I am not a fan of Bath and Body Works

PHILIPPIANS 4:18
I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

Marianne loves Bath and Body Works. She has some kind of membership/rewards deal which allows her every so often to get incredible discounts in the store. We often do a lot of our Christmas shopping there (we did much more when we were still buying gifts for our kids' teachers).

I don't care for the store. The cacophony of smells is overwhelming, even for someone like me who has a poor sense of smell. Recently, they've added some "male scents" with names like Bourbon, Graphite, and Teakwood. This makes it a little more manageable for me, but I still don't like it. Usually, I'll hang out with Marianne for about 5 minutes, then I'll drift out into the mall and look for a massage chair.

The overwhelming fragrance is just not something I enjoy.

In Philippians 4:18, Paul describes the Philippians gift to him as a "fragrant offering." What do you think he meant by that?

I am quite confident the Philippians didn't send Paul a gift basket with some Teakwood body wash from Bath and Body Works. In fact, Paul wasn't even saying that their gift smelled good to him. He was saying their gift smelled good to God!

This is Old Testament imagery. When the Israelites would offer up their burnt sacrifices to God, the aroma would fill the air. If their hearts were right when making the sacrifice, God said that it was a pleasing fragrance to Him.

Paul is transferring the concept from the burnt offerings of the Israelites in the Old Testament to the generous giving of the Gentiles in the New Testament.

What does this mean for you? When you give to others out of a heart full of gratitude toward God... your sacrifice is a pleasing fragrance to your Heavenly Father.

So at Thanksgiving this year, don't stop at being grateful. Let your gratitude spill over into generosity toward your fellow man. You will be offering a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

9-9-9 Updated.

I love making lists. I made these three lists back in 2011. I guess some things change and some things stay the same.

2011

9 Teams I Prefer to All Others:

1. Michigan State Spartans
2. Detroit Tigers
3. Detroit Lions
4. Liverpool FC Reds
5. Detroit Red Wings
6. Sailor Soccer
7. Cedarville Yellowjackets
8. Detroit Pistons
9. Cincinnati Reds

9 Teams I Love to Hate:

1. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
2. Chicago Bears
3. Minnesota Twins
4. Colorado Avalanche
5. Manchester United Red Devils
6. Green Bay Packers
7. Chicago White Sox
8. Dallas Cowboys
9. New York Yankees

9 Athletes I Admire:

1. Steve Yzerman
2. Barry Sanders
3. Lou Whitaker
4. Steve Smith (MSU basketball)
5. John Stockton/Karl Malone
6. Greg Maddox
7. Isaiah Thomas
8. Brandon Inge
9. Andy Pettitte

2019

9 Teams I Prefer to All Others:

1. George Fox University Bruins Soccer
2. Liverpool FC
3. Detroit Tigers
4. Detroit Red Wings
5. Detroit Lions
6. Michigan State Spartans
7. Dutch National Team (Soccer)
8. Taylor University Trojans
9. FC Cincinnati

9 Teams I Love to Hate:

1. University of Michigan
2. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
3. Manchester United
4. Green Bay Packers
5. Chicago Bears
6. Minnesota Twins
7. Colorado Avalanche
8. Dallas Cowboys
9. New York Yankees

9 Pro Athletes I Admire:

1. Steve Yzerman
2. Barry Sanders
3. Lou Whitaker
4. Steven Gerrard
5. Pavel Datsyuk
6. Matthew Stafford
7. Justin Verlander
8. Lionel Messi
9. Jordan Henderson

Don't be a trouble-maker. Be a trouble-taker.

Every year around Christmas, my small Christian school had a roller-skating party at the local rink. The first time I attended was in third grade and I think it was only the second time I had roller-skated in my life. I wasn't very good, and I was afraid of falling, so I crept around the rink with one hand on the wall. I was more shuffling than skating.

Then Jimmy came alongside me, grabbed my hand and said, "Come on." Slowly we skated around the rink over and over and over until I started to get the hang of it. Jimmy was a great skater, he could dart in and out of people, flying around the oval faster than almost everyone else. He won the age-graded races and the limbo competition every year. I imagine it was incredibly boring and a little frustrating to skate beside me when he could have been gliding around the rink at a much faster rate of speed.

But he chose to share my trouble. For many years (until I moved away), Jimmy and I were the best of friends. Today, we're still Facebook friends with plenty of great memories.

The Philippians shared Paul's trouble. In Philippians 4:14-18, Paul spilled over in gratitude for the contributions they had made. 

Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

Although they probably had no idea what the outcome would be, these generous people chose to simply invest what they had for the benefit of someone else. We know the outcome was the spread of the Gospel across the known world!

When you choose to share in someone else's trouble, you have no idea what the outcome will be. What you know for sure is that you are living like Jesus. He came to earth, specifically to share in our trouble so that He could ultimately rescue us from our trouble.

Your words and actions can either make trouble for others or take trouble from others. You make the choice!

Good Ingredients = Great Products

Marianne bakes amazing chocolate chip cookies. She has the whole process down to a science. A while back, we needed to make a batch of cookies and she didn't have time, so she asked me to make them. She gave me her recipe and left me on my own.

They turned out ok. Not great. Edible.

She understands better than I do the perfect ratios in the ingredients. She has a deeper and more accurate experience with the recipe because she has made the cookies so many more times than I do.

Simply put, the better you understand and utilize the ingredients, the better your final product will be.

Do you understand the proper ingredients to bake a spiritually healthy life? Paul gave us a recipe in Philippians 4:8.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

This verse follows Paul's instructions to not be anxious or fearful about anything. His main point is that we need to fill our minds with God's ingredients instead of the world's ingredients.

Take a moment and think about how you fill your mind.

• What radio shows or podcasts do you listen to?
• What do you watch on TV or Netflix?
• Which movies do you go to?
• What thoughts fill your imagination?
• What music is on your playlist?
• With whom do you have the longest conversations?
• Whose advice do you most often follow?
• Which books shape your decisions?
• What events do you replay in your mind?
• What conversations do you dwell on?

Now apply Philippians 4:8 to all these inputs. The ingredients with which you fill your mind will determine whether or not you honor God with your life.

Before you go to bed tonight, take a moment and evaluate how well you filled your mind during the day. Then take a couple minutes and refill yourself with the truth of God (read your Bible, meditate on a verse you know, give thanks for His presence, provision, promises, and power).

Every morning, plan intentionally to fill your mind with ingredients that lead to hope, peace, joy, righteousness, faith, and love.

Bake a life that pleasing to God!