Find out what’s in a bottle of perfume

November 9, 2020 A Little Chilli

What’s in a bottle of perfume? I made some discoveries on that today. You see, the package of the perfume that I ordered online, arrived today. This perfume has marked my day and made it extra special. I let the perfume bring me on a fascinating journey, and I let it preach to me, too. I think I may need to order more perfume moving forward? There’s surely a lot more to a bottle of perfume than I thought.

My new bottle of perfume

I got a new bottle of perfume today! Without even having smelled it, I ordered it online. There was this lady on YouTube who was sharing so passionately about how much she loved this perfume, you see. I got curious, so I searched for it, and found that it was on sale! Which means I was doubly sold on this… I mean, who can withstand an alluring perfume on sale!? Yes, so the package arrived today, and I actually like it!

Top note: Blackcurrant and summer vibes

To me, the top note is blackcurrant, which brings me back to summers in Norway. Towards the end of every summer, we would gather around our berry bushes and pick berries for freezing or juicing for the winter. Picking berries is not exactly fun. It sure ingrains patience and discipline in any child asked to participate in the berry-picking task. But the smell is kind of intoxicating. I love the smell of blackcurrant, more than I love the taste of it.

Middle note: My grandmother

The middle note smells of white flowers. Jasmine, perhaps? And there’s also a scent that reminds me of my grandmother. It’s a mature woody scent, I guess. But my grandmother was quite a character, so to me the “old lady scent” is a good thing.

This brings me back to our visits at my grandma’s house. She was quite a large woman – in size and in her words. A straight-shooter, for sure. I loved the scent of freshly made coffee, and I would always stop to study the black and white photos on her wall. They brought me back to her precious memories and gave me peek into her bygone life.

Base note: Early romance and complicated love

My favourite part about my new perfume is that the base note smells like the perfume my first boy-friend sent me all the way from the USA back in the days. He was there on exchange. We were both only 17 years old and in a long-distance relationship; Early romance and complicated love. (That time there was no internet, meaning there was no easy and cheap way to stay in touch with each other. We wrote letters, and it took at least a week to reach!)

I suspect that it was his mom who picked that perfume out for me while she was there on a visit, though. (But I get it, I would have helped out my 17 year old son with such things, too. hehe) I loved that perfume. The scent would always remind me of him. And his mom. Because his mom wore that perfume, too. Hilarious. We broke up, got together again a year later, and I ended up marrying him. But not because of the perfume.

Wow, there are so many memories tied to smells! My new bottle of perfume really made my day special by bringing up all these precious moments and seasons of my life. I think I may need to order perfume more often!?

Perfumed expression of love and thanks

All this perfume-talk brings me to the story of the woman who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, and poured fragrant oil / perfume on his feet. (You can read the whole story here.)

I mean, the whole event sounds a little peculiar, but it was a powerful expression of her love and thanks to Jesus. I can imagine the strong smell of expensive perfume in that room. And the message that went with that scent was:

“I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.”
Luke 7:47-48 NLT

Anyone who has heavy burdens of sin, regrets and shame, knows the unspeakable joy of being forgiven!

Heart note: The scent of forgiveness

I was her. So weighed down by shame. Totally sin-conscious. The day I heard the great news: That Jesus had taken the punishment for my sins. That since He was punished for them, there was no point for me to be carrying them around anymore. Oh, I was too overwhelmed to speak, so full of thanks that I cried. Yes, it was the ugly-cry that we all want to avoid. Years and years of condemnation was lifted off. I felt I could breathe again, rejoice again, love again. And my heart melted towards Jesus. How could He be so kind to me?

The pastor continued: “God sees you holy and BLAMELESS, as if sin never existed. Heaven is your home.” I couldn’t grasp that idea at all. I thought I had to improve to ever get to be in heaven some day. But this pastor declared that I was already worthy of heaven because of Jesus.

I will never forget that moment. And my life was turned right-side up. (Mind you, I have been a believer all my life, but I had never heard this Gospel of grace before.)

This lady in Luke 7 was having that kind of a moment. Her heart was just so grateful, yearning to express her thanks and love to Jesus. She was forgiven! Free! Loved!

And for the rest of this lady’s life, this perfume would remind her of this moment, this truth, this crux of the Gospel: the lovely Person of Jesus and the rescue from the grip of sin and hopelessness, and the rescue to the embrace of His righteousness.