The cultural phenomenon of “New Car Smell”, with my father working for Buick Motor Division of General Motors when I was born to another 40 years in the New Car Business, that New Car smell has a keen place in my sensual understanding of the inside of not just a car but my life to some extent. When I sit in any car I immediately have a sense of how that car has been cared for, loved really. Having sat in thousands and thousands of new cars and used cars I believe there is an olfactory give away to years of care or years of abuse or neglect.

Just go to a rent-a-car place like Hertz or Avis and sit in a few cars with varied mileages and take a big whiff, often they smell like wet socks, or stale smoke, then go back and sit in one that just came in and you will know exactly what I am talking about.

Like so many things in life there is no magic formula to new car smell, though I do get a kick out of the “Little Tree” car deodorizers that are labeled, “New Car Smell” sorry guys, it can’t be hung from the rear view mirror. The smell comes from love and will continue with love. You see Henry Ford, David Buick, Walter Chrysler and all there descendant designers, engineers and suppliers, loved their stuff, unfortunately they may even idolize it. With that comes a smell. The Bible is all too clear on this one.

Song of Songs 1:13
“My lover is my pouch of myrrh,
    passing the night between my breasts. “

Now that I have your full attention I’m sure, you gotta admit, that one beats new car smell. Ask any lover who ever received a perfumed letter. Yes love is accompanied sensually through an olfactory experience, no doubt. Did you ever get a perfumed letter, did you ever send one; perfumed letters..WOW!!!

The Beach Boys, Brian Wilson said it this way…

“I-I love the colorful clothes she wears
And the way the sunlight plays upon her hair
I hear the sound of a gentle word
On the wind that lifts her perfume through the air “

This week I really wanted to go deeper into the Song of Solomon verse above, and in prayer as I asked for insight: the Holy Spirit said to me, “DRINK”. At first that totally confused me, then I went with it looking up the first place you find drink in the Bible, it is in Genesis 19 where Lot’s daughters seduce him by having him “DRINK”, wine. Yep, I immediately thought about

Song of Songs 5:1
“I have come into my garden,
        my sister, my bride.
    I have gathered my myrrh with my spice.
    I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey.
    I have drunk my wine with my milk. “

There it is again, both the myrrh, the smell and yes drink is involved. I then though about the Beatitude: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” and the question I landed on was: “What are the specific ways we hunger versus the ways we thirst spiritually?” After some study I came away with these thoughts I believe you will find useful both with your new car smell but even more in your life with God and His children.

According to, Spurgeon, and I agree with him, when we eat something it becomes totally ours, once you have it going down your esophagus it’s totally yours, but then in the case of eating; for your body to get the nutrients you have to digest it. That is my experience with Bible Study and often deep conversations with my wife or children I have to digest a bit before I receive the benefit.

Drinking is different although drink does become yours as it goes down your esophagus as well, drink especially alcohol almost immediately passes through your stomach lining and goes directly into you blood stream, drink may make it to the beginnings of your small intestines but for the most part they provide an instant benefit. Such is intimacy and affection, I don’t have to digest a hug or a kiss, from my kids and Tammy, (my wife) can hold my hand and I get a WOWZERS.

So this led me to some real repenting needed on my part; I am not near affectionate enough around those I love causing them to require that their thirst be quenched elsewhere, and even there, do I point them to living water? Yes, that passage in the Song of Songs has everything thing to do with drink, affection and intimacy. The first drink each of us ever took was designed to come from a breast in phenomenal affection and intimacy, even if it cam from a bottle, it comes with affection and intimacy.

Think about the many, many pages about thirst, even Jesus first miracle and his 5th word from the cross, He too was thirsty for the Father’s affection there on the cross.

Father help us to get this, to be thirsty for the right affection and love and provide affection and love to quench our loved ones needs and point them to the source of it all… And yes TLC and your car will forever have that New Car Smell.