CANDLES THAT SMELL LIKE JESUS

Did you know you can buy candles that smell like Jesus? A South Dakota couple is selling them in about 150 stores and over the internet at www.hisessence.com.

The couple, Bob and Karen Tosterud, got the formula--a mixture of myrrh, aloe, and cassia--from a verse in Psalm 45 that describes how Christ's garments will smell when he returns. They blended them into a candle they call "The Essence."

"We see it as a ministry," they say. "We wanted people to be able to experience Christ in new ways and to be able to read a bible and have that scent as a reminder that he is with us all the time."

The Tosteruds say this gives a whole new dimension to a person's relationship with Jesus. You can't see him or touch him, but now thanks to them, you can smell him. So far they have sold about 10,000 of these candles at $18 apiece.

This isn't really my idea of what Jesus smelled like. He lived in a hot desert country and traveled everywhere by foot, so he would have been all dusty and sweaty. And he hung out with fishermen and shepherds and common workers, and probably smelled a lot like fish guts and sheep dung. Remember the prostitute that poured her perfume all over him? Don't you think there was some reason for this?

I think Jesus had a bad case of B.O. But it was an honest, earthy smell, just like his message. The important people back then didn't get it, and they still don't. If you want to read your Bible and smell something that reminds you of Jesus, find somebody that can make a candle that is a mixture of fish guts, sheep dung, and sweat. And oh yeah, don't forget some blood.