Salt and Light

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”

— Matthew 5:13-16

This morning as I continued in my Rooted study (even though our group is not meeting), I was so gently reminded that God’s people are called to be the salt and light of the world. We are called to show Christ’s love through our daily lives and interactions. This calling has not changed or altered due to our current circumstances. If anything, the call is stronger!

Photo by Lindley Webster

For salt to be effective for its purpose, it must be used. The salt must be rubbed on the food for preservation or placed on a wound for healing. Salt is not effective sitting on the shelf. Similarly, we must be present and active in the lives around us. We must be bold to strike up conversation, share our story in Christ, show compassion to a hurting neighbor and make it evident that Christ’s love is available to an unbelieving family member. Our genuine love, peace and faithfulness through Christ must be evident as we interact with the dear ones around us. We are called to be the salt of the earth.

Light is strategically placed for it to be used to the fullest. Whether placed on a hill or quarantined at home, our placement is ordained by our heavenly Father. Those who have been placed in our lives are there for a purpose. If our light, Christ’s love through us, is shining bright others around us will see it!

So be present in your current situation. The Lord wants to use you to further His kingdom. As Rooted so beautifully states; “As Christians, our purpose is to love those people (those who are placed in our lives) the way Jesus loves them- with generous compassion, scandalous grace, and undeniable truth.” I prayerfully encourage you to be present and invest in the lives that have been placed in your path. Be the salt and the light you have been called to be.

 -Pastor Darcy Webster
Associate Pastor of Operations and Pastoral Care

Reconciliation

*Before reading this devotional, please read Philemon 1:8-21 (a relatively short passage) in your Bibles at home or by clicking here.

Have you ever considered how many times you have ever asked for forgiveness? Just consider your spouse. There are multiple times a day when I have asked Monica to forgive me for something I have done or said. At work there are times when I have to ask a customer to forgive me for something that happened in my store. Maybe our customer service was lacking, but since I am in charge it is my fault.

One of my favorite Bible stories is the prodigal son. Here is a young man who asks his father for his share of his inheritance. In a real sense he is telling his father, “I wish you were dead!" Now give me my money!” Fast forward to the end of the story, the young man comes to his senses and wants to come home. He has an apology prepared.

The message of Philemon is a message about reconciliation, making things right. Asking for forgiveness is tough. We have to admit our failures, our wrongs. We have to admit we hurt someone. And we need to be humble. But how hard is to give forgiveness? Maybe tougher. It’s easier to hold a grudge.

We do not know if Onesimus forgave Philemon. The apology of the prodigal son was never given. As he approached the family home his father comes running and embraces his son. The father forgives the son. How many people do you know that have disowned a family member and are unwilling to forgive?

Prayer: Help me to be like the forgiving father. Help me to reach out to family or friends I have disowned because I was unwilling to forgive.

-Pastor Rick Ellis
Pastor at Friends Community Church

Stained Glass

The Sainte-Chapelle in Paris, France is a feat of Medieval church architecture. Upon entering the chapel, worshippers and tourists find themselves surrounded on all sides by an overwhelming flood of blue, green, red, and white light from stained-glass windows depicting stories from the Bible and from heroes of the Christian faith.

In the Middle Ages, it was not uncommon for a church, chapel, or cathedral to be filled with ornate stained glass depictions of Bible stories. During this time, churches conducted their homilies and sermons in Latin, a language not regularly spoken by normal church-goers. As the people were told things they could not understand, and as their minds began to be consumed by the common hardships of the 13th Century, their wandering eyes could not help but fall upon the church’s beautiful depictions of Moses leading God’s people from slavery, John the Baptist telling the world about Christ, and Jesus’ resurrection on the third day. This allowed them to leave church encouraged and awestruck by God’s beauty even with the distractions of their everyday lives.

Many Medieval churches utilized stained glass to tell stories of the Christian faith. What makes the Sainte-Chapelle so special is the fact that, no matter where visitors turn, they are completely surrounded by stained glass depictions of the entire Bible. The. Entire. Bible. Every story of God’s faithfulness to his people encircles the visitors inside the Sainte-Chapelle. Worshippers and tourists cannot escape the multi-chromatic light of God’s love, mercy, and beauty throughout the ages.

The Saint-Chapelle’s stained glass windows. Image from Wikipedia.

We, the modern worshippers of God, do not typically go out of our way to tell God’s stories through stained glass anymore, but we still have the chance to surround worshippers and “visitors” with God’s light. We can reach all of our friends and loved ones with a single tweet, social media status update, or blog post. Right now, so many people are easily and justifiably distracted by discouraging news of hardship, much as they were in the 13th Century. Let’s do our part against that!

One of our jobs as the Church is to help flood the world with God's light, and now more than ever, the world is starving for light. Let’s let God’s beauty and faithfulness be known and shown through all of our actions over the next few weeks. Whether we are in grocery stores, at the doctor’s office, at home, or here on the internet, let’s make God’s light inescapable!

-Travis Morrill
Communications and Facilities Administrator at Friends Community Church