roadkill

i love summer...

there are few things more wonderful than driving with the windows down...hair whipping all over the place...music filling the atmosphere...the fresh air...the...
wait...ugh...the smell of roadkill.

it's funny (or not so funny) 
most of the time...
you can smell roadkill waaaay before you can see it.

it's pretty gross...



my favorite things about my
hometown are the smells...
let me give you a tour...

coffee and chocolate - you're within a block of the local coffee shop (my favorite place in the world)
old books - in the beautiful public library
freshly baked bread - within a mile of the local bakery (probably at the back of the line...)
mowed grass - on the high school football field (go tornadoes!)
cow poo -  ...did i mention i came from an agricultural town?

our olfactory memories are often some of the most vivid...old spice makes me long for my grampa's lap...and preferred stock makes me gag at the memory of a bad date...

marketing experts even use our sense of smell to gain control of our wallets.  walk thru the mall with your eyes closed and you'll be surprised at how often you can recognize what store you are near by it's signature scent.  if you go early enough...as the stores are opening you will see many employees spraying the air in their doorways.

but this fragrant advertising is nothing new...


2 Corinthians 2:14-16
...Everywhere we go, people breathe in the exquisite fragrance [of the knowledge of Christ]. Because of Christ, we give off a sweet scent rising to God, which is recognized by those on the way of salvation—an aroma redolent with life. But those on the way to destruction treat us more like the stench from a rotting corpse.

when my husband and i were dating i stole a sweatshirt from him...and i kept it and wore it often...and never washed it...(ick!)
it smelled like him because it had been near him. 

my baby boy gets passed around at family gatherings and whooee does he smell strong afterwards!  (aunt matilda's rosewater does not mix well with uncle jack's musk and neither of them compliment the smell of grama aida's nicotine habit...) he picks up all their scents because he has spent time being close with them.

so i hope you get where i am going.

this sharing Jesus that we are called to do as we follow Him...it doesn't have to be hard.  we just have to spend time with Jesus and as He refines us and makes us what He wants us to be...our aroma will be recognizable.  some people will love it and will be drawn to us.  others will despise it and will reject us (don't take it personally).  when we walk into a meeting or a class or a gathering or a party or even a grocery store...people should notice...

'sniff sniff'...'is that?'  'i can't quite put my finger on it'...'sniff sniff sniff'...  'hey...have you been with Jesus today?'

:)

may you be saturated by the sweet scent of Christ so that people from miles around will notice and say whooeee!