The Outsiders

• How does God want you to act when you are around people who do not know him?

• Share a time when you were tempted to “join the crowd” in sin.

Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.
Colossians 4:5

When Paul refers to “outsiders” here, he is referring to unbelievers. We need to be careful about how we act when we are around people who do not know God. It can be tempting when around unbelievers to act the way they do. Sometimes we feel like “no one’s watching” if the people we are with do not know how God wants people to behave. But this is precisely when others are watching—the unbelievers are watching. Whether they consciously think about it or not, they are observing our behavior.

And if our behavior is godly, it will often lead to opportunities for us to share our faith with others. Someone is bound to ask us why we won’t let them cheat from our homework or why we won’t steal that lipstick. Someone will ask us why we don’t swear or drink or sneak out at night.

Our time on earth is limited. We need to make the most of it by honoring God with our actions, especially toward “outsiders.”

PRAYER
Dear God, please give us wisdom to act the way you want us to act when we are around people who do not know you. Please give us opportunities to share your truth with others and the courage to do so. Amen.