Hubby got home from work the other night, and as he came in, he stopped. “Wow, what smells so good?”

I grinned. “I know,” I said, “isn’t that a great smell?”

He dropped his car keys and phone on the kitchen counter. “Burning scented candles again, huh?”

He knows my passion for candles that make my house smell pretty. But not this time. The fragrance didn’t come from a synthetic scent, from a man-made wax potion or fabricated fragrance.

It came from the real thing—a plant in our breakfast room that had blossomed into a honeysuckle flower.

That scent lingered for days and days, filling the house with a delightful fragrance. The scent was uniquely lovely, much more than the candles I had lit.

But that night another light shone a sad truth. How often we rely not in the real, authentic, but on the fake stuff. We trust and count in our jobs, in our health, our position, career, our bank account or even in relationships. And, like a store-bought candle, they give a fake sense of security, a synthetic sense of hope or happiness.

No wonder joy ends and peace vanishes. It’s all fake hope.

What great news it is to know that among all the imitations, we have the authentic, genuine source of hope that blossoms in our heart. “There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called—one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:4-6).

Father, the wisdom to differentiate which is the real fragrance of success, happiness and comfort brings freedom to my soul. In Jesus’s name, amen.

• Have you found the authentic source of joy?

• What kind of fragrance fills your soul these days?

• Where do you put your hope?

Janet Eckles Blindness tried to darken Janet’s life. And tragedy tried to defeat her through the murder of her youngest son followed by the acquittal of the man responsible. But instead of defeat, Janet found peace. And God’s grace brought sweet triumph. So Janet gathered insights, claimed God’s promises, and found practical steps to bring back joy. She put them all together for you in her latest book, Simply Salsa: Dancing Without Fear at God’s Fiesta.