If the salt has lost it savor [flavor abilities to make it tasty, saltiness], how can it be salted again? It is worthless but to be trodden [useless] under the feet of men.Matthew 5:13

Salt has an extraordinarily rich background. It was used as far back as the ancient world, and is still widely used today all over the world. At one point, it was even used as money for trading. Why is salt so important? It can be used to preserve foods, and it helps to heal wounds, but one of the most widespread uses of salt is as a food seasoning. As a cook, I can affirm that foods lacking salt are bland and often get discarded. Using too much salt, on the other hand, is also not good. Salt is a flavor enhancer and, in general, puts the final touch on cooked foods. It is the salt that gives foods their life. It wakes up all the other flavors, and before you know it, you have a tasty dish.

What did Jesus mean when He called us, His followers "the salt of the earth." He was saying that we have something the rest of the world needs. What we have is the love of God, and this element is healing and preserving. Love is powerful and has a way of spicing up our lives and making them worth living.

In SALT, Start Applying Salt Today, author Michelle A. Stadard expands this fascinating subject of SALT and Jesus' call to us all, and her text is accompanied by the illustrations of Terrence McDow.