Don't you just love that new car smell? It is so refreshing! It is such a treat! Even when you are enjoying the aroma of a car fresh off the assembly line you know that the aroma will soon be gone. The new car smell will be ushered right out the window as life takes over in the confines of your vehicle: eating lunch on the go, busing kids to and from school, making long trips to visit family. The routine of life takes its toll on your car and certainly on the new car smell. But it is fun while it lasts, even if it only lasts a few days. Maybe a week if you're lucky.
Will you like what you purchased when the inticing new car scent wears off? Or will you be eyeing up the newest model in the first row of the dealer's lot when reality sets in that your new car isn't so new anymore?
In life, we have to be content with the "dull" parts of life. If we are always looking for the next excitement then we are missing out on the life God has set before us. Your daily life may seem monotonous and lackluster - nothing to see here. Is that okay with you? Can you be content in that?
Or are you always on the hunt for the next flash of exhilaration? Are you living for the next emotional high that comes from a a new romance, new job, financial blessing or material possession?
Are you living for the new car smell, only to grow uninterested and bored when it wears off?
The majority of our life will be spent with a car that doesn't have that clean and fresh aroma. Our life will be spent in much the same way. I hope that your life doesn't actually stink, just like I hope your car doesn't actually stink, but there will be many days, weeks and months that feel like you are simply set on repeat. You have your routine. Nothing new on the horizon. This is when life runs the risk of getting stale and our attitude may become sour. The temptation exists for us to lose our zest and passion for life. We can become complainers. If we don't actively complain then maybe we just lack an attitude of thanks. We don't see anything thrilling happening so we get stuck in a rut, losing our joy in the process.
The true test of where our joy is found is not in the moments of abundant blessing and exciting life adventure. No, real joy is shown in the the moments when nothing seems to be happening. We get the opportunity to show the world the true definition and source of joy when, by the world's standards, we don't have anything to be joyful about.
This is when God can shine through us. When we are getting what we want where is the testimony? Of course it is easy to be joyful in those circumstances. It is easy to be excited about our car when it smells new and looks shiny.
Where does your joy come from? Are you looking for the momentary, fleeting excitements the world has to offer to satisfy your craving for elation and joy? Or are you filled to the overflowing simply because you are a saved, redeemed, justified, loved, cherished and special child of God? Is that enough to keep you content and satisfied?
God doesn't want your joy to come and go. The new car smell was meant to fade. Your joy was not. Your joy can be forever, unwavering and unchanging. To have that true joy it must be built on the firm foundation found only in the blood of Jesus Christ. Nothing on this earth will ever be able to satisfy the longing of our hearts. He alone can give us abundant joy that will never end.
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