A Sweet Aroma
And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5:2
Oh, that first cup of coffee/tea of the day! Our brains begin to defog. Our blurry senses seem to awaken to the aroma of that brew. But wait, what happened earlier? When that alarm clock made that obnoxious racket or when the daylight intruded between our eyelids? Our first words were…!
When we awaken, what are our first utterings? This is important for all of us to know and understand. If we are consumed with grumbling and complaining as we stumble to the coffee pot, there are good chances that our day is going to follow suit. YIKES!
Instead, we might want to consider being grateful to have another day ahead to serve Him. Whether we are young and overwhelmed with parenting stressors or old and crippled with arthritis, we must thank Him with a praise offering for waking us.
Praise offerings are a fragrant aroma to Him. I liken it to the most awesome natural scents—like spring. It is tough to feel joyous when the tire is flat as we get ready to leave for work. It is just plain annoying when our teenage son left no gas in the tank and work is 30-minutes away. How about someone used the last Keurig pod and there is no more in the house? What if we forgot to include a tax statement and filed taxes without it? Maybe we didn’t get the promotion because of a hiring quota that must be met? Are we able to send that praise offering upward? Seriously, I doubt that is the first thing we consider, however, that is what He asks of us.
We tend to be quite selfish and self-centered, don’t we? Have you ever wondered what life would look like if we took mini-breaks during the day and just sat quietly with Him. What if we thanked Him for every little thing so far?
During this time, if we consider what Jesus did for us on the cross, that alone is an offering of praise.
Creator of all, thank You for Your patience as we learn to praise You. Help us to open our hearts and mouths to sing and speak of Your Glory. AMEN.