Salt and Manure

This morning I really didn’t want to go for my run. I woke up tired and sore. The alarm went off and the dogs were right in my face. For a minute, I thought they were even too tired to roll out of bed. After laying there for a bit, I go up let the pups out and started my coffee. I stumbled through my empty house searching for excuses to not go running. As I stood with the dogs, I noticed just how cool it was outside. Well, that does it, it was too cold. I wasn’t going out there, I’d wait till later. 

I went inside and sat down for my morning devotions – my daily mini-sabbath. I’ve been reading a lot recently about becoming a deeper disciple and about spending time with God as opposed to learning about God. As I sat there, already psyched out of my run, I began to read and started to feel that familiar prompt of the Spirit that my plans were about to change.

This morning’s reading was from Luke 14:

“Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out. “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

 

As I read the passage, I was struck by something that seemed really out of place – that whole manure pile thing. I don’t usually picture Jesus talking about manure piles with the disciples, but sure enough here he is. It’s a really odd connection isn’t it? So, I sat with the whole section for a minute. Jesus is inviting his disciple to really analyze what it will take to follow him. Sure they’re getting unfettered access to the Son of God, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a cost involved. Jesus is telling his disciples that Salt has a purpose as does a person who chooses to follow Him. To be a disciple is to be like salt. Salt and a Disciple are to something unique in the world.

 

Salt gives flavor. It preserves. It has great purpose as should his disciples. A follower of Jesus will add flavor to the world. They’ll find ways to extend life. It’s like Jesus is giving a job description to his guys. A Disciple is one who will make life better wherever they find themselves. It’s their mission to change the dish they find themselves in.

 

But, Jesus says when salt loses it’s ability to be salty, it’s useless. It follows then that a disciple who has lost their ability to flavor the life around them aren’t good for much. When this happens the salt just sits around not adding to much of anything. Jesus says, that this salt isn’t even worth being thrown on the manure pile.

 

What is that about? Well, I found out that in Jesus’ day, salt was often added to manure piles as a way to enrich it for fertilizing the crops. In addition to masking the smell, the salt would actually make the manure more useful for growing whatever was being planted. Alone, the manure fertilized the crops, but with the salt added the crops would double, triple and in some cases quadruple.

 

But, once again, if the salt had lost it’s special characteristics it wasn’t even good for the manure. I’ve read and studied a lot of what Jesus had to say, but to say that something could be so useless that it wasn’t even good for poop was something new. It made me pause and do a self-check. Am I adding Jesus-flavor to the world around me. Am I helping others to grow and produce an overflow of fruit? Or am I so tired that I’ve grown tasteless and useless?

 

Well, needless to say, I put on my running shoes and hit the road. I ended up taking one of my dogs, who in addition to pulling me up the hills, also gave me a new way of looking at my community. It was a God moment. It was an invitation to passion and life. Am I still tired? Yep. But am I tired with purpose – you bet. 

 

I pray that you have a moment this coming weekend when you’ll be able to provide some flavor to the world. Maybe God wants to use you as a fertilizer – to help produce crops that far outweighed our expectations and hopes. Maybe God wants to release you to preserve a friendship, or provide the flavor of balance to a bitter conversation. I pray you’ll allow yourself to be useful and that you’ll feel the joy of Vision and Mission and being one of His Disciples.

 

Grace and Peace