The Aroma of His Presence

Freshly Baked Bread

This morning I sat at my table eating French toast made from a loaf of bread I had just baked. The whole house smelled wonderful. The warm aroma had traveled into every room. I could not walk anywhere in the house without breathing it in.

As I sat there enjoying the smell and the taste of that bread, I realized something. There was a lesson in that moment.

Bread does not produce that aroma by accident. It begins with simple ingredients. Flour. Milk. Egg. Butter. Yeast. Each ingredient is willingly placed into the bowl. Then everything is mixed together and given time to transform.

That is very similar to what happens when a heart opens itself to God.

A life that begins to walk closely with Him is not changed by accident. It begins with willingness. A willingness to open the heart and allow God to pour in His goodness. Trust. Faith. Humility. Surrender. Obedience. One by one, the ingredients of a life with Him begin to form.

At first the process can seem very ordinary. Quiet even. Just like dough sitting in a warm place, rising where no one can see it.

But something is happening during that time.

God is shaping the heart.

And then one day the evidence begins to appear. Just as fresh bread releases an aroma that fills a house, a life that rests in the presence of God begins to release a fragrance into the world around it.

People may not always be able to explain what they are sensing. But they notice peace. They notice gentleness. They notice kindness. Something about that life feels different.

Scripture actually speaks about this very thing.

“Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ.”

2 Corinthians 2:14–15 (KJV)

A life that walks with God carries His fragrance.

And it begins the same way my loaf of bread began this morning. With a heart that is willing to open itself and allow the Master to add the ingredients He desires.

When that happens, something beautiful begins to rise.

And before long, the aroma of His presence begins to fill the house.

A Moment to Reflect

What ingredients is God gently adding to your life right now?

Sometimes the work He is doing within us is quiet and unseen, much like dough rising in a warm place. But transformation is still happening.

When we remain open to Him, His presence begins to shape our hearts in ways that cannot be hidden.

And one day, without even realizing it, the fragrance of His presence begins to fill the atmosphere around us.

~Gayla