Camellia in an oil lamp base.

Camillia bloom towards the end of winter and what better container to put them in than the base of an old oil lamp. Bringing a little brightness to this grey day, as well as a combination to travel with. I love the Bible and have learnt a little more through this post about the Camellia plant.

First some biblical symbolic meanings of oil:

Empowerment- used to enable kings, priests and prophets for God’s service.

The Holy Spirit- represents the presence and power of God.

Healing and protection- ‘ And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.’ Mark6:13

Joy – ‘ You love right doing and hate wrong doing therefore your God has anointed you with the oil of gladness…’ Psalm 45:7

Readiness – The oil in the parable of the ten virgins ( Mathew 25: 1-13) symbolises being filled with the Holy Spirit and prepared for the Lord’s return.

The oil lamp with its five Camillia.

Now this is what I learnt about the Camellia plant. There are over 26,000 cultivars with more than 51,000 names and synonyms registered and published. The leaves of c.sinensis are processed to make tea. Our well loved breakfast drink.

Here are some advantages:

In moderation the caffein may improve heart health, focus and digestion. Adding milk can reduce the efficiency of the anti oxidants.

Disadvantages

Can cause anxiety, insomnia and iron absorption issues.

A personal memory of a story Mum told us. She was born during the war and was weaned onto a bottle of tea as there was not much milk for the family. Her need for tea was such that she didn’t want the same experience for us girls. We still drink Rooibos / Redbush tea. We like it and it is caffeine free.

The camellia flower has a dense bouquet of yellow stamens and over 21 petals. The leaves are leathery and glossy. It symbolises strength and perseverance.

I wanted to paint it:

Know how to paint!

Good!

Know what it feels like to paint something.

Different for each person.

It is like:

Know lots about God!

Good!

Know how you feel about Him working through you and in you…

Philippians 2:13 that is special for each person.

So here is my painting :

And two thoughts one with feeling and the other…

‘ They may forget what you said – but they won’t forget how you made them feel.’ Carl W. Buckner

And

‘Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forward.’ Soren Kierkegaard

Take care,

Sandy 🙂