L I F E W I R E

by Kelly Moran

for 8 November 1995

A Smelly Problem

It made the news last week when a fellow in Farmington, Maine rescued a skunk.

The skunk was digging around in some garbage outside a supermarket. It was early in the morning Saturday. Mike Marcotte was working the overnight shift in the produce department. On a trip to the trash enclosure, Mike noticed the skunk.

The skunk had managed to squeeze his head into a jar. Then it couldn't get out.

When Mike told his co-workers inside, someone called the police. (This may one day be on an episode of 9-1-1; can you see it?)

Mike was worried the skunk would suffocate in the jar. So, he took matters into his own hands. He summoned up his courage, reached down and tugged on the jar. It did not come loose.

Then another tug. The jar came off and Mike took off running.

The skunk wandered off, without leaving a hint of its spray behind.

Mike later remembered that he was attending a wedding later on Saturday, and wasn't quite sure of the wisdom of his bravery.

(Sniff) Ahh!

Occasionally, driving through a rather rural stretch of road on the way to my house, I smell a skunk. It's incredible to me that a skunk can spray into the air, and the smell lingers. It doesn't seem to dissipate as you would think.

One annoyed skunk lifts his tail and sprays a few molecules of his built-in defense mechanism. It can spray as far as ten feet, but once airborne the smell lingers. Shouldn't the small quantity of odor disperse in a large quantity of air?

The reason it doesn't is twofold. First, the spray of the average striped skunk contains an extraordinary concentration of odor. Second, noses are extremely sensitive and can pick up an incredibly small quantity of an odorous substance.

When concentrated odor and sensitive noses get together, you notice! And so does everyone else. You really wouldn't be able to attend a wedding later in the day, if the skunk really managed to get you.

A Putrid Odor

When Jesus spoke in a vision to the Apostle John, he mentioned the church in Laodicea. They were uncommitted Christians; not really advancing the cause of Christ, but not fighting it either. Jesus was disgusted. "I am about to spit you out of my mouth," he cried.

Jesus then says, "You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked." (Revelation 3:17)

Don't ever think you can solve all your own problems. We all have our heads stuck in the jar that represents our own sinful natures. We desperately need to be rescued.

The temptation is to think that we won't bother God with the little things; only the big ones. How can you trust God with your career change if you can't trust Him with your pocket change?

Smells are classified into seven different categories, like the musk odors or peppermint odors. I believe the smell of the skunk falls into the category called putrid. Doesn't putrid sound appropriate?

To God, our sin (not our selves) is putrid. If we don't allow God to purify our lives, we are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. Any one of these five things would be a tragedy in itself, but without God, we are all five: wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

Yet God took a chance to rescue me. The evil in me is so highly concentrated and God is so perfectly sensitive to sin, nothing could be a greater risk for Him. And yet, he loved me (not my sin) enough to die.

Paul wrote, "When you were spiritually dead because of your sins and because you were not free from the power of your sinful self, God made you alive with Christ, and he forgave all our sins." (Colossians 2:13 - NCV)

God, purify me. I need you desperately.

Published weekly for 4 years and 5 weeks.

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All Scripture references are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version (unless otherwise noted).