Salty

Today's Sunday scripture showcases Jesus as the master poet calling his followers "salt of the earth" and "light of the world"

"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.

"You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.

Neither 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. In 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

   Since belting "This little Light of Mine", as a toddler off-key (a skill my two year old daughter inherited), I often mediated on the concept of "letting my light shine" by radiating the joy of Christ much like a stained-glass window. However, as I mediated on this familiar imagery in this passage again, saltiness lingers on my taste buds. Salt serves as a preservative but even-more-so adds flavor in small dosage to every dish (heck even desserts with salted chocolates providing the best flavor profiles).

  Lately, my mothering tastes rather bland.  The endless external chores of  diaper changing, feeding, wiping, sweeping, mopping, grocery shopping, carpool pick up and  laundry, (my gracious husband cooks) combined with the internal challenges of conflict mediation, soothing a fussy baby and behavior disciplining drains me daily from the inside out.  Often, I recall only the beating drum of daily tasks disharmonizing with the yelling demands of four children six and under. The schedule, predictable and boringly beige, provides the stability for our littles to rest, to eat and to grow.

  Yet, as I recall how Jesus' disciples dropped everything to follow Him, I contemplate how none of His followers dragged their kids along to. So as I sometimes long to ditch the kids and run away to shine  Jesus light out into the world, in this season, Jesus beckons me to stay and serve. Jesus sees and cares not just want I am doing, but how I am doing it. But how? with flavor, with spice, with a little bit of salt.

  Defined in the classic Merriam-Webster dictionary, salty refers to "feeling or showing resentment towards a person or situation: bitter."

Often as I frequently confess, the overstimulation and demands drains the living water flowing out of me into a salty bitter momma. However, the little bit of salt in motherhood means:

Seeking

Always

Laughing

Temperance

Thus instead of a salty mother, I seek a little zest by choosing to laugh and practice self-control. To sink into a moment just delighting in the silly statements of my four year old, listening to the intellectual musings of my six year old, enjoying the frequent singing of my two year old and cherishing the snuggles of my newborn baby. The chores done with a relaxed "good-enough" and a heart grateful to keep my littles clothed and fed in a "clean-ish" home.  When the chorus of whines, cries and fusses stress my soul, I chose to shake, scream ( outside to myself) and sing "cry me a river" (still off-key) to temper my own temper rising.  This inward  self-disciplined passionate-serenity flavors my domestic church preserving future disciplines to go-forth and shine Jesus' light outwards.

So if motherhood tastes bland, spice with a little salt but not salty!