Wednesday, July 10, 2024

I enjoy the weekend messages at CedarCreek. It’s an opportunity to hear God’s word, analyze it, and see how the explanation of truth fits my life. It’s also an opportunity to notice if I’m missing the mark, intentionally or unintentionally. Being present during church provides a moment of focus away from life’s distractions.

However, when we limit our faith to Sundays, it’s much too easy to lose sight of God throughout the rest of the week. I don’t know about you, but I used to fill my time with sports, work, and hanging out. Even though I always kept Sundays for God, it was only 49 days more than the EMC (Easter, Mother’s Day, and Christmas) Christians.

Eventually, I began associating with people who talked about God throughout the week. It felt good, but it distracted me more than it added value to my life—because I never saw those people actually “walk the talk.”

Titus 1:10-12
¹⁰ For there are many rebellious people who engage in useless talk and deceive others. This is especially true of those who insist on circumcision for salvation. ¹¹ They must be silenced, because they are turning whole families away from the truth by their false teaching. And they do it only for money. ¹² Even one of their own men, a prophet from Crete, has said about them, “The people of Crete are all liars, cruel animals, and lazy gluttons.”

Rebellious people are spiritually stubborn and don't bend their knees to anyone. They offer flawed guidance by selling dreams of self-design instead of leading us to God’s inspiration. Once you open your eyes to false teachings, you see they can only offer dying hope instead of living water, but the Lord allows you to drink some more when you’re thirsty.

I finally found what I needed at CedarCreek. Here, I am encouraged to live out my faith and experience God throughout the week instead of spending only a few hours with him each Sunday. CedarCreek follows the teachings on Godly living that we’ll encounter as we read through the book of Titus over the next few weeks. I am grateful to incorporate the things from my culture that point me toward the truth of God’s teaching and to contribute the best parts of myself in group life with other Christians, as they do the same. It’s a chance to understand and embrace our differences while learning about and living for God.

Questions:
Do you find yourself distracted by the people you surround yourself with? What values do you look for in a leader?

Next Steps:
Eliminate the distractions in your life by choosing a couple of the following activities to help you live out your faith throughout the week. Complete The Daily on the CedarCreek app, choose a recommended book from the message notes, do one of the suggested RightNow Media studies associated with a series, or make plans to join a fall Group.

Prayer:
Lord, today's distractions are greater than ever. Help me stay focused on the plan you designed for my life. Lead me to the people who offer what I need during this season. Help me see what is true in them and myself. Amen.

Series Theme Verse:

Titus 2:14
“He [Jesus] gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.”

Today’s post was written by Jaron Camp, a regular contributor to the LivingItOut Devotional.