Young People's Ministries | The United Methodist Church

Read Matt 5: 1-16
“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 people.” Matthew 5:13

Jesus summarized the conduct that leads to a successful life in the Beatitudes, a portion of the scripture commonly referred to as the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1-11). After this great lesson, Jesus added, “You are the salt of the earth;” (Matt 5:13). Have you ever wondered why salt is important?

I grew up in a region of Uganda where there was a salt lake, called Lake Katwe. People came from other parts of the country to get salt from this lake. On market days, I remember seeing women sitting in a row, selling salt. As a matter of fact, my own Godmother retired early from her teaching profession so that she could sell salt both in her small shop and in the township market.

Besides adding flavor to food, salt has many other uses. It is a preservative for food and can also help sores dry up quickly. Salt is also a friendship maker and community builder. Think of how often you have asked people, during a meal, to pass on salt. Obviously, salt breaks the silence and opens doorways of conversation.

Salt also tenderizes meat and breaks down fat. Although this may sound strange to some of you, one of the best soups we had in Uganda, called Esabwe, was prepared by mixing butter and a certain type of salt called Muhonde. (Before rushing to prepare this recipe, be warned that these ingredients are special and the soup is prepared by experts!)

We also made friends through the exchange of salt. I remember being sent to neighbors to ask for salt when our supply ran out. I also remember neighbors coming to us whenever they needed salt.

Salt was often used as a payment for labor rendered as well. When people helped to dig wells, build houses, collect firewood, harvest crops, or construct roads and bridges, their payment often came in the form of salt.

For the past twenty-five years, I have lived in the U.S. When there is ice on the roads I often see trucks going around, spraying salt to melt the ice. We do the same thing in our drive way in Kansas.

When Jesus told us we are the salt of the earth, it is a great privilege we are given! It means we get to perform life-sustaining functions. We are called to be healers, breakers of barriers, friendship makers, bridge builders and flavoring for life!

How are you playing your role of the salt of the earth?

Please do not lose your saltiness. Keep on living and help others remain alive.

Prayer
Thank you Jesus for the great lessons of life. Grant us wisdom and strength not only to be hearers of your word but doers also. In your precious name we pray. Amen.

Harvesting (Amagesa) — Harvest Devotional and Prayer

by Akiiki Kabagarama

"For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete." Deuteronomy 16:15b (NIV).

As I write, I can picture and feel the excitement we used to have in my birth-country, Uganda, during this time. People took time to clean their homes and compounds, prepare special meals and for those who could afford it, this was a time to buy new clothes. In my home region, special meals meant the newly-harvested millet, omuganuro, goat or beef stew and mashed bananas wrapped in banana leaves, omubumbo. Since I did not eat meat for a long time, my mother made sure I had my special mushrooms, obutuzi. In many places around the world, harvest time brings people together. Women always try their best to work together, harvesting one field and then moving on to the next. As a young person growing up, it was a joy for me to listen to the laughter and songs of these women as they carried on with their work. I learned in those fields that harvest was a time for each person to bring their gifts forward into the community to be honored. Whatever the gift – hard work, cooking, storytelling, childcare, singing, dancing, or praying – all were utilized, all were received.

People of God, always remember that the harvest is going on everyday in our lives. Whether celebrating the birth of a new baby, a grandbaby, niece, nephew or simply, any baby that enters the world, there is the harvest. There are also gifts and talents in all of us that God is constantly asking us to “harvest” and bring to the “storehouse” so that they can be used to enhance God’s Reign, here on earth. Even simple acts such as getting out of bed, writing papers, recovering from an illness, completing a task such as an education program, completing a day’s work and many more, are harvests. Do you now realize that your life is decorated with harvests? Do you know that you do not have to feel bored, anxious frustrated or empty? Enjoy a harvest life!

Prayer
Dear God of the harvest,
Thank you for the harvest in my life. I now realize that my very life is a harvest for you because you did the planting with care. Please constantly remind me to look at the full basket that I have and help me to be a blessing to others. Amen.