The Scent of Kindness
During a recent visit to the grocery store, I noticed a young man standing in line. As I quietly stood behind him, he suddenly turned around and asked me, “Is that all you have?” Glancing down at the smoothie drink in my hand, I looked up and replied, “Yes.” He then said, “You can go ahead of me. I won’t make you wait in line for one item.” As he steered his cart to the left side so that I could pass him, I smiled and gratefully said, “Thank you so much!” He grinned and responded, “You’re welcome.”
Once I paid for my juice, I thanked the sweet guy again. Suddenly, the cashier turned towards me and proudly smirked, “I wouldn’t have let you get in front of me.” Her cocky tone evoked an image in my mind of a milk cartoon. One that looked perfectly fine on the outside. There is, until you taste its contents and realize it is spoiled. Quite frankly, I was taken aback. Stunned I said, “Wow, okay…well, thank you for your honesty.” Then I heard myself say, “However,” as she glanced back at me, “Never forget, we do reap what we sow in this life. How we treat others will come back to us.” The guy next to me began nodding his head and readily agreed, “Yep, I do believe that, too!” I noticed when the young girl turned to hand me my receipt and change, her confident smile had flatlined.
As I ambled back to my car, I thought about what the arrogant store clerk had said. My mind shifted into Auto Pilot as it replayed a screen from a few years ago. It was a beautiful, spring day in Texas and I was at the Car Wash (I know, that song just popped in my head, too). I was bent inside my car, vacuuming it out. Out of the blue, my nose picked up a light, clean but flirty fragrance. I leaned away from the vehicle and stood up. Sniff…Sniff…Sniff, “What is that beautiful scent?” I thought. Glancing across the top of my car, I noticed a woman straightening out a vacuum hose. I quickly asked her, “Excuse me please for interrupting you, but would you mind telling me the name of that perfume you are wearing? It smells wonderful!’”
She replied, “Thank you! It’s called Issey Miyake.” I could barely hear her over all the noise. I politely asked her to repeat the name. “Issey Miyake,” she offered, “It’s a Japanese perfume.” I smiled and thanked her. After finishing up my car, I realized it was a miracle that I even got a whiff of the fragrance in the first place. You see, I have a horrible sense of smell. In fact, I can rarely smell anything. For some reason, my senses were on full alert on that particular afternoon.
My mind warped back to the present day once I reached my car. Then it hit me as I unlocked the door and slid inside the driver’s seat. The Holy Spirit revealed to me that being kind to others is like wearing a lovely cologne.
It’s a behavior that draws others to us, sometimes without us even knowing it. Although the guy in the grocery store was just being polite, his small act of kindness drew me to him like the smell of a sweet toiletry. Whereas the cashier’s behavior repelled me like a trash dumpster on a scorching hot day. Colossians 3:12 tells us, “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourself with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”
My friend, are you dreading about going to work this morning due to the foul stench of someone’s standard pattern of rudeness? Perhaps you are still reeling from an encounter you had last week when that friend or family member hurt your feelings? Whatever it may be, Beloved, hold your head up. Pray and ask the Lord to help you release any feelings of resentment that you may have towards that person. Then ask the Creator of the Universe to change that person’s heart towards you. Trust me, I’m a witness that He can do it! The reality is, dear heart, we have a choice. We could allow that person’s nastiness to sour our peace and joy. On the other hand, we can decide to give her or him to God. As He deals with them, we can choose to move forward in a way that pleases the Almighty. Then we will not only gain our Heavenly Father’s blessings and favor over our life, but we’ll draw others for Kingdom Building with the captivating Scent of Kindness.
