Rockers and Shakers

I must have sat in that antique rocker for 10 minutes contemplating if it would be a good way to spend the birthday money I got from my dad.  While I sat there rocking, I looked around at all the delightful relics of bygone days. Directly in my line of sight was a cabinet full of salt and pepper shakers. There was quite an assortment…everything from pink elephants to lighthouses…and I wondered what would cause someone to want to collect them. I purchased that rocker and left before I answered that question (thanks, Dad!). But one thing is certain… it is about the outward appearance of the vessels and not the contents. Salt is salt and pepper is pepper, no matter what unique container they are shaken from.

There is more to this illustration, of course. Not so much about the pepper, which I could totally live without, but about the salt. Jesus talks about salt. In speaking to those whom He called Disciples, those who were intentional about following in His footsteps, He said,

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses it 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

In our culture, we think of salt simply as a seasoning to make our food taste yummy. Dad always says, “I don’t really like food. I just like the seasoning.” Or maybe something that comes in 40# bags that is used to keep our water soft, or tossed onto the sidewalk to melt the ice. There is validity and a message in all of the above. We should make life “taste” better for those around us; we should bring better quality to life; we should do what we can to provide safety for others around us. Those are all good, kind, loving things to do. BUT you don’t have to be a follower of Jesus to do those things. That is just something that a decent human being naturally does.

In the culture to which (or is it to whom?) Jesus spoke, salt was used to preserve food. To prevent spoilage. If you have ever returned from vacation to find that an electrical storm took out your deep freeze that was full of meat, you know well the importance placed on preserving meat! That smell haunted me long after the mess was cleaned up. The people Jesus addressed didn’t have a freezer or even a refrigerator, so salt was used to cure the meat so that it wouldn’t spoil. Without it, their world would be full of rotten stench and deadly conditions.

So, let’s bring that home. If Jesus wants us to be the preservative that keeps the world from rotting, wouldn’t that begin at home? As parents, wouldn’t Jesus be saying, “Preserve the souls of your children, your spouse, your friends and family. Make sure that your life is a sprinkling of My peace and My joy and My wisdom and My hope.” Would He not be dismayed when He sees that our lives at home look just like the world? Anger, frustration, anxiety, and more concern for the appearance of the pink elephant shaker than what’s inside of it?  Wouldn’t He be looking for the salt that keeps life from being stinky and rotten?

Here is what many people don’t realize… we don’t supply the salt that preserves life. That comes from walking with Jesus. We can’t buy it. We can’t mine it. We can’t create it from our great heart and Godly desires. The salt that we, as disciples/followers of Jesus, provide for the world is a gift from God. We can only be filled as we learn from Him, live with Him, talk and listen to Him. And it is His desire to provide it, free of charge because He has already paid the price. His disciples were transformed … over time … by close encounters day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year… of being with Jesus. Don’t be that person that gives up because your salt isn’t salty. Even the disciples, who walked with him every single day, took years to figure it out. Keep your eyes open and pay attention to how things look at home where life is real. That’s where the gauge is to tell you if your salt has lost its saltiness. If you are being stinky, dump that out and spend some time with Jesus so you can be filled with the salt that will bring hope and light and joy into your home.

My new rocker is in my bedroom and my Bible is right beside it. It’s a great place to sit and just be with Jesus. It isn’t easy to find the time, but in our culture it is difficult to carve out time for basically anything! Just make time to be with Him and let Him fill you with the salt that preserves. It’s the best thing you can do for your family.