Be Salty!

After several years of attempting to blog, with little to NO success, I believe I may have figured out how to do this. However, just like everything else in my life, I cannot take the credit. God has given me the ability to do it.

I began serving as the Associational Missionary for the Greater Cleveland County Baptist Association in April of 2016. It is a wonderful honor and blessing serve our churches and pastors. On of my goals for 2017 was to increase my communication and encourage our pastors. God gave me the idea to start a "Monday Minute." This would serve as a devotional and encouragement for our pastors.

I was reluctant to commit to this each week. Then God shared with me that Pastors do it EVERY WEEK! Each week you go to church, you expect your pastor to share a word from God! That's a great responsibility. Some weeks come easier than others, but God has given me a word to share every week! Pray for your pastor, EVERY WEEK!

I am thankful for the pastors who have messaged or called me encouraging me to continue to share. God is using it to speak to them. I have decided that I will share these thoughts on my blog. I pray that God will use them to speak to you also.

I've been reading "Reclaiming Glory: Revitalizing Dying Churches," by John Mark Clifton. I highly recommend it. As I read through chapter one, God laid it on my heart to think about church leaders who had made an impact in my life. I thought about Mrs. Ward, my third grade Sunday School Teacher, Steve Smith my fifth grade Sunday School teacher, the deacons who took time to invest in my life, Toby Dix, and Dale Byrd (youth ministers) who had given so much of their time to share life with me, They all showed me what it means to live out a life of faith. They had  personal relationship with Jesus that showed in their everyday lives. They were being "salt and light."

Clifton shares this in his book.

"In Matthew 5:16 Jesus gives us a primary motivation for replanting dying churches, "In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven." We replant churches because we want people to see what God is doing in our lives. We want people to see how lives transformed by and covenanting together for the gospel can have positive impact on a community. We want people to see in our lives the glory of the gospel. We replant churches to reclaim God's glory in a tangible way in our communities."   

Think about those in your life who have shown you how to be "salt and light." Thank God for those people and ask him to give you the same opportunities today. Celebrate what God is doing in you and around you! BE SALTY!  Love you guys!  

13 “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.

14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.16In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.  

Matthew 5:13-16