My church really stinks

 "In the Messiah, in Christ, God leads us from place to place in one perpetual victory parade. Through us, he brings knowledge of Christ. Everywhere we go, people breathe in the exquisite fragrance. Because of Christ, we give off a sweet scent rising to God, which is recognized by those on the way of salvation—an aroma redolent with life. But those on the way to destruction treat us more like the stench from a rotting corpse.
This is a terrific responsibility. Is anyone competent to take it on? No—but at least we don’t take God’s Word, water it down, and then take it to the streets to sell it cheap. We stand in Christ’s presence when we speak; God looks us in the face. We get what we say straight from God and say it as honestly as we can."

2 Corinthians 2:14-17

As we left the house of  the family we were serving last night the third youngest girl (whom I had just given a dollhouse donated by my two very own daughters) looked up at me, my shirt soaked front and back, drops of water running down my entire face and froze.  Her face turned from a smile to a cross between fear and disgust and proclaims:

"Hey mister, you"re smelly!"

If I had the time, or my wits about me, I would have retorted:

"No honey, my whole church is smelly!"

I was blessed to watch a team of 13 drench themselves for over three hours in a blazing hot third floor apartment as they carried, cleaned, and assembled a box truck full furniture for a family of seven who were sleeping on the floor on a couple of air mattresses and only two chairs for the lot of them.When we found that the box spring for the parents bed would not fit in the winding stairwell we asked a neighbor for saw to cut it in half. He not only offered up his tools to complete strangers but gave us scrap wood to patch it once it was upstairs and refused payment for his broken saw blade.

There were no arguments. No complaining. 

The running joke was "man, hurry up, my back is freezing!"

The group contained a mix of folks that ranged from middle-school students to Aerospace engineers and everything in between all held together by the common bond of Jesus Christ. 

Yes, we reeked. Yes, we were drenched. But to our Master, the One who prayed sweating blood over our souls, who ascended more than three flights of stairs to plead on our behalf in front of His Father on the behalf our very lives we an exquisite fragrance. 

Years back, while at a Young Life Camp I was talking with a young football player well into the night after that evenings' talk. He had just come to faith in Christ and was so excited he couldn't shut up. 

"Bryan"  he said, "I always thought that following Jesus was something you did alone. But now I see you don't. It's a parade, and I love parades!"

I love them too....

and so does the Lord. Especially when they reek.