The Oily Devo 2: A Devotional for Essential Oil Lovers about Trees of the Bible: The Oily Devo

By Amie Lech

Every tree mentioned in the Holy Bible was given for a reason. Why did Solomon use Cedars of Lebanon in the Temple? Why did Hagar cry under the broom tree? Why was Jesus given Frankincense and Myrrh by the three wise men?

 

There are no coincidences with God and every mention of a tree was given on purpose for our edification. Join us as we learn the purpose of each. This topical study will open our eyes and heart to see just how good God is. We will see how He provided for the people during the Bible and how He still provides for us today.

 

On our thirty day journey, we will use essential oils of the trees we study to bring another level of awareness to our prayers and the time we spend meditating on the Word. So grab your pencil (because there is a one page homework per day), your essential oils, your Bible, and this book as you learn how each tree was to be for the healing of the nations.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amie Lech
• Release date: May 4, 2021
• ISBN: 9781737061618

Book preview

1 SET YOUR MIND ON THINGS ABOVE

This year has been weird. I’m hesitant to say rough because I don’t like speaking negatively, but it’s definitely been weird. A year for the books. Lives have been completely shaken. Foundations have cracked. Unprecedented is the oft-repeated word.

Everyone I’ve talked to has had similar experiences. But something is shifting. Change is in the air and God is on the move. To be honest, it scares me. When things go too fast, I tend to put on the brakes. I stop so I can process and take in what’s happening. I need to reflect and wrap my head around my new reality.

Sometimes I don’t want to accept that new reality. Sometimes it’s too painful. So I’ll read or start binge watching something on Netflix. Next thing I know, months have passed, and nothing has been done to further the kingdom of God.

No lives were changed for the better because I was too wrapped up in ignoring my reality. When I start to get overwhelmed by life, by relationships, or by work, I either become obsessed with my hobbies or totally ignore them. I develop singular focus and lose the ability to balance.

Am I the only one who gets like this? Do you? Do you try to regroup and reflect only to get stuck, blink, and then realize that months have flown by?

Psalm 1:1-2 says, Blessed is the one who does not walk in the step with the wicked, or stand in the way sinner’s take, or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.

I don’t want to sit anymore. I want to get up and walk the path God has set for me. That’s what I pray this devotional is. Accountability to meditate on His word day and night.

I want to be a tree planted by the streams of water which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. (Psalm 1:3) I want to prosper and further the kingdom of God every day. I can’t do that if my butt is planted on my couch.

I’ve been researching (aka obsessing) over trees in the Bible all year long. Every time I would come to a verse about trees, I would go down the rabbit hole to find out why that tree was mentioned. Why not another tree? Why mention it by name at all?

As the months went on, I felt in my bones that a book about trees of the Bible was what God wanted me to do. This was solidified at a Convention I attended in Utah in the summer. As I sat under the birch trees, I felt the breeze on my cheeks and the soft grass between my toes and reflected on an interesting conversation I’d had with a woman and her husband from Michigan. 

She said that when God sends her signs and wonders, she sees birds. Every major event in her life was marked by a bird and each bird had a specific message. By meeting them, I saw that God likes to point out trees to me. And God doesn’t do things just for the fun of it. He does everything for a reason. So why trees?

God is so funny. He will send people into your path to bless you when you don’t even know you need it. Likewise, He will send people to YOU who need to hear you, see you, and be blessed by you. You have to be faithful in reaching them. WE need to be faithful. Even when life is tough.

In January 2015, we lost my husband’s paternal grandmother. The years since have been marked by weird vibes, crazy emotions, and unexpected changes. Grief is hard. To everything there is a season. I—of all people—get that. In three years, we lost almost a dozen family and friends. And in the three years since, other tragedies have happened, including the pandemic. I almost ruined my marriage because I was grieving. It’s hard and emotions run rampant, like a lifeboat in a hurricane.

Heartache doesn’t have to stay around forever though. Through this devotional, I pray that you hear God whisper to you. I pray that you have eyes to see and ears to hear Him, that He pours into your spirit and sends the Comforter to touch your heart. I pray that He sends people like the couple from Michigan who will speak to your heart.

