What is SOAP?

SOAP is an acronym for: Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer. As you prepare for participating in City Group this week, we invite you to write down your thoughts in a journal. Journaling is a great way to record and process your thoughts & what God is sharing with you.

Week of August 16th
Playing it Safe is Holding You Back

OVERVIEW

Playing It Safe Is Holding You Back. This Sunday, PC began a new teaching series centered on the life of Elisha and the call to move beyond spiritual stagnation and comfortable faith. Elisha was an ordinary man working in an ordinary field when God called him to something far greater. His story reminds us that God sees potential and purpose in us even when we feel overlooked, stuck, or like we are simply doing the same thing every day. Yet here is the big takeaway... God has a mantle with your name on it, and a calling bigger than the field you're standing in.

KEY POINTS

When Elijah placed his mantle on Elisha, Elisha had a choice: remain with what was familiar and secure or take the risk of following God's call. He immediately responded, ultimately sacrificing his oxen and burning his plow as a declaration that there was no going back. The message challenges us to identify the “plow” we are holding onto, whether it be comfort, sin, relationships, possessions, habits, or anything else that keeps us from fully following Jesus. We cannot hold the plow and wear the mantle at the same time.

SCRIPTURE

As we read aloud through these verses, let's pause, reflect, and listen for what Holy Spirit might be saying to you through the Word of God.

Key scriptures from the series. 

1 Kings 19:19–21 So Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him. Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” he said, “and then I will come with you.” “Go back,” Elijah replied. “What have I done to you?” So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his servant.

OBSERVATION

Elisha was not looking for a new calling when God called him. He was simply doing his ordinary, every day work, plowing the field. Yet God saw something in Elisha that others could not see. While Elisha was focused on the field in front of him, God saw a prophet with a significant purpose.

When Elijah placed his mantle on Elisha, it represented a call to step into God's purposes. Elisha could have chosen the safe and predictable path. He had security, family wealth, and a future already mapped out for him. Instead, he chose faith.

What makes Elisha's response so powerful is that he didn't merely say yes while keeping his old life as a backup plan. He sacrificed his oxen and burned his plow. He removed the very thing that represented his former life and security. His actions demonstrated that he was all in.

The message we are unpacking emphasizes that spiritual maturity is demonstrated by the distance between God's prompting and our obedience. We don't always need to understand everything God is asking before we obey. Elisha didn't have all the details, but he trusted the One who called him.

The challenge for us is that we can easily become comfortable with “just plowing," doing the same things, maintaining the same routines, and settling for what is safe. But sometimes the very things we hold onto for security are the things keeping us from stepping into God's calling.

Here's the thing: You can't hold the plow and the mantle at the same time.

Here are four discussion questions drawn directly from the message that encourage both biblical reflection and personal application:

Q1. - Where do you currently feel “stuck” or like you are simply “plowing through life”? What might God be doing in you during this season, even if you don't see the bigger picture yet?

Q2. - What “plow” might God be asking you to burn? Is there a habit, relationship, comfort, fear, distraction, or sin that is keeping you from fully following Jesus?

Q3. - The message Sunday pointed out, “Whenever God calls you, you don't delay. You immediately obey.” Is there something you already sense God prompting you to do that you have been putting off? What's keeping you from taking that step?

Q4. - Elisha didn't have all the details before he said yes to God's calling. What would it look like for you to trust God and obey even when you don't completely understand what He's asking you to do?

APPLICATION

Take some time to honestly ask the Holy Spirit:

“What plow do I need to burn to fully follow Jesus?”

Your “plow” may be something obvious, such as a sinful habit or unhealthy relationship. But it could also be something more subtle like; comfort, fear, control, approval, possessions, busyness, social media, or simply the desire to remain where life feels predictable.

Consider these questions:

  • What am I protecting that God may be asking me to surrender?
  • Where have I been playing it safe instead of trusting God?
  • What has become more important to me than following Jesus?
  • What has God already prompted me to do that I have been delaying?

The goal isn't simply to make a dramatic decision. It's to develop a heart that responds to God with “I will.” When God prompts you to forgive, forgive. When He asks you to confess, confess. When He calls you to give, give. When He asks you to step out in faith, step out.

You don't need to understand everything completely to obey immediately.

Most importantly, remember that your current “field” does not determine your future. You may feel overlooked, ordinary, or stuck, but God sees more in you than you may currently see in yourself. He sees the person He is shaping you to become and the purpose He has for your life.

PRAYER

Father,

Thank You that You see me completely. Even when I feel ordinary, overlooked, stuck, or like I am simply going through the same routines every day, You see the person You created me to become.

Holy Spirit, show me the “plows” I am holding onto. Reveal anything that has become more important to me than following Jesus. Give me courage to surrender my comfort, my fears, my habits, my plans, and anything else that is keeping me from fully obeying You.

Forgive me for the times I have played it safe when You were calling me to take a step of faith. Help me trust You even when I don't have all the details. Give me a heart that responds quickly when You speak.

I don't want to live with one foot in Your Kingdom and one foot in the world. I want to be completely Yours.

Lord, whatever You ask of me, my answer is “I will.”

Help me burn the plow, leave the old behind, and faithfully follow wherever You lead.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

WHAT NEXT? SERVE ON A TEAM
Next Steps

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