SALT is a 9-month student leadership program that helps high school students own their faith and become an integral part of their local church before they become adults. It’s built on three simple habits: read daily, serve weekly and meet monthly. SALT isn’t about being popular or perfect. It’s about learning to lead the way Jesus did, by serving others.
Why “Salt”?
The name comes straight from Jesus. In the Sermon on the Mount, he told his followers what kind of difference they should make in the world:
Matthew 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
In Jesus’ day, salt did three important things. It preserved food from rotting, it added flavor and it made people thirsty. Followers of Jesus do the same. We preserve God’s truth by living it and sharing it, we add the “flavor” of joy, peace and love to the world around us and our lives make people curious and thirsty for God. But salt that has lost its saltiness looks the same on the outside and has no power on the inside. SALT helps students stay salty.
How SALT Works
SALT is built on three key commitments: read daily, serve weekly and meet monthly. They’re simple enough for any student to keep, but together they help you grow in your faith, find your place in the church and learn to lead the way Jesus did.
The year starts with a three-week Boot Camp that builds relationships and reviews the essentials of following Jesus. Groups can meet weekly or do all three sessions at once on a Saturday morning or Sunday night. Monthly meetings follow, and the program ends in month nine with a celebration. Churches can also present a certificate of completion during a church service (it’s optional, so each church can decide whether to use it).
Read Daily
SALT students read through the New Testament one chapter at a time, using a chapter-a-day New Testament reading plan that follows the school week. It only takes a few minutes a day, but over the year you’ll read the story of Jesus and the early church for yourself instead of relying on what someone else tells you about it.
Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
A couple of times each week, you’ll also comment in the reading plan to share what stood out to you or ask a question. That keeps you engaged and lets your SALT team learn from each other. If you miss a day, don’t quit; just pick up with today’s chapter.
Serve Weekly
Every SALT student serves on a ministry team at church each week, like greeting, kids’ ministry, sound and media or the clean team. This is where SALT gets practical. Instead of only showing up to receive, you show up to give, serving alongside adults and helping your church do its work.
1 Peter 4:10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.
God has given you gifts on purpose, and your church needs them now, not someday. Serving weekly builds faithfulness, teaches you to put others first and helps you discover where God has wired you to make a difference.
Meet Monthly
Once a month, your SALT team gets together for food and fun, a short leadership lesson, discussion questions, a check-in on your reading and serving and prayer for one another. These meetings keep you connected to leaders and friends who are on the same journey.
Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Following Jesus was never meant to be a solo project. Meeting monthly gives you encouragement when things get hard, accountability to keep your commitments and a team that celebrates what God is doing in you.
Leading Like Jesus
SALT is about servant leadership. Our culture often connects leadership with status, titles or popularity. Jesus turned that upside down:
Matthew 20:26-28 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
That’s why SALT students serve every week. Leadership starts with putting others first, showing up faithfully and doing the unglamorous work that helps a church thrive.
That’s also what makes SALT different. Many youth groups focus on serving and entertaining students, and there’s a place for fun. But SALT gives students the opportunity to own their faith and serve alongside adults in the life of the church instead of waiting on the sidelines until they grow up. Students aren’t just the church of tomorrow; they’re an integral part of the church today.
You Don’t Have to Be Perfect
Many students wonder if they’re qualified. Maybe you’re quiet, you don’t see yourself as a leader or you don’t feel strong in your faith yet. You’re in good company. Moses said he wasn’t good with words, David was overlooked by his own family and the disciples doubted and failed. God used them anyway, and most of Jesus’ disciples were probably young.
1 Timothy 4:12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.
The only real qualification for SALT is a willingness to follow Jesus and serve others. If you’re willing to grow, God can use you right now, not just someday.
The Takeaway
SALT is a student leadership program that helps students own their faith and become an integral part of their local church as they read daily, serve weekly and meet monthly. Like salt, students learn to preserve truth, add flavor and make others thirsty for God by leading the way Jesus did: as servants.
