A guest post by Karen Castleberry . . .
The unhealed parts of our hearts do affect people around us. I didn’t really believe that statement fully until this past spring when a potential tragedy occurred at my workplace. I am an administrative assistant at a school with 400 students and 60 employees.
The bell rang to start the school day when a teacher rushed up to the front desk and said with alarm, “I smell gas, do you?” The receptionist called the Principals to the area who smelled gas too, so they immediately evacuated the building. A gas leak was discovered in the pipes in the ceiling of our building. Due to a teacher’s sense of smell, a tragedy was averted. That day helped me to realize the importance of being able to smell.
I had lost my sense of smell 24 years ago during the birth of my son. Or so I had thought.
Shortly after the gas leak occurred, I sent a picture of mountain laurels beside a beautiful mountain stream to a friend who is moving to the area from California. She asked what they smelled like. I told her I didn’t know because I can’t smell anything. She asked if I would like to have a prayer ministry session and ask the Lord what is the root cause of me not being able to smell. Realizing how important smell can be, I said yes.
We belong to a community of Christians called The Journey. In our daily walk through life, one of the aspects of our group is to come alongside of each other to help heal the wounded places of our hearts. I thought my lost sense of smell was a physical problem, so it didn’t occur to me to ask the Lord for the root of it.
It is always amazing to be able to come before the Lord in a safe place with a Christian friend to navigate back to the root of a problem. During this session the Lord revealed to me the root of why I couldn’t smell.
During my pregnancy my sense of smell was very keen. So much so that it became alarming. I could smell everything, and it was causing my nausea to escalate into vomiting beyond the first trimester. I became scared for the health of my unborn son when this continued.
In my prayer ministry session, God revealed I had made a judgment in my heart during my pregnancy. I judged my sense of smell was causing me to throw up and put my son in danger. I made a vow that resulted in my body turning off my sense of smell. During prayer ministry, I renounced, repented, and asked the Lord for forgiveness.
Shortly after God had revealed the root cause of my inability to smell, my niece invited me to go to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. We passed by a section in the garden of plants that have beautiful aromas. Knowing the story of God restoring my sense of smell, she asked if I had smelled any of the flowers. Bending over a Rosemary plant, much to my delight I breathed in its beautiful aroma.
My sense of smell was returning, but I was puzzled. In telling another friend in our tribe about God restoring my sense of smell, I wondered why it didn’t return all at once. She smiled and said, “It would be overwhelming to suddenly smell when for so long you couldn’t.” My friend continued, “God is so kind to restore you gently.”
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Karen Castleberry is a Missionary of Prayer. She lives with her husband, Gary, and 2 dogs, in a little cottage nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains of North Georgia. Their son, Jeremiah, lives and works nearby. Karen loves reading, writing, photography, knitting, and all things creative. Her greatest joy in life is spending time with Jesus, her family and friends.
