About the Book
Book Title: The Essence of Joy
Author: Lynn U. Watson
Release Date: October 12, 2017
Genre: Women’s Devotional; Women’s Inspiration; Christmas/Advent Devotional
It’s Christmas in March!
The scents of Christmas invite our imaginations into the holiday season. What emotions flood your heart when the holiday aromas waft your way?
Did you know:
- Many favorite holiday scents like cinnamon, citrus, and cinnamon are found in the Bible?
- There is a rich heart connection attached to many of the plant essences found in Scripture?
- Myrrh is such an important essence, we can follow its trail from Genesis to Revelation with many significant stops along the way?
- Women of the Bible have personal encounters with God bringing aromas of His love and joy into their lives?
- Palm branches are an important part of Biblical celebrations beginning in Genesis and ending in the ultimate beach party around the Crystal Sea? (Christmas at the beach, anyone?)
In The Essence of Joy you’ll meet women of the Bible and contemporary women like you and me who will encourage you to discover the refreshing essence of a life lived in the presence of Jesus. Let JOY fill your heart with the aromas of His nativity.
Watch the book trailer here!
Click here to get your copy!
About the Author
Lynn Watson combines many years’ experience in women’s ministry, love of essential oils, and her passion for God’s word to bring her readers freshly inspired encouragement for their walk with Jesus. Her devotional, The Essence of Courage, was recognized as a ‘must read’ by regional publishing industry leaders. Married since 1973, Lynn and Steve have filled their Bartlett, Tennessee home with handmade treasures and lots of love for family, especially their five beautiful (of course) grandchildren. Aromas of freshly baked bread often fill Lynn’s kitchen. Jasmine, her tuxedo kitty, enjoys sleeping in Lynn’s lap while she writes.
Guest Post from Lynn Watson
A walk down memory lane on a snowy day (today) transported my thoughts to a Christmas shop our children and I visited every year. Open only for the holiday season, rich aromas reached out and drew you into this wonderland. The owners filled the space with unique treasures. A few we chose years ago remain prized member of my Christmas favorites close to four decades later.
My debut encounter with essential oils came many years later. I loved their aromas (including many of those Christmas scents) and studied their aromatic influences and potential benefits. Bible verses jumped to life in new ways. God created all plants and inspired the Biblical authors to include many. The desire to share my discoveries burned in my heart, until God finally released me to publish The Essence of Courage in December 2016. Before I completed the devotional based on Solomon’s locked garden in Song of Solomon 4:12-15, God reminded me just how many aromas and tastes of the Christmas season are found in the pages of His word, too.
Cinnamon, cedarwood, mint, citrus, myrrh, frankincense, rose, and figs are found in the pages of Scripture. So, are palms. They may not appear Christmasy unless you favor a tropical holiday, but they are an integral part of celebration in the Bible. The Essence of Joy offers discoveries of connections of all this plant life to Jesus’ nativity.
Looking back a dozen years to my first not-quite-inspired imaginings of a devotional book with aromatic offerings, I’m grateful God chose different timing. He presented me an unusual format for the collection. — one of those things easier experienced than explained. Contemporary women’s very real stories (fictionalized and often combined to create anonymity), stories from very real women living on the pages of Scripture, and a focused look at the botanical and its aromas, flavors, and essences as found in the Bible, are topped off with icing on the cake: ‘Fun Facts” and ‘Your Turn’ to invite the reader to more than read – to participate.
In The Essence of Joy you’ll encounter Scriptures in ways you had not considered before. Your faith will be enriched and stretched as you relate to the ancient women of the Bible and those that may be your next door neighbor today. You’ll be encouraged to breathe in the aromas of Jesus’ nativity, sample goodies from The Coffee Cottage’s specials of the day, and tune in to musical selections welcoming you into a posture of worship. I’m praying you are filled with His joy!
NOTE: Cinnamah-Brosia, the owner of The Coffee Cottage in the fictional stories asks readers at the very beginning of the book to be sure to read the introductory material. It helps set the stage for the book’s character and personality.
This book was quite different from anything I have read before. I struggled at first trying to understand how the book was laid out. As I began to read more, a light bulb came on. This was going to be a book that would help bring joy back to my life. The different fragrances explained in the book was interesting and I thought it was informative. Smells can bring back memories that are wonderful to remember. In the Bible I have read lots of times about myrrh but never really thought much about it.
I did enjoy the stories that were shared about different people and their experiences with miracles, forgiveness and joy. One particular story really stood out to me. It was the story about forgiveness. I related to it because I was abused as a child. It has been the hardest thing to overcome. I loved how the story showed how the mother was desperate to receive forgiveness from her daughter. It reminds me of how much we want to be forgiven by God. He forgives quickly, but we sometimes don’t believe it and spiral out of control.
