SALT!

Our first FCA meeting of the year was a huge success with 24 junior high students in attendance. We had a great time getting to know each other again and fellowshipping over some yummy Chick-Fil-A biscuits. That must be why there is an image of a salt shaker on this page, right? Actually, no, salt was our topic of conversation for our morning devotion led by Marist Athletic Director, Tommy Marshall.

Coach Marshall explained that salt does four things:

• It flavors. Sprinkle a little salt into your conversations and flavor them with Christ.
• It heals. When you're hurting, physically, emotionally, or spiritually, sprinkle the salt that is Christ onto your situation and begin to watch it heal.
• It preserves. Think country ham with this one. Not only does Christ preserve us until the day of His return, but when we taste what He has to offer (salty, of course, like the ham) we desire water, in this case living water through Christ.
• It uplifts. When you swim in the Great Salt Lake what happens? You float. Christ lifts us up in any situation in life. 

The next time you're in a restaurant, grab an extra salt packet and keep it in your Bible as a reminder that "You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless." Matthew 5:13 NLT

Coach Tommy Marshall (right)

Coach Marshall has been the A.D. at Marist School for over ten years now and is their adult leader of FCA. A native of Atlanta and graduate of and former football player, coach, and assistant Athletic Director at Furman University, Coach Marshall tells us he was raised to be the "best alter boy around". In his junior year of high school through FCA, however, he was saved finding out what it means to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He and his wife, Dana, reside in Dunwoody, Georgia.

On a personal note, he was also Miss Gretchen's Sunday school teacher in college back home in Greenville, South Carolina where he once taught this same lesson on salt. She still carries her salt packet in her Bible today.