Casandra Martin

I baked bread this morning. Just as the sun was beginning to color the sky, I peeked into the oven and saw the rising loafs taking shape. Turning on the oven, I started counting the minutes. The aroma of baking bread filled the house. Bread has its own unique, wonderful fragrance. The combination of flour, yeast, salt, and oil create a mouth-watering, head-turning, nose-following smell. Yum!

Finally the timer signaled the end of the baking cycle. I pulled the warm loaves from the oven, setting them on a rack to cool. Opening the oven released an even stronger scent into the air. The aroma permeated the entire house. The smell of baking bread is enough to make tummies growl and smiles appear on morning faces.

Fast forward to later in the day. Here is the moment that caught me by surprise. After a walk in the neighborhood, I pulled out my key to open our front door. Standing outside the house, I caught a familiar smell – baking bread. Our home was so full of the wonderful aroma that it leaked out of the house, filling the yard with its enticing smell.

The smell of baking bread always draws my mind to Jesus. He is the Bread of Life. He longs to nourish our souls in the same way delicious bread feeds our bodies. But it is the aroma that draws my eyes to His face. In 2 Corinthians 2:15 says, “For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.” Everywhere we go, we carry with us the fragrance of Christ. We have the opportunity to smell like Jesus for everyone we meet.

God taught me an important lesson today on the sidewalk. He wants me to be so full of the smell of the Living Bread that it spills out of my life, inviting those just walking by to experience it. I need to be so full of Jesus that it permeates every part of who I am.

My Jesus Resolution today is to be aware of how I smell. I want to leave the fragrance of Christ lingering in every room I walk into. I am going to be especially careful not to let the smells of the world penetrate my heart. I want to open the doors of my life so that others can take a deep breath and smell the aroma of Christ in me.