We love hearing that our youth have been taking their next steps with God. Over the last month, youth have been taking home Next Step Journals (NSJ). By spending time with God and making Him a priority, our youth are leading the way in our church by making God a priority in their lives!
If you haven't heard of them, NSJ can be a wonderful resource to help you in your walk with God. Every day, as you read your bible, your NSJ can be a excellent campanion that helps draw you further into the word of God by providing a detailed reading plan and a helpful acronym for you to follow: SOAP
Scripture: Each day you enter the scripture, you keep your eyes out for one verse that stands out or speaks to you in some way. So often, we read the bible just to tick off "devotions" from our to-do list that it's easy just to quickly read without it having any real impact. This helps you to slow down and take the time to listen to what God is saying to you through His word. When you find your verse for that day, write it down.
Observation: No, you can’t just take any verse and write it down and then forget about. In this section you need to write down why it stood out to you. What made you stop and pause for a second. Why did it resonate with you?
Application: Then you ask yourself, how can I apply it to my life? So many time we read the bible, but we forget that this isn’t just a history book filled with facts, but a manual on how our God, our Father, has called us to live.
Prayer: It can be an great practice to document your prayers so you can look back later and see when and how God as answered you.