How Do You Smell?

 

The kitchen is filled with the delectable smells of baking.  There is nothing better than fresh baked bread as it turns golden brown in the oven, or chocolate chip cookies that somehow disappear from the cookie sheet.  Who can resist the warm cinnamon smell of fresh baked apple pie, or cider mulling in a large pot on the stove?

Spring has an undeniable mixture of smells…honeysuckle and moist earth that has awakened from its slumber. Rain teases us with its scent before the first raindrop even falls. There is the cozy, woodsy smell of a crackling fire that beckons us to embrace its warmth and join in its colorful dance.

I am soothed by the memories of these comforting smells, but I ponder the question,
How do I smell? 
Do I have the aroma of Christ wafting through my life?  Is the fragrance of Christ so evident in my life that it is unmistakably Him, and not me, who has entered a room?

But thanks be to God who always leads us is triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. (2 Corinthians 2:14)

What an awesome, blessed task we have been given.  We are being used as a sort of potpourri that fills the air with the wonderful aroma of Christ.

For we are the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.  To one we are the smell of death; to the other the fragrance of life.
(2 Corinthians 2:15,16)

We are created candles that hold His aroma. His scent permeates everything, but much like the smells of our kitchens, the scent may be pleasing to some, but offensive to others.  We are to exude Christ.  He is to be so overflowing in us that His scent is unmistakable.

How do you smell?
As believers, we have the Spirit of Christ within us as we go about our days.
He promises to never leave us or forsake us.
Let His fragrance fill our homes, fill our neighborhoods, fill our church.

The sweet aroma of His Son is so precious to God, our Father.  May there be no stench of self-righteousness or pride in us.  Let us open our windows and cleanse the air with a fresh breeze of God’s Word and the gentle rustle of prayer.  Purposeful confession of a broken spirit acts as an air freshener that will rid our lives of the unpleasant odor of the world and fill it with the sweet aroma of Christ.

When we finally see our Lord face to face, we will bask in His glory.  We will inhale a familiar fragrance that will remind us of a smell we know so well.  He will embrace us, and as we nestle into the folds of His loving arms, we will realize that we smell just like Him.