Category: Uncategorized

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Snacking may very well be the new American pastime. According to a recent survey, 94% of Americans admit to snacking at least once a day. 

50% admit to snacking three times per day!

I spoke to someone earlier who said, “Father, I suffer from lack-a-snack-a-phobia.” 

“Lack-a-snack-a-phobia?” I said. “What’s that?”

I’m afraid of missing a snack, so I always carry a bag of chips in my purse!

Someone else said to me, “Father, I must be in that 6% that doesn’t snack. I have a drink instead. Then I eat!”

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If you think about it, there are plenty of opportunities to sneak something sweet or salty in between meals.

There are the Hershey kisses hidden in our office drawer; that bag of chips tucked into our purse; or whatever we can find in the pantry when we get the late nite “munchies.”

And there isn’t just one cause for snacking. 

Some snackers are hungry. But most of us snack when we’re tired, stressed, or bored.

There’s something incredibly satisfying about opening a bag of Rolled Gold pretzels and popping a few pretzels while trying to turn your brain off.

***

The key ingredient behind nearly every snack is salt. 

Just a pinch of it goes a long way. 

On the other hand, the absence of salt makes food taste incredibly bland. For example, have you ever had a pretzel without any salt?

It’s flavorless, if not borderline disgusting. 

I even tried a bag of “low sodium” pretzels. Never again. It felt like I was eating cardboard. Pretzels, like almost every snack or dish out there, need a good pinch of salt.

***

In the Gospel, Jesus tells us, “You are the salt of the earth.”

Not, “You should be.” Not, “You may be.” Not, “You might want to think about.” No. We are the salt of the earth.

We flavor the world around us, much like salt flavors a pretzel. 

And we only need to offer a “pinch” of salt – a “pinch” of love – to begin changing the world around us.

A little love – like a little salt – goes a long way.

***

But so does a pinch of hatred.

As Christians, we must sprinkle a pinch of love – not hate – throughout the day.

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How many of our children, for example, open up their lunch box at school only to find a note from mom or dad?

A few words of encouragement can turn their frown upside down.

Or think about how good we feel when someone offers us a compliment. “Did you just get your haircut?”

“Yeah, it’s a little short. What do you think?”

“Looks great!” 

Everyone loves affirmation, particularly young people who often struggle with developing a health self-image.

For them and for us, a little love goes a long way, much like a pinch of salt.

***

So how can I be a saltier Christian?

Maybe it means taking the time to visit someone who’s sick; re-directing a conversation drenched in gossip; being a little more considerate, a little less judgmental; or kinder to those at work.

The opportunities are endless – and simple.

***

94% of Americans admit to snacking. 

And most often, we snack because we’re stressed.

But if we show one another just a little more love – a pinch of salt, as it were – then we may find ourselves smiling more and snacking less.

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“Jesus came to his native place accompanied by his disciples.” (Mark 6:1).

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It’s an unfortunate truth, but most of us watch the world go by.

We go through the motions, thrive on routine, and live on the surface. Life – in all its wonder – becomes ordinary.

As a result, we unintentionally take our time, our loved ones, and our God for granted.

***

In the Gospel, for example, Jesus returns to his hometown. 

It’s fascinating – yet somehow expected – that those who knew him best would fail to see who he really is. 

They reduced Jesus to the stature of an ordinary man. They were used to living with him, talking to him, watching him work.

The weight of ordinary time pulled the wool over their eyes; they took their time with God for granted.

***

How often we do the same. We unintentionally take our lives – and the presence God within them – for granted. 

But beauty is everywhere.

There’s the voice of concern from a friend; the gift of human touch; a random word of encouragement; the splendor of the sun; the gift of night.

Before this day comes to a close, take a minute to see how blessed we are, because God visits us in many different forms.

But do we see him?

***

“Mary and Joseph took Jesus up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord…Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon” (Luke 2:22-24).

***

Human beings are God’s masterpiece. 

Unlike other creatures, we’ve been given the unique ability to understand the world around us. It all begins with our five senses; we have the ability to taste, touch, smell, see, and hear.

We use all of these senses, for example, when someone’s in the kitchen preparing a meal.

You can hear the sound of the chicken crackling in a pan; you can see it, touch it, smell it, and best of all, taste it.

***

But some people have what we’d call, a “sixth sense,” an ability to see things that other people don’t, making the world all the more interesting.

Parents, for example, often develop a “sixth sense” after the birth of their first child; they know instinctively when something’s wrong. 

Some investors on Wall Street have a “sixth sense” for investing; their instincts are almost always right – and they make a fortune because of it. 

There was even a movie called, “The Sixth Sense,” about a young boy who saw dead people. But that’s a “sixth sense” I’m sure we could all live without!

***

In the Gospel, both Simeon and Anna have a “sixth sense.” They see something other people don’t; this tiny baby in the hands of Mary is indeed the Son of God. 

That’s quite a remarkable feat.

Just imagine the sheer size of the temple and the number of people that must’ve been present that day. How do Simeon and Anna know this baby is special?

They had a “sixth sense.”

And what joy it brought them!

As the aging Simeon cries out, “Lord, now you may let your servant go in peace. Your word has been fulfilled. My own eyes have seen your salvation…”

***

My own eyes have seen your salvation. 

***

That’s the key.

There’s a world of difference between watching and seeing.

Hundreds of people watch Joseph and Mary travel to Jerusalem and enter the temple that day. Hundreds more watch Jesus growing up. Thousands watch him perform miracles.

But not everyone sees who He is. Only those with a “sixth sense.”

To see Jesus means to look beneath the surface; to pause; to ponder; to see that he’s God.

***

Maybe there’s a word in that for us.

We must develop the ability to see.  

Most of us watch the world go by. We go through the motions, thrive on routine, live on the surface. Unknowingly, we take our time and other people for granted.

Rarely, if ever, do we pause and ponder; rarely do we look beneath the surface to see the meaning of it all.

***

We can share a home with people we love, for example, but fail to see what’s happening around us and what’s happening inside of them.

Often enough there are moments of grace.

There’s the excitement in our children’s embrace when we come home from a long day of work; the love our spouse put into preparing a hot meal – that chicken crackling in a pan, a spotless kitchen, flowers on the table.

Do we see this?

Sometimes there’s the twinge of loneliness in our friend’s voice; emptiness in our child’s silence; desperation in a cry for help; self-doubt in the need for affirmation.

Do we notice?

Too often we go through the motions neglecting to go deep. We watch. We don’t see. 

As a result, our relationships weaken. We lose opportunities to celebrate, to affirm, to protect, to rejoice, to believe.

Seeing beneath the surface requires a “sixth sense.” Some would call it empathy. But it’s much more than that.

It’s faith, which at its core is love.

***

Simeon and Anna loved the Lord. That’s why they saw Jesus differently. They slowed down, looked beneath the surface, and saw that he was God.

We can do the same. 

But it takes time and effort to look beneath the surface. If we do, then we may very well see the face of God hiding behind the person next to us.

It’s a matter of seeing with the “sixth sense.”