Day Six
In the final chapter of James, he gives us practical advice for different life situations. Are you hurting? Pray. Are you full of joy? Sing praises to God! Are you sick? Ask others for prayer. Are you struggling in an area? Confess your sins to others so they can pray for you. God wants us to live interdependent lives through our relationship with Him and our relationships with others. And as we do, we’ll live an overcoming life!
READ: James 5:1-20
JOURNAL:
A powerful, practical way to read the Bible and capture what God’s speaking to you everyday can be summarized in the acronym, SOAP. (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer)
Focus on one scripture that sticks out to you and write it down.
Write an observation about what the scripture means.
Write an application of how you’re going to apply the scripture that day.
Write down a prayer and ask God for help applying it to your life.
MEMORY VERSE: James 5:16
Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.
PRAY FOR OTHERS:
Pray for others that they would run to God and run to his church to experience healing.
SERMONS TO LISTEN TO:
Listen to this message about how we’re a family on mission and how we need each other to finish the race that God has for us.
Day Five
FRIDAY
Selfishness. Jealousy. Pride. Sometimes we can look around and wonder to ourselves, “Why is the world so messed up?” or “why is my life so hard right now?” James gives an interesting perspective. He says that instead of only looking at the external circumstances, we should look at ourselves! God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. If we want to live victorious lives in Christ, let’s run after humility, selflessness and obedience to the Holy Spirit!
READ: James 4:1-17
JOURNAL:
A powerful, practical way to read the Bible and capture what God’s speaking to you everyday can be summarized in the acronym, SOAP. (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer)
Focus on one scripture that sticks out to you and write it down.
Write an observation about what the scripture means.
Write an application of how you’re going to apply the scripture that day.
Write down a prayer and ask God for help applying it to your life.
MEMORY VERSE:
James 4:6-7
But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, ‘God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’ Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
PRAY FOR OTHERS:
Pray for humility and for God’s grace in your life and the lives of others.
SERMONS TO LISTEN TO:
Listen to this message about the keys to living the life that God wants us to live!
Day Four
Words are powerful! Jesus said that out of abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. There is a lot of power in our words, we can build people up or we can tear them down. James shows us that acting wisely means we rule our tongue, choose our words carefully and speak life to the people around us. Let’s proclaim the gospel boldly with our words, and also have lives that reflect it as well.
READ: James 3:1-18
JOURNAL:
A powerful, practical way to read the Bible and capture what God’s speaking to you everyday can be summarized in the acronym, SOAP. (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer)
Focus on one scripture that sticks out to you and write it down.
Write an observation about what the scripture means.
Write an application of how you’re going to apply the scripture that day.
Write down a prayer and ask God for help applying it to your life.
MEMORY VERSE:
James 3:16-17
For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.
PRAY FOR OTHERS:
Pray for the “wisdom from above” to show up in your life and in the lives of your friends (purity, peace, gentleness, reason, mercy, good fruits, steadfastness, and integrity).
Day Three
In Chapter 2, James talks about the importance of having both faith and works.
“Works do not save us, but they are pretty good evidence that we are saved. What He has done is our salvation; what ‘you have done’ is the proof of it. Keep faith and works in their proper place.”
Excerpts taken from, ‘What the Bible is All About’
READ: James 2:1-26
JOURNAL:
A powerful, practical way to read the Bible and capture what God’s speaking to you everyday can be summarized in the acronym, SOAP. (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer)
Focus on one scripture that sticks out to you and write it down.
Write an observation about what the scripture means.
Write an application of how you’re going to apply the scripture that day.
Write down a prayer and ask God for help applying it to your life.
MEMORY VERSE:
James 2:18
But someone may well say, ‘You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.’
PRAY FOR OTHERS:
Pray that God would increase your love and compassion for others.
SERMONS TO LISTEN TO:
Listen to this message about what faith is and what faith isn’t and how we can cultivate ‘courageous faith’ in our lives.
Day Two
At the end of the first chapter, James encouraged his readers to own their faith! As Christians, we should apply the word to our own lives and allow it to change us. This is a big reason why “Application” in the SOAP method is so important because we are called to be hearers of AND doers of the word!
READ: James 1:22-27
JOURNAL:
A powerful, practical way to read the Bible and capture what God’s speaking to you everyday can be summarized in the acronym, SOAP. (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer)
Focus on one scripture that sticks out to you and write it down.
Write an observation about what the scripture means.
Write an application of how you’re going to apply the scripture that day.
Write down a prayer and ask God for help applying it to your life.
MEMORY VERSE:
James 1:22
But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
PRAY FOR OTHERS:
Pray that God would help you apply the word to do your day-to-day life.
SERMON TO LISTEN TO:
Listen to this sermon about how the death and resurrection of Jesus fuels our life of faith.
Day One
The book of James was written by one of Jesus' brothers, the Apostle James. As the brother of Jesus, we know that James got to see how Jesus lived up-close-and-personal. In these 5 chapters, James gives believers practical advice on how to live out their faith in their day-to-day lives. The book of James helps us see that authenticity is key in living a life of faith, and that our lives should reflect our trust in Jesus.
READ: James 1:1-21
JOURNAL:
A powerful, practical way to read the Bible and capture what God’s speaking to you everyday can be summarized in the acronym, SOAP. (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer)
Focus on one scripture that sticks out to you and write it down.
Write an observation about what the scripture means.
Write an application of how you’re going to apply the scripture that day.
Write down a prayer and ask God for help applying it to your life.
MEMORY VERSE:
James 1:2-3
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
PRAY FOR OTHERS:
Pray and ask God to help you build an attitude of joy, grit, and endurance in any trials you are facing or will face in the future.
SERMON TO LISTEN TO:
Listen to this message from about the difference between “joy” and “happiness” and how we can cultivate more joy in our lives.