The bottle of perfume was not intended for me! It was meant to be a gift for someone else, but my friend is generous. Gift-giving is her love language. So, she gave me the perfume when I visited; the perfume that was meant for someone else. I should have declined the gift. It was not my scent. I felt like a usurper every time I wore that perfume... it was the wrong fragrance for me.
I thanked God for that scent today! I tried to sink a little deeper into that scent, while hoping it was not too overpowering. You see, there was a much stronger odor in the chapel tonight. The stench of days without a bath, the smell of nights roaming the streets, perhaps sleeping in the woods; the odor of loneliness, heartache and pain... A homeless woman sat alone at the end of the pew. She seemed so lost, and my heart ached for her. I prayed, asking God to be with her, to love on her. He knew her story, He knew her scent.
I had an image of our prayers at Mass rising up like incense and I asked God to make those prayers an acceptable offering. Another Scripture came to mind:
But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ and manifests through us the odor of the knowledge of him in every place. For we are the aroma of Christ for God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to the latter an odor of death that leads to death, to the former and odor of life that leads to life. (2 Cor 2:14-16)
Are we truly the aroma of Christ?
Are we allowing God to manifest, through us, the sweet odor of the knowledge of Christ?
Does the odor that emanates from me speak of life, abundant life; of a deep love, of knowing God?
Or do I emit the stench of sin, of a refusal to surrender to the will of God; does the scent of the enemy's lies cling to me, keeping my focus on past failures and regrets instead of all God has in store for me.
Lord, please keep us from choosing and wearing the wrong fragrance. May the fragrance of Your love overpower the stench of our sin. Help us to choose Christ and to spread the aroma of Him wherever we go.
Comments