the verse or words that stand out for you that day.

O is for observation. Ask yourself, "What is God teaching me in this reading?" "What does God need me to know?" Ask those kinds of questions and take the time to listen for the voice of the Spirit.

A is application. Ask, "how does this scripture apply to my life?" As you reflect on these verses, look for promises, attitudes to change, challenges to accept and sins to confess. As you write these in your journal ask the Holy Spirit to help you to be willing to apply these verses to your life.

P is for prayer. If a verse stands out to you, turn that verse into a prayer, asking God to make that a reality in your life. An example can be Psalm 141:3 where the psalmist says, "set a guard at my mouth, a watcher at the gate of my lips."  Turn that into a prayer that God may indeed help us know how to respond to people and situations around us.

Y for yield. What things do we need to yield to God?  What sins, what attitudes, what desires do we need to turn over to God?  It is here that the rubber meets the road.

A word about some of the readings. As you read you will notice that some of the readings go beyond one chapter and may end n the middle of the next chapter. Why? The answer is simple.  The chapter and verse numbers were added much later (chapter divisions were added in the 4th century and the verse divisions were not added until 1511.)  The divisions were not always added in the best places and interrupt the train of thought of the text. So when you see this: Mathew 6:19-7:6 you will begin your reading for that day in the 19th verse of Matthew chapter 6 and end the reading with the 6th verse of the 7th chapter.

You will see this a lot in the epistles of St. Paul. Just be aware of the reading for the day.