Fragrances Pleasing to God

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Take a deep breath in. It’s SPRING! There are lovely scents all around us. Just the other night as I was walking, the smell of fresh cut grass and the lilac bushes in my driveway penetrated the air. What wonderful fragrances from our Creator. But just what kind of “scent” pleases HIM?

I sit here and think about just what kind of aroma am I sending heaven~ward? On my walk I was reminded of a devotional that I had seen several years ago by Sue Brage about fragrances pleasing to God. I’d even done a girl’s Bible Study on it. The smells as I walked along caused me to reflect even more.

I know what pleases God, and it’s not my fresh baked brownies from a box – if only it were THAT easy. What pleases God are those scents that I send upward from inside myself. It’s my ACTIONS wafting heaven~ward that grab God’s attention.

“Our lives are a fragrance presented by Christ to God…a life giving perfume.”
2Corinthians 2:15

Our lives can be the aromas that “please God!” As we look to the springtime for renewal, we can look at our lives and evaluate IF this life of ours is sending the kind of scents that make God pause and notice, just as I did on my walk. Had I walked past a trash can or some sort of animal dropping (and I did), my reaction would have been one of disgust or displeasure. It was in those pleasing smells that I paused and wanted to linger, they took my breath away!

We need the daily reminder that what truly pleases God comes from within us. It’s found in the actions and details of our lives.

~in praise

“Therefore I will praise you O Lord, among the nations; I will sing PRAISES to your name.”
2Samuel 22:50

I find it in filling my days with uplifting songs, with hitting that “pause” button before I utter anything out of my mouth. Praising Him can be simply noticing the blessings in my life, that yes, are often found in the midst of a geometry lesson or a mountain of laundry. Praising HIM all the day long will be pleasing. No complaining, just PRAISING!

~in prayer~

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in PRAYER.”
Romans 12:12

Taking the time to TALK to my Savior as if He were sitting right beside me. Having a constant conversation with HIM is the goal. Finding time in the busy homeschool day to “be still” and linger in His presence. It’s in simple, daily acts of prayer that pleasing aromas release!
~in sacrifice~

“And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such SACRIFICES God is pleased.”
Hebrews 13:16

A.R.K. (Acts of Random Kindness) noticing the little acts of service that need done can be a daily way to “smell” lovely. In doing what we know is right, helping a friend, taking time out for another mom, sharing time with the elderly, giving and serving the poor through church or outreach are all acts of service that God loves.
~in obedience~

“And this is love; that we walk in OBEDIENCE to His commands. As you have heard from the beginning His command is that you walk in love.”
2John 1:6

We instill in our children the laws of obedience and perhaps need to gently remind ourselves what is required of us. Loving those who are challenging is a wonderful place to start, after all it IS the GREATEST commandment Jesus left us.
~in service~

“There are different kinds of SERVICE but the same Lord.”~ 1Corinthians 12:5

Daily we serve others, our spouses, our children, our friends, our neighbors and strangers. Evaluate that service, are there areas that could be improved upon or perhaps an adjustment in our attitude of serving others?

One of the best things that we can do is DAILY remind ourselves of these habits. It is in our obedience in the call to homeschool that we send up a beautiful scent. It is in praising Him through songs dispersed into our day that we cause the Creator to linger. It is in our unceasing prayers tha

t He can delight in our aromas, just as joyfully serving our family, friends, and community sends beautiful smells up to the heavens.

Oh yeah, be warned, we don’t always SMELL so good. There are days we just plain STINK! The scent that moves heaven~ward is less than lovely. It’s not pretty, it’s sharp tongued, it’s judgmental, it’s unkind and unwilling to serve others. It’s selfish and unbendable.

Spending time surrounded by pleasant scents makes us feel wonderful, shouldn’t we remind ourselves that our God loves those things too…those fragrances that are uniquely YOU. He’d love to ”

get a WHIFF” of you today. Nothing would PLEASE Him more!

Father,
Every good thing scent comes from above. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of the splendor in your creation. Help me to the kind of fragrance to the world that pleases YOU. I know it is not in earthly smells that you delight, but in the unique creation that is me. Guide me gently, Father, to look to what pleases You and live the life that Jesus taught me to live. I want to walk as a disciple, scattering joy and hope, peace and love to all those that I meet daily. Father, I trust in Your will for my life. Help me to embrace this life that is my own and offer it up for You. Thank You for it all, Lord. I pray to walk in Your will every step of the way, smelling lovely all the days of my life.
In Jesus’ name,
AMEN~
**Just A little extra note from me!!**

When I did this lesson with a group of girls we planted flowers into clay pots that we decorated with the words; prayer, obedience, service, praise and sacrifice. Ours still sit outside on the back deck reminding us constantly of the “fragrance” we are sending up to God.

Lori is a 4 year homeschool mom to 3. Currently a 7th grader, a 5th grader and a 3rd grader. Lori insists that when she was wrestling with the decision to home school, a gentle voice guided her with the words, “you know what you should do.” Never looking back, accepting the challenges and rewards and CONSTANTLY clinging to THE ROCK…”No Storm can shake my inmost calm when to this ROCK I’m clinging.” “Raise Your Hands” is an inspirational column while, as the Beatles so eloquently put it, we walk “this long and winding road,” together. Hoping to impart peace and inspiration amidst the daily chaos. Be sure to visit her blog at All You Have to Give.

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