You may think the title to this essay has a typo in it. To the contrary, it not a mistake. I did not set out to write “Favored.” I deliberately wrote, “Flavored.” let me explain. It seems we are always hearing people say, “I am blessed and highly favored.” This is a wonderfully positive response to someone who asks how we are doing. It is certainly scriptural. However, “Blessed and Highly “Flavored”” is also scriptural. You see, serving the Lord is really all about the impression you make on the world around you. It’s all about the influence and impact you will have as a representative of Jesus.
We can easily understand why being “blessed and highly favored” is such a good thing to say. It is no mystery why being blessed is an easy concept to understand. It aligns with the promises of God. Even when we don’t feel blessed, it is still good to go beyond our feelings and confess what we know. As children of the Most High, being blessed is our portion. Even in the midst of difficult circumstances, we can look to the faithfulness of our Father God and declare by faith that we are blessed. We can also make it a declaration of the potential that awaits us. Finally, we can look to eternity, knowing that it is assured in Christ. This is the blessing that makes all our other blessings, and even our painful moments, pale with insignificance.
Let’s go back to the title again and see why I would write, “Blessed and Highly “Flavored.”” Why indeed would I suggest to you that this is a perfectly scriptural way to express what I both feel and know? The answer comes from Scripture. Here it is: Matthew 5:13 (NKJV) “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor; how shall it be seasoned. It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.” Luke 14:34 (NKJV) says, “Salt is good; but if the salt has lost its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? {35} It is neither fit for the land nor for the dunghill, but men throw it out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Jesus uses the metaphor of salt to describe both who we are as Christians and what we are to do. What He is telling us is that the Christian life is not to be about what we can get from it. It is to be about what we can give. He warns us that if we lose our flavor, eternity will judge our lives as so much fruitlessness, wasted and empty, metaphorically stepped on and trampled underfoot by the very people to whom we were supposed to bring a particular flavor of life. So, to be “Highly Flavored” is to be what the Lord called “the salt of the earth.”
Now, think about what Matthew 5:13 and Luke 14:34 do for us. They contain divinely directed statements of purpose for our lives. Theirs is a pointed and sharp directive; but Jesus’ words still leave room for our individuality, creativity and uniqueness. His words are a statement of His expectations and hopes for us. Isn’t it wonderful to know that God has a plan for each of us, for you and for me? It is a plan filled with fruitfulness and purpose. It will satisfy and bring a settled joy into our hearts. So when you make your confessions, I think it will be perfectly fine with God if you confess that you are “Blessed and Highly “Flavored.”” God will love to hear you say it.