I am an avid fan of black gold. I am not talking about oil. I am talking about coffee- black coffee in its full richness and flavor without the veil of creamers or sweeteners! This nectar of life can come from any nation in the world, but it must be without any outside additions.- except one, and only in case of emergency.
My love for black coffee has one serious risk. It involves the consuming of coffee concocted in the diners and waffles houses of this fine land. One sip of this stuff might possible kill a grown man who had not worked up a tolerance for the rot gut of the coffee world. Fortunately, I have worked up just such a tolerance, so my reaction to the would be fatal sip is simply one of an uncontrolled back spasm, a hand slap on the table top, and an audible expression that might resemble a new language in some remote rain forest!
What do I do when confronted with such an offensive brew?
I do not put it down and walk away. (Please, no interventions on my behalf).
I reach for the salt. Just a pinch of salt in the coffee works to remove the bitterness and to restore the coffee’s drinkability and refreshing qualities.
Jesus taught that we are the salt of the earth- you and me. We are sprinkled throughout our communities and as we circulate, openly living out our faith in Jesus, we make the world more palatable. We remove bitterness as we demonstrate forgiveness. We restore refreshment as we change the composition of our community by sharing the stories of the hope we have in Jesus.
As your saltiness is absorbed into those around you they are changed for the better, and then they change others, and so it goes, until the whole cup of your community is now something that is savored.
Be the salt Jesus calls you to be.
Time for a quadruple espresso,
Mark
Matthew 5:11-13 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. "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 by men.