Peppermint is my favorite flavor next to lemon. Everything about peppermint gives me a sense of calm. I love its aroma and taste. It reminds me of a time I was at my Aunt Ida’s place. One Saturday she said she was going to make homemade peppermint ice cream. I had never had it before and with one taste, I knew this would be my favorite ice cream. It is hard to find except at Christmas time . But the essence of peppermint is easy to attain. It helps you to breathe when you have a cold and calms you when you need it. Each personal story ties into a fragrance that enhances a story found in the Bible. I liked how the author was able to relate different fragrances to people like the woman at the well and the story of Joseph and his coat of many colors. It is a very informative book and has scriptures that you can study on to coincide with the different fragrances. Overall I liked the book and learned a great deal about fragrances and what they are used for,
I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.
Blog Stops
Multifarious, March 3
Carpe Diem, March 4
A Baker’s Perspective, March 5
Blossoms and Blessings, March 6
Mary Hake, March 6
proud to be an autism mom, March 7
Bigreadersite, March 7
Texas Book-aholic, March 8
Seasons of Opportunities, March 9
Reading is my Super Power, March 9 (Interview)
Bibliophile Reviews, March 10
A Greater Yes, March 11
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 11
Janices book reviews, March 12
Jeanette’s Thoughts, March 12
Pursuing Stacie, March 13
Aryn the Libraryan, March 14
Simple Harvest Reads, March 15 (Guest post from Mindy)
margaret kazmierczak, March 15 (Interview)
Pause for Tales, March 16
Giveaway
To celebrate her tour, Lynn is giving away a grand prize of a “Choose Joy” hand made necklace, a “Cups of Joy” (adult coloring book) + set of 24 prismacolor colored pencils, a “Choose Joy Today” stamped silver-plated teaspoon,
flower Seeds, raspberry tea (it’s in the Cinnamah-Brosia story in the “Mint/Giving” section), a “Choose Joy” tote bag, and a signed copy of “The Essence of Joy”!!
flower Seeds, raspberry tea (it’s in the Cinnamah-Brosia story in the “Mint/Giving” section), a “Choose Joy” tote bag, and a signed copy of “The Essence of Joy”!!
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/ca47
Chautona Havig lives and writes in California’s Mojave Desert where she uses story to point readers to the Master Storyteller.
Title: 
Carla Laureano is the RITA® Award-winning author of contemporary inspirational romance and Celtic fantasy (as C.E. Laureano). A graduate of Pepperdine University, she worked as a sales and marketing executive for nearly a decade before leaving corporate life behind to write fiction full-time. She currently lives in Denver with her husband and two sons, where she writes during the day and cooks things at night.
Carrie Turansky has loved reading since she first visited the library as a young child and checked out a tall stack of picture books. Her love for writing began when she penned her first novel at age twelve. She is now the award-winning author of nineteen inspirational romance novels and novellas. Carrie and her husband, Scott, who is a pastor, author, and speaker, have been married for more than thirty years and make their home in New Jersey. They often travel together on ministry trips and to visit their five adult children and five grandchildren. Carrie leads women’s ministry at her church, and when she is not writing she enjoys spending time working in her flower gardens and cooking healthy meals for friends and family. She loves to connect with reading friends through her website, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter.
In Across the Blue, Bella Grayson and James Drake both go to great lengths to pursue their dreams. Bella longs to become a journalist and write for one of her father’s newspapers, but in 1909 England, aristocratic young women did 
James is an aviation pioneer, and his dream is to build an airplane that will allow him to be the first to fly across the English Channel. This is no easy accomplishment, and he faces many challenges as he pursues his dream. Aviation is brand new. Wilbur Wright demonstrated his airplane in France the year before and stunned Europeans with his skill. With the help of his mentor, Professor Steed, James conducts experiments, refines his design, and makes countless test flights. It takes great courage and determination to overcome setbacks and make it through near fatal crash landings, but James has his heart and mind set on perfecting his airplane and reaching his goal.
What about you? What hopes and dreams do you have for your future? What goals would you like to accomplish? As you think about your dreams and future plans I hope you’ll gain some insight from James and Bella’s experiences in Across the Blue. When they considered the cost of pursuing their dreams they realized their plans and choices impacted others as well as themselves. James and Bella believed striving for their dreams is important, but they learned it must be balanced with commitments to family and friends, and most of all a commitment to following the Lord on the path He has for them.
Following our dreams and working toward accomplishing our goals, especially those the Lord puts on our heart, is important. However, sometimes we may have to put our dreams on hold and wait for the right time and season. We don’t need to be discouraged when this happens. As we listen to the Lord and ask Him to guide and direct us He will show us the right path at the right time to follow it.