“Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.”Colossians 4:6 NKJV

Since the onset of the pandemic, I’ve endured three bouts of Covid. Bleah.

The first episode took away my sense of taste and smell. I discovered this effect when I drank a cup of peppermint hot chocolate and concluded it was awful. I thought it was completely watery…until I pulled out a jar of peanut butter. When I opened the lid and sniffed, the distinctive peanut smell wasn’t there. Everything had gone flat.

For three months I couldn’t taste anything except salt or sugar. How joyful I was when my damaged olfactory nerves slowly recovered! Like so many gifts of God that we take for granted, my smell and taste were sorely missed while they were gone. I have about 75 percent of those senses back now after five years. While I still can’t identify a skunk stink or certain flavors, I enjoy a good salty snack or ice cream with chocolate chip cookies! Not much else matters, does it??

When Jesus preached what is known as the Sermon the Mount (see Matthew 5-7), He started with a list of character traits called the Beatitudes, mindsets that would make people happy. He followed this introduction with a series of important lessons for living as one of His followers—all issues of the heart, leading to godly behavior that would bless others.

The first lesson centered on Christ’s purpose in coming to our planet to save us. He addressed his listeners as the “salt of the earth,” a vital ingredient for life. 

Salt, or sodium chloride, is essential for keeping our bodies regulated and making our foods palatable. In ancient Israel, salt was necessary for “curing” meat and to preserve it from spoiling. It was a scarce commodity in the early days of America, too, when settlers moved into our Appalachian Mountains and needed it for livestock. The name “Salt Lick” identifies several sites along the range where settlers could find deposits of the mineral left behind when oceanic waters covered the area.

Jesus had several reasons to call His people to be “salt.” In His sermon, however, He opted for one. In Matthew 5:13, He says that salt contains a necessary flavor. Once it loses its seasoning, it has lost its main purpose, no longer good for anything but to be tossed out and trampled underfoot.

His admonition is clear. We are to be His salt to share with others. If we’re “flavorless” Christians, we have no mission with Him. We can’t fulfill His kingdom roles for us if we are unappealing to the rest of the world. 

It’s a good reminder and challenge for us today. As the salt licks drew wildlife and early pioneers, we are to draw people to Christ by serving others sacrificially. As our Lord’s sermon progresses, He urges His people to be faithful to our spouses, to go the extra mile, to love our enemies, to do good to please God, to pray, to lay up treasures in heaven, to avoid worrying or being judgmental, and to build our lives on His foundation. He also mentions the fruit of trees as a metaphor for what we are expected to accomplish for Him.

Of course, we can’t be perfect in all of this. But we have His roadmap for how we can attract others to Him through our “salty,” good-flavored works and attitudes. When we show the world how joyful we are to have His salvation and by the way we treat others, people respond.

Friend, think about Jesus and His appealing joy next time you reach for the saltshaker. It’s a good reminder to join Him in His ministry. Let’s pour ourselves out, to be His appealing taste to the world!

Lord Jesus, You speak to me still today as I listen to Your words for me. How much I want to be like You! Help me recognize the opportunities You give to me daily to be your “salt,” and grant me the courage to reach out in faith. Forgive me when I fall short, and help me follow Your footsteps. In Your name and in the power of Your Holy Spirit, Amen.

Nancy C. Williams is a Christian wife/mom with a writing career spanning more than 40 years in business and journalism. Williams is the author of the novel To Love a Falcon and the devotional book A Crocus in the Desert: Devotions, Stories, and Prayers for Women Experiencing Infertility. Her blogs are featured on Crossmap.com and AriseDaily. To follow Nancy’s posts and news, go to her home page at NancyCWilliams.com and subscribe at the bottom. 

© Copyright 2026 Nancy C. Williams (text and photography). Unless otherwise noted, Scripture verses are taken from the New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. #salt #sodiumchloride #saltoftheearth #saltlick #seasonedsalt #saltyChristian