We are going to work through our hurts to find healing in the arms of God. Change is good. It’s cathartic. It’s a process. Romans 8:28 says, We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

God doesn’t send the bad things to us. But He will use it for our good and through us, He’ll use it to help others. He will use these hurts to heal nations because of the power in the word of our testimonies. I do not thank God for the trials, the tears, or the heartache. I thank Him for bringing something good out of the fiery furnace.

There will be homework with each devotional day. I’m a teacher by trade. Writing homework will help you process through some of the emotions that may be holding you back from fulfilling your God purpose. It’s what helped me get through all the tragedies of the past few years.

What you put in you will get out.  Open your heart to Him and let Him work in you a good work. Change is worth it.

I’m not a doctor or a theologian. I’m just a teacher, wife, mama, author, health/life//career/homeschool coach, oil fanatic, and Jesus freak.  I’m a pretty good researcher and writer too. I assumed for years that these gifts were pointless, but perhaps He gave them to me for such a time as this.

If you come into this devotional with your mind set on the things above, you’ve come to the right place. If you’re here, crying out to God for help out of the miry pit, you’ve come to the right place.

Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17 KJV) God gave me these talents and laid this tree thing on my heart for a reason. He wants me to share this with you. Even though it may be scary for me to do, I will be faithful.

Will you be faithful too? Will you commit to doing this devotional every day for the next 30 days? It’s going to get real, maybe even a bit raw. We’re going to rip away Band-Aids we’ve placed time and time again over our mind and heart that may be keeping a wall of separation between us and God.

I’ve been there. I might still be there, but it’s getting better. We’re going to seek Him together and find Him in His Word and in his Creation.

God didn’t just discuss trees in the Bible for fun; the trees were meant to be for the healing of the nations. (Revelation 22:2) In the homework section, we will use essential oils to help open our minds to see and hear God. They are a tool to help us connect with Him. You can absolutely do this devotional without the oils. I have found the most personal success by combining them though. If you do not have a specific oil, grab Frankincense, Myrrh, or whatever woodsy oils you have. Use what God’s blessed you with!

I pray that God gives us eyes to see and ears to hear the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Let us obey immediately when the Spirit whispers to us to do something, even something as seemingly innocent as getting off the couch. Let us start walking the path of the righteous and go where He sends us. I pray that God uses my words to help us both heal the hurts from the past. May He give me the words to say in every situation and guard my tongue, letting it speak only life.

I am done sitting with scoffers. I am done sitting on the sidelines, staying home and being silent. Let me get up and run a good race! Let me move and create energy in every area of my life. Energy that brings healing and peace. And may you find that too.

Homework

How does God speak to you? Do you hear Him most when you’re doing a certain activity? My sister hears Him when she sings while doing dishes. I hear Him when I’m sitting under a tree in the woods. The woman from Michigan hears Him through birds and another friend hears Him through flying insects. Hey, to each there own, right? We each have gifts that are different and we each hear Him differently too. So how do you hear Him?

What are some current hurts that you need God to heal in your life through this devotional? Cry out to Him. Share with Him what miracles you need, what changes you need to make.

Oil up, buttercup! Essential oils can be quite powerful. They not only help support the physical body but they can also help break through emotional and spiritual barriers that are separating you from God. So grab your favorite essential oil—Frankincense or Myrrh are mine!

Essential oils are made from the tiniest part of the plant and break through the blood-brain barrier. They’ve been used for thousands of years and were man’s first medicines. The Bible lists 33 oils by name and references essential oils over 600 times. They were always, always mentioned for a specific reason.

For example, Leviticus 14:17 says, The priest is to put some of the oil remaining in his palm on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot, on top of the blood of the guilt offering. Rub your oil on the outside of your ear, your hand, or your big toes!

The ancient Israelites did this everyday (with blood and oil) for seven days to create a holy and pure heart within the priests. The blood washed away sins and the oil erased the desire to sin. It had to be repeated. They had to be consistent, so the desire to follow only God would stick in the deepest fiber of their being and cells. We’re going to develop a habit of using oils; a physical habit that will give us a spiritual reminder to pray and fellowship with God.

