There have been times in my life I could really stink, wait, let me clarify that, I mean my attitude smelled awful. I probably could produce quite a few examples, but I’ll give you just one. I am ashamed to say I was a self-centered and arrogant person. Back in the day, it was all about me. Even though I was basically a nice person, always willing to help someone, my attitude could really stink sometimes. Our attitudes determine how we relate to God, how we react to what’s happening around us, and how we treat the people who cross our paths. Some people may have smelled my attitude and others may not have. But God did! My attitude did not give off the aroma of Christ! And God loved me enough to not leave me with as they say, “stinking thinking.”
During my time in the wilderness, God taught me that it is not about me, but all about Him! I don’t even come in second. The Lord’s second command is to love our brothers and sisters as ourselves. Of course being the selfish person I was then, I kept asking, “but what about me?” And God showed me, as He brought me through that terrible but blessed time in my life, that He would always take care of me. I call it blessed even though I was going through because as I began to focus on Christ and the needs of others, my attitude began to change, I smelled better.
When our attitudes place God first and we see other people with eyes of love, we smell better. I’m not saying we are to forget about self-care, which is definitely important! God’s Word is clear that we are to take time for ourselves in order to draw near to Him and to be able to comfort others. The Bible tells us that God values and commands rest (Ex. 34:21, Heb. 4:34) and for our physical bodies (Ex. 22:26-27). Jesus himself prioritized rest. When faced with great crowds, Jesus “often withdrew to lonely places and prayed” (Luke 5:16). He cared that his disciples “had no leisure even to eat” and instructed them to “rest a while” (Mark 6:31). We need to rest, relax, and be restored physically and mentally in order to pour into others. God can’t use us when we are burnt out and tired. However we don’t want to turn our self-care into self-indulgence which leads to selfishness.
Our attitudes determines how we smell to God. Are you self-centered, proud, or arrogant as I was? Is it all about “you and yours” or do you reach out to others, especially your brothers and sisters in Christ? Are those around you drawn to Jesus as a result of the love and peace you display? Do your conversations always honor God? Do you represent the fruit of the Spirit? Or are you laced with bitterness, resentment, anger, complaining, and gossip? Imagine what we smell like to our families, children, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. More importantly what aroma are we sending to Christ. How can we have nasty smelly attitudes and claim to represent Christ?
Whenever negative thoughts or behavior creep into our thoughts, conversations, or behavior, we must reject them and pray to God for a clean heart. We all are in need of an attitude adjustment now and then. We all are a work in progress. I am grateful to God for showing me one of my areas that needed work. I continuously work on myself that I may smell good to God. I realize I can’t do it alone. We must spend time in prayer asking God to reveal areas in our life that does not smell as they should. Once He reveals them, then we pray that He help us remove them and pray that He cleanses us of anything that is not pleasing to Him. I challenge you to join me every day to work on taking captive of our thoughts before they come out of our mouths. In doing this we are more inclined to speak the best, not the worst, to speak of beauty and not the ugly, to praise and not curse, and to uplift and not put down. We must strive to have the sweet aroma of Christ all the time, not just some of the time, just as God’s grace and mercy is with us ALL the time, not just some of the time! Does your attitude give off an aroma of Christ? Please my brothers and sisters, meditate on the scriptures below until they resonate deep in your hearts.
Love and Blessings…
Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-39)”
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23)
“Finally , brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
“Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.”(1 John 2:6)
“Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay; you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8)
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”(Isaiah 41:10)
“And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.”
(2 Corinthians 9:8)
“Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.” (2 Corinthians 13:11)
EMMANUEL 
This relates to our recent bible study, Focus: Think on These Things. We smell like we think. Whatever thoughts we have produce a smell. When we go back to the Old Testament in the book of Ezekiel 20:41 (ESV) “As a pleasing aroma I will accept you, when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you have been scattered. And I will manifest my holiness among you in the sight of the nations.”
God always talked about a sweet savour He could smell from the sacrifices. And even though they were nice smelling they were just a shadow of things to come.
As Ephesians 5:1-2 (ESV) “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
Christ was the only fragrance that could please God and save us, redeem us. Now He’s created a path for us to follow. A recipe, a biblical recipe that smells good! Full of the fruits of the spirit, sacrifice, blessings, obedience and righteousness.
Finally, we have these verses in 2 Corinthians 2:14-17 (ESV)
“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.”
Praise God and Amen
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Amen to all of that! I like “we smell like we think”. May we strive to think like Christ in all situations🙏 Blessings
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