trbccoffeebreak

“But thanks be to God! … Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume.  Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God.”   2 Corinthians 2:14-15a  (NLT)

While visiting family recently, my eight year old son noticed that his uncle kept “man-shampoo” in the shower.  When it came time for him to wash up before bed, my son eagerly immersed himself in this musky shampoo, pouring it not only over his head but over every inch of his body.  Then with a bold resolve, my son emerged from the bathroom and informed us that the days of smelling like a girl were gone.  No longer would he settle for delicate aromas and girly perfumes.  His testosterone-driven future must now be bathed (literally) in manly scents.

As he made his way down the hallway, the wafting scent of his newfound manhood followed closely behind.  With watering eyes, my husband and I could barely contain ourselves.  In that moment, our son possessed enough man-scent to fill an entire football arena!  We simply didn’t have the heart to tell him that his attempt at manliness went way too far.  But, his emanating odor got me thinking.  Doesn’t scripture say something about Christians being the fragrance of Christ on earth?  And are we not supposed to do, in a spiritual sense, what my son did literally with the bottle of man-shampoo?  Just like warm cookies in the oven, steak on the grill or a little boy covered in the essence of Old Spice…scent has the power to transform our environment.  Just imagine the fragrant trail we could leave behind if we bathed ourselves so liberally in God’s presence!

“Lord, I ask that You would draw us and transform us today so that we might radiate the fragrance of Christ in the world around us!”

For His Glory,

Claudia Dempsey
TRBC Coffee Break