The other day Shaun came into the church building and commented on how putrid it smelled. I didn't notice. Later that same day someone cut the cheese in the car.....everyone started groaning.....again, I didn't notice. Last night I took my clip off to let my nose rest a little ....I don't want there to be any permanent deforming. lol. And when I took the clip off I caught a little whif of my BO. Not strong, but it was there.
When I think of all the wonderful scents I am deprived of I forget about the unpleasant ones. If it wasn't for my nose I could live in squalor and not even notice. I could live in the stink and it not bother me in the least..
Is this good or bad? I think it is decidedly bad. Why? Because the smells usually reflect the cleanliness and thus the sanitary quality of the environment. Our sense of smell almost always operates in the same way our conscience does.
It is a warning signal. If we lose our spiritual sense of smell we become like the hypocritical liars whose consciences have been seared (1 Tim 4:2). Evil loses its unpleasantness. Where there's smoke there's fire. We live in a culture where we have lost the ability to recognize the rottenness of rot. I don't know how this discernment of evil operates exactly. I believe its informed by the Bible and empowered by the Spirit but "how" it occurs I don't really know. I do believe it does. Haven't you ever been in a situation that just didn't seem right? You couldn't put your finger on why but it just didn't feel ideal?
My taste hasn't been affected but there is a drabness I feel when I can't smell. We talk about the spice of life.....well without smell everything is a little more bland.
I had been disappointed about the lack of inquiry into my nose apparatus......Well the cure for that evidentially is to hang around older folks......which I have done extensively the last couple days. Many of them don't care to be inquisitive and the questions have poured in. The problem is that with this age group and this kind of experiment.....being so different....it is not likely to resonate with them. I have seen it on their faces. I know my grandmother loves me unconditionally but I could tell she thought I was engaging in silliness. You didn't eat for 40 days? You didn't see for 40 days? One lady even told me I might want to be careful because people might think I have a screw loose. I am tired of the bland, drab, and dull approach to life. I don't always want to be proper and appropriate. Sometimes I want to be outrageous.....but in a good way. Its time for some brightness and color. Its time to breathe in deeply. If it means I give it up for a short while to make the inhalation a little sweeter tomorrow. So be it.
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