Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Day 2 - Smell

I have to tell you that, for me, there was nothing profound about about Day 2 - smell.

Apparently we are a nasally challenged family.

As we talked about it Tuesday morning I explained to the boys the idea that our Pastor had shared on Sunday, lighting a candle during a time of prayer and bible study, and having that scent be associated with meeting God. I really like the idea of it - but maybe it takes more then one day for it to work. When I lit the candle my thoughts were much more of, "Hey - that would be great in the master bathroom!" then, "Wow, I am really connecting to God".

Jacob came up with his idea right away, which cracked me up because at the moment his nose was so stuffed up he couldn't breathe let alone smell. He explained that the smell of wood helped him connect with God because it reminded him of the cross. Joshua quickly added his thought that the smell of communion helped him remember that Jesus died on the cross.

My cynical instinct was to be dismissive of their ideas - Ok, great! You came up with an answer because I asked a question - but that is not really a way of connecting. I chose instead to think about the fact that Jesus is personal with everyone who follows him.

What about you? Is there anyone out there with thoughts / experience with using smell to connect to God?

1 comment:

nextmalawi said...

hey Carlsons, I know that I'm a little late chiming in on this one.
As I was reading, I was reminded of the church I grew up in. It was a really old church with lots of wooden furniture, and this worn, quiet smell. sometimes when I was little, I would sneak into the sanctuary and just enjoy the quiet breath in the smell and talk to God. Thanks for bringing back such a lovely memory! J