Stepping Stones For Victorious Christ Centered Living #20 Shake A Little Salt

 

The Challenge of Having An Unsavory Life.

We live in a world where a whole lot of people are suffering:  Many struggle spiritually. Others,  because of their spiritual issue, have emotional struggles. Still others have relationships that are strained. Financial issues also may be added into the mix; additionally, physical challenges,  or health challenges, are a part of this. Mix a little high pace, and rarely slowing down in life, and you can see something is really going on impacting life in a negative way. In other words  all of these, plus any number of other things experienced in the 21st century, contribute to people experiencing unsavory lives.

Jesus Speaking to You and Me

Jesus has something to say about this. And He wants each of us to help out by, first beginning to embrace our identity. He wants us "become" so we match our identity, and if we don't, we really miss out and mess up.  Check out what He says, as He expressly tells us who we are. And as we actually assimilate our identity into our being, we might just be able to help out. Jesus said,

You are the salt of the earth.
  But if the salt loses its savor --or saltiness --how can it be made salty again?  It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
Matthew 5:13

Well, our identity is clear: We are the salt of the earth, and salt has one purpose. It is to provide flavor and or savor for our food.  How we help, is we get busy being surrendered to Christ Jesus,  and it's about helping others along the way, face the challenges of the day. And it makes no difference if the issue is spiritual, or emotional, or relational, or financial or physical. It only matters that we BE who the Lord clearly designs us to be. Then we can do what He calls us to do.  If we take seriously to abide in the Lord, and if we consistently surrender for Him to abide in us (John 15.5b) we will have a life growth of bearing His fruit and being fully alive. In the Chaplaincy, as we abide in the Lord, we deliberately practice the practice of what we call "The Ministry of Presence." No, we do not try to fix everything, but we are "there" to simply BE with the struggling person.  We abide in the Lord. We abide with the savorless person. We allow the Holy Spirit to flow through us, and we let the Holy Spirit's living water flow out of us and spill on others.  OR we "Shake A Little Salt." I have said it before, and I will say it again: It's not about being religious, but it's about living a relationship with God, and with our fellow human beings.

What if The Salt Goes Bad?

If you listen to Jesus teaching about this particular Stepping Stone for Victorious Christ Centered Living, you will see, that the salt can lose it's savor.  The Love Of My Life and I were out at a restaurant, and she asked for the salt shaker.  There was a pepper shaker, but not a salt shaker. When she asked "Why," she was told the salt kept going bad when left out on the table.  It would simply lose its purpose. Or, as Jesus said, it would lose its savor. It wasn't good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under foot. Can this really happen? YES! Jesus said it could. Plus, we witnessed it.

How Could It Lose Its Savor?
How Does Jesus View This Savorless One?

When you have Jesus, but keep Him to yourself, your ability to bring savor to others dissipates. Just as salt degrades sitting on a table, and it is not actively used as a salt shaker, even so your ability to "Shake A Little Salt" begins to wain until you wind up "Shaking" something that is of no use to others lives. If you don't intentionally abide in the Lord, and you don't abide in Him, as Jesus says, "You can do NOthing." And this includes help savorless lives become filled with savor. Since you have lost your savor, you cannot impart your savor. What is frightening about this is that Jesus says, a savorless person, who isn't continually "Shaking a Little Salt," "no longer good for anything." When it comes to making a real difference in the lives of people who are in bondage to sin and death, you can no longer make a difference.

The Conclusion of This Matter

If you really want to walk on Jesus's Stepping Stones For Victorious Christ Centered Living,  and if your really want to have victory in Jesus, make it a habit: "Shake a Little Salt." Be spiritually alive in Christ. Abide in Him, and let Him abide in you. Embrace your identity, and live your identity. Bear the fruit He wants to empower you to grow. Be active in Christ, and be so with those around you. Come on, now! You can do it!  Keep your salt shaker filled with savory salt, and spread God's eternal savor wherever you may go. Don't keep it to your self. There are too many people who need some savor in their lives. They need you to Shake a Little Salt.