Fragrance of Faith

Dear Missionaryish Family,

Before we begin this article, I'm excited to share that we've received our 501(c)(3) approval! What a journey it has been to reach this milestone. Thank you for your prayers—the approval actually came about six months earlier than expected. We anticipated this happening at the end of the year. All donations and support provided during our transition are now retroactively tax-deductible.

Ok now lets start.

I’ve been sick again this whole past month. One of the strangest parts was losing my sense of smell—and not just smell, but taste, too. Don’t worry its not Covid..at least I don’t think so. It’s wild how interconnected those senses are. Without smell, food becomes mere texture. Crispy bacon feels like stale crackers; coffee is just black liquid. The flavors that once delighted me vanished, and it got me thinking—what an interesting window into the spiritual world.

In Scripture, there’s a concept I’ve been chewing on (or sniffing out, maybe): the aroma of Christ. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 2:14–16:

That line—“aroma that brings life”—struck me afresh.

Smell is a Picture of Spiritual Sensitivity

There are people who’ve never smelled anything in their life. They don’t know what fresh baked cookies, Bangkok rain, or a fresh pot of coffee smells like. Then there are people like me, who had the ability but lost it for a time—illness blocked the receptors. And then there are those whose sense of smell has been restored.

As I thought more about this, I began to see four kinds of people in terms of spiritual aroma:

• The Never-Knews – Those who have never known God, never smelled the goodness of grace. They don't even know what they're missing. FOMO isn't even possible for them.

• The Pretenders – Those who are around God’s people, even in church leadership, but have never truly smelled the aroma of Christ for themselves. They imitate, but the scent doesn’t linger on them.

• The Numb – Those who once knew God but, because of sin or spiritual drift, have lost their sense of joy. They can’t enjoy God’s table, and they can’t enjoy the world either. It’s all dry and barely any scent.

• The Regenerated – Those whom the Holy Spirit has awakened. Their senses have been restored. They know the difference between the aroma of life and the stench of sin.

For the believer, Christ restores what we lacked. He gives us new sensitivity. Like the physical olfactory system—which requires functioning receptor cells, a healthy nasal passage, a clean olfactory nerve, and bulb—our spiritual smell requires healing and coordination. The Holy Spirit does this: He regenerates our hearts, renews our minds, and reorders our desires. Only then can we begin to “smell” what is pleasing to God.

Paul, Barnabas, and the Aroma of Good News

Reflecting on Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas declare the gospel boldly, saying:

Even among those who don’t know God, there’s a kind of “common grace” aroma—His kindness leaves traces in creation. But it’s incomplete. It’s like eating a Michelin-starred dish with no sense of smell: they enjoy the texture, the color, maybe even the story—but not the fullness. And that’s the ache of the world: so much blessing, so little perception of the Blesser.

Paul knew that ache. He was once blind to Christ, a persecutor of those who carried the true scent. Yet God opened his spiritual nose. He smelled the aroma of life and never turned back. That’s the power of grace—it awakens senses we didn’t even know we were missing.

The Aroma Transforms Us

Here’s the wild part: once you’ve been cleansed, you’ll carry the aroma of Christ, and you’ll know exactly what it smells like. It is good. Christ smells good.

Christ’s cleansing now gives us a different flavor to how we once smelled because of the fact that there is no longer any stench to give off of our old way of living. It’s not just a neutral smell. It is a lovely one. Christ's fragrance now envelops us, his blood cleanses our filth, slowly removing our former stench.

Not by trying hard, not by striving—but by being near Him. His scent rubs off. Like being around people who always smell like smoke or lavender, you begin to reflect what you’ve been near.

But it’s more than reflection; it’s transformation. The sins that once felt normal now start to smell rotten. Your discernment sharpens. You walk into old situations, and something smells... off. It’s the same way a clean person notices filth more than someone used to it.

And here’s the warning: if we try to fix others with our own “cleanness,” it won’t work. You can’t clean someone with your aroma. That’s kinda ridiculous if you think about it. They need to meet the Cleaner—Christ. Only He restores, scrubs, and makes new.

You Are Not The Source

Let that humble us.

