DAY 18: LORD, HELP ME TO HAVE FLAVOR IN MY LIFE – PASTOR HEIDEN RATNER

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.” – Matthew 5:13 ESV

I recently discovered a newfound liking for the tree nut pistachios. I’ve never been one to just snack on a handful of peanuts, but something about pistachios changed the game. I have a bag in my office that I’ve been working on, and recently I learned another thing about pistachios that was eye-opening for me. One thing that makes these small green-looking nuts so good is when they’re seasoned with salt! 

During these 21 Days of prayer and fasting, I decided to go with the non-salted bag of pistachios as a part of my fast. Can I tell you that salt makes a significant difference? I quickly wanted to abandon the non-salted bag for the previous salted ones because they lacked so much flavor! 

Jesus, in Matthew 5:13, makes a similar parallel to our lifestyle as Christians. He calls us the “salt of the earth.” We will either have a Christ-like flavor to our lives that people are attracted to and desire more of, or we will be flavorless people, repelling others away. When you study Christ in the gospels, people couldn’t get enough of Him wherever He went. Whether it was His teaching, miracles, or overall personality, it’s no secret that people wanted to be around Jesus. He had an attractive flavor to His life! 

In a moment of self-examination, ask yourself today whether or not you resemble that same Christlikeness. Is He continuing to attract the world to Himself through you? Or, if you were honest, would you say your Christianity is quite bland, eventless, and has little to no flavor or excitement to it? If that’s the case, today is a great day to begin asking the Lord to help you regain a sense of purpose, passion, and flavor in your life! Dr. John Stott, the famed Christian theologian from England, once stated: “We should not ask, “What is wrong with the world? for that diagnosis has already been given. Rather we should ask, “What has happened to salt and light?” O, Lord, let us be the saltiness that attracts the world back to Christ! 

“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” – Colossians 4:6 ESV

Father, I want to pray Your words in Matthew 5:13 over my life. I know I’m the “salt of the earth,” but I don’t always feel like it. I want more people on this earth to see and experience Jesus through me! Lord, enrich my saltiness. Reignite my flavor. Give me new dreams, passions, and thoughts that lead to greater joy, evangelism moments, and discipleship encounters!

I also thank You for Your activity of grace in my life. Your presence is full of rich flavors for my thirsty soul, and You are beyond anything this world offers. I worship You because of it. Walking with You is a joy-filled adventure, and I pray I will only experience more of You and Your presence along the way. Make me into a disciple that carries that same Christ-like flavor that more people can eat off of and grow closer to You through.

I pray all of this in Jesus’ name, amen!