MISSION'S STORIES

Publishing God's stories among the nations.

Did you know that your nose remembers things? Our sense of smell is closely linked with memory, probably more so than any of our other senses. The smell of freshly cut grass, for example, always brings back memories of my childhood and my endeavor to become a professional soccer player.

While that career didn’t work out, all these years later the smell of a mowed lawn still stirs up memories of the locker room before the game: the nervousness I felt, the desire to perform well on the field, and the peer pressure among the boys on the team.

I have lived in the USA now for almost 20 years. But I grew up in Germany for the first 20 years of my life. Now, when I go back to Germany to visit my family there, certain smells always bring up memories of my childhood.

Several years ago, after I had left Germany to join YWAM in full-time missions in the USA, I returned home for a visit. After wrestling with jet lag a bit, I got up the next morning to find a basket of freshly baked pretzels on the table in the dining room. As soon as I smelled them, I felt like a 12-year-old boy again, sitting around my mom’s table. It was the strangest yet most comforting sensation.

I always found it interesting that David chose to include the nose in his description of idols in Psalm 115.

Idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have…noses, but do not smell…Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them. - Psalm 115

It always seemed random, until my pretzel encounter that day. Idols don’t care about your memories; they want to destroy your future. The enemy doesn’t care about your past; he wants to rob you of your destiny. The accuser doesn’t spend time remembering the good times you had. He doesn’t care about your pain or the joys you’ve experienced. All he wants to do is to make sure you are stripped of your ability to live as an image bearer of God, fully alive and full of life.

worship-ywam-missionary-people-kneeling-inspire

Idols don’t have a nose; they don’t have the ability to share in your tears and in your laughter. But God does. In fact, He writes it all down. He experiences life with us, and He walks right beside us. He is the parakletos, the one who is called alongside of us, our comforter, the one who consoles and guides-- the one who, above all, longs to be in relationship with us.

Perhaps sometimes it fills us with discomfort to think God writes it all down, all our thoughts and emotions, every word we speak, and every act. Perhaps we do not look forward to the day when we stand in front of Him and He opens that book. But perhaps He really is full of compassion and mercy, and He really does enjoy it when we are fully alive in Him.

worship-ywam-missionary-amy-bang-inspire

Perhaps He really does forgive the repentant sinner and restores our souls. Perhaps the first thing that He will read from the book when I stand in front of Him could be: “Son, you really enjoyed those pretzels when you were a kid, didn’t you?”

Perhaps He chooses to really forget the sins of our youth and rejoice in the life He gave us. Perhaps those moments really do matter when we choose to fully surrender to Him, to remember Him, and to worship Him as He is, and perhaps they make the deepest and eternal imprint in the ongoing narrative of our lives.

While idolatry distracts us from life and liberty, worship helps our memory. The psalmist in Psalm 22 declares that we need to first remember our great God, and then we can turn to Him.

Idols don’t have a nose, and they can’t remember and don’t care about memories. Why are we so quick, then, to replace the beauty, the intensity, and the splendor of His presence with some man-made idols that can’t even smell?

worship-ywam-missionary-people-inspire-hands

When we spend time with God, especially in worship reflecting His image back to Him and to the world around us, we make memories with Him. We experience God, and God experiences us (Galatians 4:8). We grow in empathy toward others and in awareness toward God and His purposes. The Apostle Paul says to believers in 1 Corinthians 10:14, “Flee from idolatry.” He knew that idolatry simply doesn't make sense.

Let's worship Jesus!

 

Take your journey with Jesus to the next level and join the next Worship Discipleship School. This training is true life transformation with Jesus. 

Learn More

 

Are you following us on YouTube? Watch this 2:29 second video of Josh sharing about Worship as proof for the existence of God.

Josh Langer

Written by Josh Langer

Josh Langer, born in Germany and a missionary with YWAM since 2002, loves Jesus, people, worship, the nations, and Schnitzel! He is married and has three kids and is passionate about inspiring others.

1 min read

Helping Victims of the Morocco Earthquake

On September 8th, a 6.8 earthquake killed over 2900 people and left many thousands homeless. According to multiple...

2 min read

What I Didn't Expecting During My YWAM DTS

With tears in my eyes, I pulled down the door of the Budget rental truck, said goodbye to my apartment, and heard God...

3 min read

Trusting God To Make A Way

Sometimes the best thing a leader can do is tell you to seek Jesus for yourself. In reality, as Christians, we...
2 min read

Hope for Maui Amid the Fire

As news spread across America about the wildfires in Maui, we have been postured in prayer for our friends and family...

2 min read

Spiritual Leadership for the Next Generation

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by the weight of responsibility? Being a leader is far from easy but if God called you to...

2 min read

All or Nothing

Do you remember the day Jesus became real to you?

When I hear the lyrics to "When You Walk Into The Room" play...

3 min read

I Am Not Disqualified.

It is well with my soul . . . Really?

I’ve heard these words many times. Something about them stands out to me, but can...

2 min read

Overcoming Lies through Discipleship

I never thought I’d experience the freedom that I so desperately prayed for when I was younger. Believing every lie the...

2 min read

Fear Doesn't Have To Derail You From Fulfilling Your Purpose

Is God calling you to step out in faith and apply for a Discipleship Training School (DTS), but fear keeps kicking you...

3 min read

Nana Taught Me Almost Everything About Jesus

Is it just me, or does every generation go through a season of life believing they know it all? Even the Apostle Paul...

2 min read

Trusting God for the Impossible

With little to no money towards her outreach, Emma Hamlin experiences a financial miracle. There is freedom that comes...

2 min read

Being Comfortable with Silence

Mae sat next to me on the passenger side of the car. The silence was thick in the air between us as we drove home. As...