We are not the source of the fragrance; Christ is.

We are not the cleaners—He is.

We don’t change people’s spiritual senses by effort, persuasion, or presence alone.

We can only point them to the Great Cleanser.

Think about it like this: if you’ve lived your whole life in filth, you carry that scent. Even after you leave it behind, it clings. But when you come to Christ, He doesn’t shame you—He washes you.

Again. And again. And again.

Every time you repent.

Every time you come to Him in prayer.

Every time you open the Word, cry out in worship, or show up to CG—He washes you.

And as He cleanses you, your aroma changes—slowly but surely.

This is sanctification in action. The longer you stay near Him, the more restored your senses will be. The sins that once felt normal start to smell like a hellish latrine. Even the counterfeit spiritual aromas of the world—which may look the same—begin to smell artificial. White Rain coconut conditioner, anyone? (I grew up with that stuff—it was terrible) And the truth is, you often won’t notice your own aroma changing.

Others will.

Because smell travels. It permeates. It lingers. It’s like when you pick up food from In-N-Out. You don’t even have to open the bag—just crack your car window, and the smell floods in. It settles into your seats. Hours later, it’s still there. The scent clings.

That’s what it’s like to be near Christ. The aroma of life sticks to you. Just by being in His presence, your life starts to carry a new scent—one that people around you can’t help but notice. Some will be drawn to it. Some will recoil. But no one will miss it.

We are not the source.

We are the evidence of contact.

So What Do We Do?

Here’s more good news: even when you get spiritually dirty again—when you fall back into sin, bitterness, or numbness—you can go back to the Cleaner. He’s willing to wash you again, every single time. For it is written in 1 John 1:9:

First, we come back to Christ. We repent. We return. We ask Him to heal our senses.

Second, we stop pretending we can clean others. Only Christ can awaken spiritual smell. We can’t do it by theology, pressure, or behavior modification. We can only point to the sink, not be the water or the soap.

Third, we rest in the gospel. Jesus isn’t looking for perfect people that smell nice. He’s inviting filthy ones to be cleansed, over and over again. He knows we stink and yet he loves us. As a loving father who beckons his toddler refusing a bath, God knows what we need before we do.

So don’t stop coming. You can’t cleanse others with your effort. You can only point them to the One who does the cleansing. Trying to scrub others with your own strength only exhausts you and burdens them. But pointing them to Christ—that’s where the power is.

So Be Encouraged

Your ability to smell and discern the aroma of Christ is not because you’re spiritual or insightful—it’s because God has made you alive. He has healed what was broken in you. He has given you a new scent.

Stay near the Cleanser. Keep coming to Him—on Mondays, on Fridays, after you sin, when you rejoice, when you doubt. Let Him wash you. Let Him restore you. And the scent you carry will begin to change. A fragrant offering as God desires truly smells wonderful. As it says in Ephesians 5:2:

Others may notice it before you do. That’s the power of the aroma that brings life. It permeates by sheer diffusion. We just need to show up and be present.

Let your life smell like Christ. Let it linger. Let it lead. Let it fill the room.

And when others ask, don’t point to yourself. Point to the Cleanser, just like Paul and Barnabas did.

Now, let’s go love our neighbors.

Much Love in Christ,

David & Reagan

Prayers

• Focus and Discipline in School: Thanks again for praying for this. I’m learning how to study Greek Exegesis a lot better the last 2 weeks. Things a speeding up a bit.

• Recovery from Sickness: Thanks for praying for this. It’s been day one without symptoms now. Praise God

• Boys are starting school: Judah and Ezra will be in pre-K next month on the 13th of August. Please pray for them and our new rhythm!

• Missionaryish Deployment Team: We're in the preliminary stages of putting together a team that is separate from our governance board. This team will help raise awareness about Missionaryish's work. Please pray that God brings the right individuals together for this effort. If you're interested in exploring this opportunity with us, email us at [email protected] or text me at 619-940-5391.

• Financial Goals: Praise for God for reaching 69% of our living expenses goal for this year for 2025. Pray that we meet our full living expenses goal next year and progress toward operational funding for the ministry.