Our sense of smell is truly amazing because it also allows us to identify things when we can not see them. Example being when you walk into a house and smell the sweet aroma of cookies in the oven you do not need to see them to know they are there. The aroma something gives off helps clue us into the identity of that thing.
All this to say when I returned home from training camp, EVERYTHING in my bag smelled awful. It was a mixture of sweat, dirt, and body odor. I believe the smell was magnified because of the humidity of Georgia and the inability of anything to actually dry out. When I started unpacking I was appalled that I had to wear these clothes for the last ten days and I could only imagine what this meant I smelled like. What amazes me though is it didn’t bother me when I was at training camp, it was only when I returned home that the odor bothered me. Which got me thinking why it didn’t bother me until I returned home?
The answer is that the smell is my comfortability. When I live in my comfortable world I tend to fall into a pattern of complacency which leads to apathy. This is due to me not needing to depend on God, I find myself thinking I can do it all on my own. This spiral keeps me unmotivated to see what God is doing in my life, and leaves me numb. The more numb I become the harder it is to see, feel, and hear God. Which makes it easier to sit in the smell of death. The more I sit in it the more comfortable I become with it until I can not smell it anymore so it doesn’t bother me.
Going into training camp I was nervous and kept asking myself why I was leaving a job I love, a town I love, and a community of people that I love and love me back? I realize now that those questions stemmed from the cycle of comfortability that I had been in for so long. I was comfortable with the God that I had encountered up to this point. I was afraid of seeing the power of a God outside of my comfort zone. I have been told almost my whole life that God can not be contained or constrained. I put him in a box anyway because that was more comfortable for me. So going to training camp was scary because I knew subconsciously, the comfortable box I had put God into would be smashed open. AND IT WAS!
The aroma of Christ was overpowering in that place. It felt like the whole display of Jesus perfume smashed open and permeated every nook, which was very uncomfortable at first because it was overpowering. I was comfortable spraying on some Jesus when I wanted to and didn’t feel ready to be submerged in his love and power. Once you have smelled the full aroma of Christ there is no other smell in the world that will satisfy. Smelling the fullness allowed the taste of him to be fuller, brighter and more satisfying. Smelling His fullness allowed me to see him in the mundane and routines of my life and opened my eyes to see what He sees. Smelling His sweet aroma allowed me to feel his presence in a tangible way. It is mind blowing to me how our sense of smell changes the way we see, feel and taste.
Training camp was packed to the maximum with field scenarios, sessions, worship, team formations, and lots of good conversations. At first I was overwhelmed with the amount of information that was being thrown my way. All the information we received will be useful for when we are in the field, I’m excited to see how the Lord uses what we just learned for his good. I saw people physically healed, set free from addictions, empowered, and had the opportunity to go into the local community to evangelize door to door. All of these experiences made me incredibly excited to see how the Lord uses each person that is on our route for his glory. It is going to be good!
