Thank You, Father, for the blessing of a godly mother. Be with her, bless her, and give her peace. Amen.
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In certain areas of my bus route this past week, with open windows the flowery scents of the many blooming trees of spring were pleasant to take in.
As Karen and I walked along the pathways of the Columbus Zoo this past Friday after sending all her kids off with parents and chaperones, the fragrant smell of lilac blooms was pleasurable to our olfactory systems.
Going back several years ago, one of my favorite smells of late spring / early summer, was the scent put off by a grove of locust trees in the early evening hours. My Chevy S10 didn’t have air conditioning, so I always had the windows open. The scent was heavenly.
Some may not enjoy such things because of allergic reactions, but many more enjoy the respite from other less pleasant odors.
Did you know that as followers of Christ, we are purveyors of a sweet fragrance?
The Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 2:14 says,
But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us spreads and makes evident everywhere the sweet fragrance of the knowledge of Him.
I can think of nothing more impacting than the refreshing scent of beauty amid the mundane odors of dirt and labor, and sometimes out-and-out filth and degradation – even the stench of death, in the world in which we find ourselves.
The thing is, the sweet fragrance we spread abroad can be taken differently by whoever smells it. Verses 15-17 go on to say,
For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ [which ascends] to God, [discernible both] among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the latter one an aroma from death to death [a fatal, offensive odor], but to the other an aroma from life to life [a vital fragrance, living and fresh]. And who is adequate and sufficiently qualified for these things? For we are not like many, [acting like merchants] peddling God’s word [shortchanging and adulterating God’s message]; but from pure [uncompromised] motives, as [commissioned and sent] from God, we speak [His message] in Christ in the sight of God. AMP
The wonderful news is that we must be ever diligent to broadcast far and wide the sweet fragrance of the knowledge of Him because no one is ever beyond the point of redemption. Yes, they may be perishing, but the Holy Spirit is always at work! And His work can turn even the hardest of hearts to God.
May we be persistent and may we truly from pure [uncompromised] motives, as [commissioned and sent] from God…speak [His message] in Christ in the sight of God to all within earshot (smell-shot?). Amen? Amen!
May 14th, 2023, Sun, 7:30 pm
