Living as Salt + Light

By Krista Breilh

How are we to be the ‘salt’ of the Earth as women who are passionate about Christ but also passionate about our Instagram or our home aesthetic?

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its 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)

Years back, when I first read this verse, I was so confused. How could I be the salt of the earth? What did that even mean? Not taking any initiative of my own to figure it out, these questions faded away for a while, and the verse was forgotten. However, a few months later, it was brought to the surface again when my pastor taught on those verses at church. He started listing off all the properties of salt and I couldn’t keep up:

It is used to season and preserve food.

It is used to enhance the flavor of whatever it is put on.

It is used as a healing agent for wounds.

In the past, it was used as a form of currency and was extremely valuable and desired – even fought after.

It also has the ability to leave people thirsty for more (think about trying to eat just a small handful of popcorn or chips. You always want more).

He then took these tangible uses of salt in our everyday life, and transferred them over to how we could be living as disciples of Christ:

We are called to season this world and bring life to our culture.

We are called to preserve this world and act as close as we can to the power and will of Jesus.

We are called to enhance the gifts the Lord has given us by pressing into them and living them out.

We are called to bring healing to others through our words, actions, and unconditional love. And we are to go out of our way to help those who are in need.

We are called to recognize that we are valuable and desired and to live out of that truth instead of the lies this world throws at us day-after-day and night-after-night.

We are called to live in a manner that makes others thirsty for more of what we have, which is Jesus.

Have you ever met that one person who has something about them that makes you want them around? The person who makes you want to open up, get real, and talk about life? The person who makes you smile, fills your heart with joy, calms you in the midst of a storm, or gives you a sense of peace when everything else seems to be falling apart? A person who makes you feel comfortable with yourself rather than judged? A person who seems to have a deep-seated understanding that all will be okay, no matter what is thrown at them?

That person is who I am talking about when I refer to being someone who makes others thirst after what you have. Others may not be able to put their finger on what it is that sets you apart, but they’ll feel the difference.

I Am Set Apart

When you have Jesus, you have this understanding about life that sets you apart and makes others curious. I am not talking about a “set apart” that makes you better than anyone else. I am talking about being set apart in the way that you know this world is temporary, and you know that there is so much more to live for than what meets the eye.

You have one foot on earth and one foot in heaven, and because of this knowledge, your demeanor towards everything and everyone, changes.

So let me ask you a few questions:

Are you changing how you live because of your identity in Christ?

Are you letting the truth of having an eternal life change how you interact with people and how you go about your everyday?

Are you actively choosing to believe that you are the salt of the world?

When Jesus tells us “[We] are the salt of the world,” He isn’t just throwing around words, or phrasing a question or trying to be encouraging through some strange, roundabout way. He is speaking truth and identity over our lives. He is speaking with authority. He is speaking with power. When Jesus says something, He means it.

It is now time for you to decide if you want to believe it, and if you want to, let it transform how you live.

What Do I Do Now?

“Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” –Colossians 4:6

If you want a tangible way to start changing how you live, start with your conversation, start with your tongue:

Are you speaking with grace towards others working to preserve the type of relationships and culture God intended us to live in?

Are you intentionally listening to others to see how you can help them along their life journey, to see how you might be able to help heal them of pain, struggle, or sadness in their life?

Are you exercising positive self-talk, focusing on the value and desirability that God has created you with as one of His daughters?

Are you actively talking with your friends and family about how you might enhance the gifts the Lord has given you, and applying them to the world for good?

Are you seasoning your speech with salt, ready to respond or answer anyone with questions or concerns about you, your life, and faith?

Are you speaking and interacting with others in a way that makes them curious about what is different about you? Are you engaging in gossip, elaborating on stories, or joining conversations that do not build up God’s kingdom?

James 1:22 says, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”

What would it look like for you to put all of these characteristics to action, and live them out? I say it is time we start doing exactly that, and intentionally live it out. If all we ever do is read the Bible, or talk about it with our friends, nothing is going to change and we are deceiving ourselves in thinking it is. We must put actions behind our words. We must put the pedal to the medal.

We got this, ladies. We got this.