“Pass the salt, please.”
Though most often this phrase is spoken at the dinner table, when the Bible references salt, it is not always describing its edible qualities. Several times in the New Testament, Jesus points out the important role salt plays in our effectiveness as Christians in the world. For example, He calls on us to be “the salt of the earth”.
I am fortunate to know someone who exemplifies that “salt” Jesus speaks to – one of my best friends, Lauren.
A collector of numerous hats and hair accessories, Lauren is well-traveled, is a unique “gifter”, brightens each occasion with thoughtful novelties, likes outdoor activities in whatever season they accompany, and enthusiastically decorates her beautiful home for each seasonal holiday. She is also very eloquent, a consummate prayer warrior, intensely patriotic, and loves Jesus above all else.
Bridge
You wouldn’t know it by her upbeat attitude, but Lauren suffered the agony of losing Jon, her first husband, while he served as an Army Sergeant in Afghanistan. After his esophagus was seriously injured while helping to rescue members of a convoy attacked by a suicide bomber in October 2008, this highly decorated hero quickly returned to Afghanistan. He was killed in another suicide bomb attack a month later. Most who have experienced such a loss will tell you there is no emotion like that which a military spouse feels when encountered by two uniformed service members.
Grief is quite possibly the vilest demon in Satan’s employ. Though unwelcome, it arrived and became Lauren’s exasperating adversary. She fought the grip of grief with every fiber of her being, and it slowly dissipated as God’s mercy evaporated its shadow and nudged her to unravel the intricate web of emotions. Throughout the process, she relied on Jesus whose unparalleled comfort cocooned her heart against the ebb and flow of grief and its rippling effects.
Blesson
Much like a weed whose life you think you’ve successfully ended, grief tends to resurface without an invitation. Recently, the troubled Afghanistan evacuation propelled grief’s resurrection in Lauren’s life. And though Lauren still experiences such visits from time to time, she has made it her mission to understand this enemy, how it works to destroy her, how it slithers into every aspect of life, and she developed skills to become a victor in her fight against it. So when this antagonist attacks, she rises against it, resists its powerful attempt to overtake her, and assists another who is embarking on her own journey to cope with the loss of a loved one.
Lauren is a courageous example of a Christian who spreads the salt of Jesus’ unconditional love, and her testimony carries with it a desire to influence others to “pass the salt, please…”
Substance
“Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.” Matthew 5:13 (Message)
“Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Colossians 4:6 (NIV)
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