Manna Monday- The fragrance of Christ

Hey Joy Treasure readers! Can you believe a new week has already come around again! I don't know about you but we always hit the ground running in our house on Mondays. That's why God's word has to be a priority so we can fix our minds on the things above because the things around us get crazy busy and can lead us to become easily distracted. God's word restores, refreshes and brings rejoicing throughout the week. Nothing else will do that!

Last week we focused on the kingship of Christ. This week we will place our focus on  being a fragrant aroma of Christ to God and to those around us.

A few years ago, I was dining at a restaurant with co-workers. One of them ordered some type of fish. When the waiter brought the entree to the table, some of the juices spilled off the plate and dropped onto my jacket. I didn't know it then. When the night ended, I got into my car and drove home. While driving, I smelled something awful. It smelled fishy and reminded me of the entree my co-worker had ordered. It was horrible! All the way home my car wreaked of a fishy aroma. I had to literally remove the oily stains from the jacket and throw it into the washer when I got home. It stunk!!!!! I couldn't seem shake the memory of it for a couple of days. Even now when I pass by that restaurant, I always remember the smell. It's funny how I can't seem to shake that feeling about the smell. Quite frankly, I have not ventured back to the restaurant because of it.

Did you know as a believer you have a smell? You do. An aroma comes out from you to to others. It spills on to them and leaves an impression, a memory.They remember it. They might not know what it is, but they know it when they smell it. Are you radiating a sweet aroma  of Christ or a pungent odor of the world?

I love what F.B. Meyer says from his book, "The Life of Paul" (published by Emerald Books, Lynwood Washington, 1995) on pg.75, "Is my life fragrant of Jesus? Do I remind the Father of the blessed Lord? Does He detect Jesus in my walk and speech? Is there in me the sweet savor of that daily burnt offering, that delight in God's will, that holy joy in suffering for His glory, that absorption in His purposes that made the life of the Son of Man so well pleasing to God?"

2 Cor. 2:15 says, "We are unto God a sweet savour of Christ." Believers lives are to leave a pleasant scent behind with the people they encounter. Just the thought of them should be a pleasant memory that something greater resides within their heart when the non-believer thinks about the believer. God smells our aroma too. But does our heavenly Father smell more of His son in our lives? Do we remind Him of Jesus in how we walk and how we talk?
When I walk into a home and smell something good like a candle I want to stick around because it smells so good. It's pleasant. It's warm and inviting. Its the same with believers. When non-believers are talking with us, do they sense an inviting sweet aroma? Do they want to linger in our presence not because of 'us' but because they sense something different in our lives (Christ!). Do they sense something different from the world? Or do they smell something that wreaks and cries, "hypocrite."