The Coffee-Bean Bowl

Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Our reading, titled The Coffee Bean Bowl, was written by Dave Brannon. I'm not a coffee drinker, but one sniff of coffee beans brings me a moment of both solace and wistfulness. When our teenage daughter, Melissa, was making her bedroom, uniquely hers, she filled a bowl with coffee beans to permeate her room with a warm, pleasant scent.

It's been nearly two decades since Melissa's earthly life ended in a car accident at age 17, but we still have that coffee bean bowl. It gives us a continual, aromatic remembrance of Mel's life with us. Scripture also uses fragrances as a reminder. Song of Songs refers to fragrances as a symbol of love between a man and a woman.

In Hosea, God's forgiveness of Israel is said to be a fragrance like a cedar of Lebanon. In Mary's anointing of Jesus' feet, which caused the house of Mary and her siblings to be filled with the fragrance of the perfume, pointed ahead to Jesus' death. The idea of fragrance can also help us be mindful of our testimony of faith to those around us. Paul explained it this way in 2 Corinthians chapter 2. We are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.

Just as the scent of coffee beans reminds me of Melissa, may our lives produce a scent of Jesus and His love that reminds others of their need of Him. Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from John chapter 12 verses 1 through 7. Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor.

Martha served while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with Him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume. She poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped His feet with her hair, and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray Him, objected. Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages. He did not say this because He cared about the poor, but because He was a thief.

As keeper of the money bag, He used to help Himself to what was put into it. Leave her alone, Jesus replied. It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. Let's pray. Father, may our lives carry the sweet aroma of Your presence. Help us to spread Your love and forgiveness to all who encounter us and open their hearts to receive You. Thank You, Lord. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thanks for listening today. I'm Stephen, and today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries.