Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Fragrance in the Garden


Read 2 Corinthians 2:14-17 and Philippians 4: 14-20


From a distance, the “wild” flower bed in our back yard looks beautiful. Now, looks can be deceiving – especially if you are looking for fragrant flowers! On closer inspection, I discovered that many of the flowers planted by Sandra had no significant smell. However, hidden in the maze of colorful flowers, there are bunches of brilliant orange flowers which projected a mild, sweet-smelling fragrance.


The contrast in the garden is also found in life. There are persons who live a colorful life and project a bright – perhaps dazzling – outward image. But, such an image may conceal unattractive qualities that repel rather than attract others. Then, there are persons who have made the conscious decision to choose a life of following Christ as Savior and director of their lives. Like the orange flowers in our garden, they reveal bright colors with a difference – a sweet fragrance that attracts. In this case, the attraction is the inward beauty and fragrant of Jesus. To first century Christians, the Apostle Paul wrote:


“…for we are to God the aroma [or fragrance] of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.” (2 Corinthians 2:15)


The word for fragrance a sweet smelling aroma is especially linked with an offering that is pleasing and acceptable to God. Philippians 4:18 is a reminder that those believers who honor God by giving generously to meet genuine needs are ultimately presenting a fragrant sweet smelling offering to God. It is acceptable to God. The result can then be the attraction of others to faith in Jesus because of the sweet fragrance of Christ in our lives and actions.


What are you offering to God? What are you communicating to others around you? Does your life emit a sweet smelling fragrance that draws others to consider the Savior that you profess?


Reflect: Are you just a bright flower or do you stand out with distinction as you give out the aroma of Jesus to those who genuinely need Him today? Start by imitating the One whose life is the supreme example of a fragrant offering.


“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:1-2)

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Living like a Butterfly


Read: 2 Corinthians 5:17; Colossians 3:15-17


The butterfly is nature’s most visible illustration of rebirth.


Once drab and earthbound as a caterpillar, the butterfly

emerges from its cocoon in beautiful radiant colors, soaring

upward into the sky.


Charles Colson introduced his own spiritual rebirth with the above words. Think of it. If you looked intently on a caterpillar, you would never expect that this lowly crawler would soon be transformed to soar up to new heights and brighten our world with the amazing colors that emanate from the creative mind of God!


You may find yourself usually thinking about very ordinary earthbound things at this moment. But, the Bible says that God has a plan for you – not to struggle like a caterpillar in the striving for fulfillment in daily existence but to soar like the butterfly. God wants you to realize that when you place your complete trust in Jesus for salvation, life, and lasting peace, you receive the ability and the right to live as a citizen of Heaven (Philippians 3:20).


In this constantly changing world, you should dare to be different. Don’t let the perception of society and popular culture keep you grounded. Fix your eyes on God and live on a higher level like the butterfly. Draw upon the amazing grace of God and keep asking God to help you see His Divine perspective on everything. God is the God of new beginnings – a creator of beauty. Spread your wings and show colors of His radiant grace to the world.


…if anyone is in (Jesus) Christ, he (or she) is a new creation

the old has gone , the new has come. All this is from God…

(2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV)


Spread your wings and fly (live) above ordinary circumstances. Don’t focus on the economy. Enter into the intimate presence of God and rejoice in God regardless of what comes your way any day. This is exactly how a Hebrew prophet, Habakkuk responded to the economic, social and spiritual conditions of his time (Habakkuk 3:17-18). Imitate him and view your world from above, like a butterfly.

Nibbling Friends: The Fish Effect


Read Proverbs 27:1-10


What would you expect if you entered a nail salon or spa? Well, customers discovered that one salon owner was willing to go to very creative lengths to increase his customer base in a challenging economic environment. The owner of L.A. Nails in Winnipeg has started offering fish treatments for the feet of is customers. Willing customers can now put their feet in a tank filled with water and about 200 minnow sized carp fish called “garra rufa”. According to Carolyn Vesely of the Winnipeg Free Press, these tiny fish “…dig in like teenagers at an all-you-can-eat buffet, gorging on the dead skin on your heels and toes, including the bits on your little ‘piggies’ and the hardened cuticles around your nails.” Once the tickling sensation subsides, the customers apparently feel better not only in their feet but in their whole body. An information sheet given to customers says that these little fish can not only clean away dead tissue on your feet but “…their powerful lips can stimulate acupuncture points and clear blocked pores to promote circulation of blood and energy.”


This story reminds me of the “friend effect.” Like the garra rufa fish, a real friend will not abandon you but will “nibble away “at unwanted ideas, attitudes and destructive habits in your life. He or she will be willing to do this until the “dead skin” in your life is recognized by you and then removed or rejected until you are clean before God. God freely works in and through those who are hungry to be healthy and pure in heart.

Proverbs 27:6 (NIV) begins with these words: “Wounds of a friend can be trusted.” Like the tiny fish, a true friend can be trusted to puncture a hole in your inflated pride or chip away at your selfish attitude. Such a friend does this in a way that will honor God and truly help you in the long term. You also need to be such a friend to others. It’s the fish effect – it will make you uncomfortable at first but prove to be so beneficial in the long term.


How can you be such a friend to someone in our church or in your neighborhood? Be sure that you are prepared to act God’s way:

Ø Be faithful – as a friend who “…sticks closer than a brother” (Prov.18:24) and “…loves at all times” (Prov.17:17).

Ø Be Honest – as a friend who encourages him or her in seeing and accepting what needs to change (Prov.27:6).

Ø Be Tactful – as a friend who is sensitive to the feelings and needs of the others, such as Jonathan who “…helped David find strength in God” (1 Samuel 23:16).

Ø Be Motivating – seek to challenge the other person so that they will grow in Christ “…as iron sharpens iron, so one (friend) sharpens another” (Prov. 27:17)

Are you willing to be such a friend? Do you have such a friend? It starts with you willing to first be such a friend to another. Then, God will bring such a friend for you.