Dear Friend, God’s promise for today is from Ezekiel 20:41, “I will accept you as fragrant incense when I bring you out from the nations and gather you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will be proved holy through you in the sight of the nations.” Don’t we all love the sweet aroma? Similarly, God delights in the sweet incense of our pure and obedient hearts. God loves us as a rose, and we are accepted only through the sweet-smelling sacrifice of Jesus. The Jesus in us gives that sweet smell to God, teaching us how much more we need to carry the presence of God. We are accepted only through Jesus Christ, so we must offer ourselves as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.

In the Old Testament, numerous sacrifices were made, such as burnt offerings, grain offerings, peace offerings, sin offerings, trespass offerings, and many more. However, none of these were capable of cleansing them from their sins because only the blood of Christ holds the power to clean us from all our sins. So let us offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to God. We struggle with our sinful nature and the schemes of the devil as we live in this wicked world, where we are easily tempted. Therefore, we need to submit ourselves to God, who will protect us.

James 4:7 says, “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” How can we submit ourselves to God? By delighting in the word of God and by fearing God. Isaiah 11:3 says, “His delight is in the fear of the Lord, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears.” The fear of the Lord in us will be like a perfume for God to smell. A young girl named Evangeline was going to meet a politician. There was a huge crowd also wanting to meet the politician, but this young girl held a placard in her hand that stated, ‘Praying for You.’ The politician was so touched that he called the young girl to come to him. The young girl said that she couldn’t come because of the huge crowd, so the politician went straight to the girl and held her hand. He then thanked her for praying for him. She was even invited among all the VIPs and personally met him and prayed for him. To this day, she keeps recounting this incident. She was so happy that she was accepted by this great politician.
In the same way, the Lord accepts you. You are accepted by Him, the great God. When you obey God, you are accepted by Him, and all that God has will be yours. You will be among the great people of God. What a joy it is to be accepted by God! May you be a pleasing aroma to God.

Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, Thank You for Your promise to accept me as a sweet aroma. I am grateful for the sacrifice of Jesus that makes me pleasing in Your sight. Help me to offer myself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to You. Guide me to delight in Your word and to live in the fear of the Lord, knowing that this brings joy to Your heart. Protect me from the schemes of the devil and strengthen me to resist temptation. I submit myself to You, trusting in Your protection and grace. May my life be a pleasing fragrance to You, reflecting the presence of Jesus within me. Thank You for accepting me, Lord. Help me to carry this assurance and live as one of Your people, bringing glory to Your name. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.