Tag Archives: The teachings of Jesus

I don’t want to be Paprika!

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I don’t want to be Paprika!

 

Review: Matthew 5:1-12

This week’s memory verses: Matthew 5:13-14 –

“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.

“You are the light of the world.  A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.”

Every Easter, our family makes deviled eggs from the morning hunt fodder. Cut andpaprika scoop, mash and mix….then the final stuffing of the egg carcass. The eggs are ready for the table…..but are they?  Some believe that to truly be a deviled egg, they need a light sprinkling of paprika on top.  Not me….does paprika even have a taste? I’ve never found that it made a difference one way or another. My mom thinks it looks pretty….and it does.  But personally, I think that paprika is a waste of money.  For me it has absolutely no value and I choose to leave it off all together.

I try to approach my relationship with God the same way. We are called to be the salt of the earth.  What does that mean exactly? I think it means our flavor should not blend in with that of the rest of the egg…I mean the world.  There are those who try to be like everyone else,  a chameleon in social situations so that they aren’t singled out or viewed as “different”. Personally I don’t think “different” is a bad thing. I’ve have spent much of my adult life running from the types of groups that encourage conformity, contrary to what I desired as a child.  When I was young, it was important to me to be like everyone else, now I see the wisdom in the inverse.

So, we are to give flavor to our world, to the little corner of our existence that we have been given by God to affect. Flavor to the relationships that we are privy to, flavor to the work day that we share with others, and flavor to our families who rely on our guidance. Just as salt brings out the flavor of food, so should we bring out the best in others, affect them positively by not conforming to the patterns of the world.

  • be compassionate
  • show love
  • listen instead of talk
  • put others before yourself
  • place value in the eternal, not the temporary

For if we are not salt and light….will we be thrown out to be trampled underfoot? Will we be considered of little value to God? I shudder to think!

Let’s not be paprika, instead be the salt that we are called to be!

Lord God, make me salty!  Help me to not conform to worldly values.  I don’t want to be of this world, I want to be of the next, and my desire is to point others to you and be your salt and light. Give me flavor so that I may accomplish your purpose. In Jesus’ name

Reflect His Light!

Lisa

A Peaceful Heart

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peace picReview Matthew 5:1-8

This Week’s Memory Verses:

Matthew 5:9-10

9: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

10: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Peacemakers. This conjures visions of heads of government shaking hands, while behind their backs they cross their fingers. Or maybe you see a teacher standing between two students making them apologize to each other. Or a wife, willingly submitting to her husband, even though she knows he is wrong. (hee hee….had to throw that in!) What is a peacemaker according to Jesus in the Beatitudes?

The answer I have pondered all week long, for you see I question whether I am capable of this daunting task.

About a week ago I had words with my mother.  I did not think that they were “words” till I received the email that chastised me for making her feel bad.  Although what I said, I did not intend to hurt her…it did. And in retrospect I can see why.  I caused her to be defensive of her own past actions, and honestly it doesn’t even matter whether I am right or she is, what matters is that I drove a rift in our mother/daughter relationship that simply should not be there.

So, how to repair the damage without being led back into the original discussion?

I read some things on what this particular beatitude meant and I contemplated how it pertained to my life and this situation, and this is what I learned:

  1. Being a peacemaker is not about saying you are wrong when you are right, but about evaluating the situation from God’s perspective, and being slow to speak.

  2. A peacemaker does not shove things under the rug in order to avoid confrontation, but instead considers the feelings of the other person and determines the weight of their words.

  3. Peacemakers build up, they do not destroy.

Although I did not say what I said in order to be right, I believe that I spoke too quickly and did not weigh how my thoughts would be taken. I’m still not sure what God’s perspective would be on this particular topic, but I think he may have used different words or a different approach. Sometimes when we say things to others, we think we are helping them, when in actuality all we are doing is condemning them.

Of course there are some things that just need to be said, but is there a different way to say them? A gentler way? Maybe giving exact references instead of just your opinion of what it means?

First and foremost, the words that I chose did not build, but broke down. Not only the spirit of someone that I love but also my relationship with my God. Not fatally broken down, but it is definitely an on your knees moment. Everything that we think, say, and do that is not the way that God would think, say, and do it, is sin.  So I (again) will confess my sinful nature and ask for forgiveness – From God and my mother.

My Prayer:

Lord I am so sorry that hurtful words came from my mouth and my heart. Forgive me, and thank you for showing them to me so that I can repair – not only my heart, but also the heart of another.  I pray that next time I will be slower to speak, for out of the mouth comes the desires of our hearts, and my heart’s desire is peace.

Reflect His Light!

Lisa