Fragrance

This beautiful panicled hydrangea is blooming in my backyard right now. As time passes, the white will slowly turn to a lovely shade of pink. What’s even more interesting is

that the flower itself is tiny! The large white petals seem to be the pollinator signage, saying, “Land here! Land here!” But these showy flowers are actually sterile, and don’t even have an aroma. If you pick one of them off the cluster of blooms and stick it up to your nose, you won’t be able to smell anything! On the plus side, you won’t get any pollen on your face. However, if you cut the branch and bring the whole cluster into the house, an entire room will be filled with the sweet aroma produced by the tiny, true blossoms.

Once an insect follows the landing signs and flies closer, the fragrance of the true blossoms draws them in toward the mother lode! There they find the nectar they seek.

This cluster of flowers reminds me of our lives as Christ followers. Christ in us is the “hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). Does the way we live before strangers draw them in towards Christ, or repel them from knowing Him? For some, we may be the only example of Him they ever see. Does the way we treat others make them want to know us better, and in doing that, discover who Christ is?

• How do we react to the cashier at the grocery store when there’s a problem with the checkout process?
• How do we treat the waitress at our favorite restaurant when they forget to bring something we’ve asked for?
• What’s our attitude when the line at the bank moves too slowly for our liking?
• And here’s a big one…how do we conduct ourselves when someone disagrees with our view on something political (horror of horrors!!)?

As children of God we are blessed and highly favored, as some folks like to often say. If we have received God’s grace and mercy (which none of us deserves), it should come naturally to share that grace and mercy with the world. We are no better than the worst of sinners, for “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). We have a treasure to share, and there’s more than enough of it to go around!

For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. (2 Corinthians 2:15).

The way we live matters…the world is watching!