I will share about Christian books I have read or listened to.
I will be sharing about my life before and after Christ. I will include stories about my pet and other pets I have encountered.
A Christ-like Aroma
Studies have shown that specific scents can evoke strong emotional memories and activate our brain in unique ways. The olfactory system, responsible for our sense of smell, directly links the brain's areas associated with memory and emotion.
In Ephesians 5:1-2, Paul describes a unique kind of scent—not one we can smell with our noses, but one that is evidence of a life lived in imitation of Christ: "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."
Just as scents linger and leave an imprint, when we imitate Christ–choosing love over indifference, forgiveness over resentment, and selflessness over self-interest–our lives become a fragrant aroma to God and to those around us.
It’s not always easy to mirror Christ's love. It is, however, always a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God that permeates our relationships, workplaces, and communities, even if we don’t see it or feel it.
So consider your actions, words, and attitudes today. Reflect on the fragrance they might emit. How aligned are they with the love and sacrificial nature of Christ? Imagine Christ's love as a transformative fragrance, not just lingering but deeply impacting. Meditate on one specific way you can imitate Christ's love and sacrificial nature in your daily interactions.
Don’t Lose Heart
As we start getting older, our bodies begin to change.
Muscles might ache. Hair might gradually turn gray. Vision and hearing might eventually get less sharp. And we, or someone we love, might even struggle with significant or devastating health challenges.
The apostle Paul once offered some ageless wisdom to the believers in Corinth, Greece, which can still be helpful for us today:
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.”
2 Corinthians 4:16 NIV
Paul knew what it was like to face hard things; he’d been beaten, shipwrecked, snake bitten, and imprisoned.
Earlier in the letter, he’d said, “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9 NIV)
The ripple effects of sin’s existence in the world might frustrate us physically, but it ...