Pray: God, create in me a clean heart. I want clean ears to hear you better. I want clean hands so that everything I put my hands to will prosper for you. I want clean feet so that everywhere I go I can spread the good news of how awesome you are.

Heal my hurt, God. My heart is broken and I’m tired. But I want to move for you. I want to be a vessel of good to the world. Use me, God. I’m so thankful for you, for:

2 WHY TREES?

This year has been rough. Perhaps you’ve had a rough year too. Perhaps you’ve been going through a dark spot, a valley. Maybe you’ve been feeling the waves of a tsunami beat against you, over and over, and it’s all you can do to sit on the couch.

But God has so much more in store for you! As much as I love my kids, God loves me more. He wants to lavish us with gifts, talents, presents, and His love. He loves us both so much that He sent His Son to die for us on the cross.

Sometimes hard things happen in our lives. It’s not that God let it happen to us. It’s not that Satan attacked us. It’s just that hard things happen in life because sin entered this world and we are not blameless. We are not sinless.

Admittedly, Satan did send bad things to Job. But even Job 2:10 says, Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble? Job didn’t know why he lost his business, his wife, his children, his home, his health, and more. But in all of it, he trusted God. Do you?

Throughout the Bible, we are directed to be like a tree planted beside the waters, bearing fruit for the kingdom of God (Psalm 1:3). Job goes on to say at least there is hope for a tree: If it is cut down, it will sprout again, and its new shoots will not fail. Its roots may grow old in the ground and its stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth shoots like a plant. (Job 14:7-9)

So if we are to be like a tree, we are to stand tall in our trials. We are to bear fruit for Him in spite of whatever else is going on in our lives. It is my hope that this book is the scent of water for you. Through completing this devotional, I pray you will spring up and bud with new growth.

It’s not going to be easy. Things will still happen. But how are we going to respond? We can only control so much in life. We can’t control the loss of our loved ones, loss of homes or jobs, family or friends’ choices that impact us. We can’t control diseases like COVID-19.

But we can control how much we rely on God. We can choose joy every day, regardless of what’s going on in life. We can choose to keep sharing the good news of the loving Father in Heaven with others.

Psalm 16:11 says, You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. When things don’t make sense, when we cry out to God and seek answers in His word, we are drawing close to Him.

When we’re close, we’re within range of His arms. Being at His right hand means we are within hugging distance. Do you want to be within hugging distance of God? He can then shelter us from the storms of life when we’re close. Read this out loud:

Psalm 91

¹ Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High

will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

² I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my  fortress, my God, in whom I trust.

³ Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare  and from the deadly pestilence.

⁴ He will cover you with his feathers, and under  his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness   will be your shield and rampart.

⁵ You will not fear the terror of night,

nor the arrow that flies by day,

⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,

nor the plague that destroys at midday.

⁷ A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at  your right hand, but it will not come near you.

⁸ You will only observe with your eyes and see the   punishment of the wicked.

⁹ If you say, The Lord is my refuge,

and you make the Most High your dwelling,

¹⁰ no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come   near your tent.

¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you

to guard you in all your ways;

¹² they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a  stone.

¹³ You will tread on the lion and the cobra;

you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

¹⁴ Because he loves me, says the Lord, "I will   rescue him; I will protect him, for he   acknowledges my name.

¹⁵ He will call on me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him  and honor him.

¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him and show him   my salvation."

That was just too good not to share the whole chapter! Do you see? God said, Because he loves me, I will rescue him. He is a loving, good Father who wants to wrap His arms around you and protect you! But to do that, He has to know that you love Him. So how are you showing Him your love? Are you showing Him by going to church every week?

Ok, great. What else? Are you reading the Word every day? This is something that I’ve struggled with. I get sucked into my own head, my own worries, my own busy schedule and I don’t take the time to do the thing that should be #1 on my list every morning: spending time with God.

When we read His word and dig in, we come to know His still, small voice. When we talk to someone on the phone, we come to recognize their voice, right? But if we’ve never talked to them—or don’t talk to them often—we won’t recognize their voice.

If we don’t recognize His voice, how will we be within hugging distance? Do you hug strangers? Or friends and family whom you know the voice of?

Another way to show God how much we love Him is to love our neighbor. Jesus said the most important commandment was to "love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: Love