TABLE SALT: Off the shelf
Attending the Ohio National Poultry Show last year was extra exciting because it celebrated the 150th anniversary of the American Poultry Association (APA). For the occasion, the APA came out with a brand new addition: the Standard of Perfection. The Standard is kind of like a Bible for poultry. It details the ins and outs of each breed and variety of poultry, including the desired qualities, defects, and disqualifications.
My oldest daughter won an anniversary edition of the Standard as a prize for winning showmanship. Using the book to collect signatures from judges and people in the poultry industry struck up friendships and great conversations. The Standards were selling like hotcakes. Anything that was part of the 150th celebration was flying off the shelves. Sweatshirts, pins, patches, posters, cups, and hats were popular items. Everyone wanted to pocket a piece of the history.
We heard that the APA was selling wooden cases to store the Standard books in, so we waited in line with our poultry loot and looked at the sale tables for the cases. Not seeing any, we decided to ask the clerk while checking out. He politely told us that the boxes were sold out. When he saw the disappointment on our faces, he whispered some meaningful words to us. “If you’re using your Standard like you should be, then you don’t need a box at all.” As the words sunk in, we became happy that we didn’t get a storage box after all.
All of the information that is needed to study poultry shows and select the right show birds comes from the Standard. To truly dive into the perfection of poultry, you have to get the Standard off the shelf, study, read, and memorize the material. It’s meant to be used and learned, not packed up in a decorative box.
Our daily lives are to be lived in a similar way. God employed His people to write a standard for how we are to live our lives in a book called the Bible. Like the Standard, it tells the ins and outs of how we are to love, forgive, serve, listen, and learn. Every detail for being a follower of Jesus is written in the Bible.
It’s not meant to be packed into a cute box or shelved among novels. The Bible is meant to live by each and every day. It’s a book to keep our hands on, seeking to put the commandments into action. In order to truly strive for perfection, we have to learn to live like Jesus, and we see His model described in the Bible. The Standard of Perfection, like the Bible, is meant to be learned one day at a time. Keep the pages fresh on your fingertips. Strive to memorize the qualifications and disqualifications. It is through repetition and studying the word, that you can seek to live a life measured up to God’s standard.
“God’s Wore can never be made invalid or ineffective. The Bible says God’s Word is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword.” Hebrews 4:12
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