Intro to Transplanted
“He shall be like a tree.”
Watercolor
Amy Bechtel Kimball 2024
Introduction from my book, Transplanted: How to Rest in Your Walk with Jesus
I encourage you to invite the Lord to transplant you. Invite Him to reveal new truths to you. He will transplant you from where you are to a place of freedom and rest in Him. Both Psalm 1 and Jeremiah 17 speak of being transplanted. In English, you might see, ‘firmly planted’. In Hebrew, that word means ‘transplanted’.
Have you ever transplanted a tree? Or a houseplant? We must be careful. Tender. Kind to the roots as we move the plant from one place to another. Newly transplanted trees/plants require a lot of water immediately, in order to ensure the success of their survival.
God is tender with us. When He moves us from a place of misunderstanding to understanding, He is kind to treat our hearts gently. And He is the river of life. He, Himself, is the water we so desperately need as our roots are settling in to the new, fertilized soil.
As we trust Him, we are like a tree, transplanted by rivers of water. And we will prosper. Our leaves will not wither. We will produce fruit.
Jesus came to proclaim release to captives and set free the oppressed.
It was for freedom that Christ set us free so keep standing firm and don’t go back to slavery.
Jesus said, “Come to me, all who are weary and
heavily burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Let’s make every effort to enter that rest.
If I could link a song to this page so you could click on it and listen, I would. But since I can’t, will you take a moment and listen to Set Free, sung by Hope Darst? If you will listen to this song now, use this book by following the recommendations in the Introduction, and when you are finished, listen to the song again at the end, I promise you that the song will have taken on a new significance, and you will be blown away.
Words are important. Languages change over time. The definitions of words are altered by culture. Sometimes people groups, institutions, or clubs use words differently than the rest of society. For me, personally, my life drastically changed after digging in to the Bible and learning the Greek definitions to several common Bible words. It took deliberate work to face what I believed to be true and allow the Spirit to shift my perspective (transplant my heart). My dear friend and author, Heather Joy Zelch, taught me the importance of facing my current beliefs by writing them down, and then allowing the revelation of the Spirit to replace them with truth.
Perhaps you found yourself identifying with part of my story in the preface. Perhaps you are wondering if there is more to the Christian life than you are experiencing. Perhaps you’re ready to dive deep and learn new things. It is absolutely imperative that you write down your answers to the questions at the beginning and end of each chapter.
Some of the concepts in this book may be brand new to you, but I imagine many of them are not. Some of it will only be a perspective shift, but oh, how important these are! A perspective shift has the power to revolutionize your life. Have you ever stared at an optical illusion, wondering what was odd about it? After someone points it out, you can no longer ‘unsee’ it. Just like the a-ha moment with the optical illusion, I can no longer ‘unsee’ the things I have learned over the last few years from Scripture. I can no longer go back to the partial-freedom, partial-striving Christian life I lived before.
I so badly want you to experience this ‘seeing’. It is for this reason that you must take the time to write your answers to the questions before and after each chapter. It is a vital part of the process.
I designed this book as an all-on-one resource. You can use it for individual study, one-in-one with a friend, or with a small group. The Before/After Questions are for each individual person to answer, alone. The Discussion Questions can be used in a group or for journaling.
It may take two or three sessions to cover the material in each chapter. Don’t rush. Take your time and enjoy it. I subdivided some chapters into parts. If you cover one chapter or one part per week, this study will take 15 weeks, however, I encourage you not to limit yourself to only 15 sessions. If it takes more time, that’s ok!
After going through this study, having answered all the questions before and after the chapters, and experiencing more freedom in your daily walk with Christ, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of meeting with a friend and pouring through this book again. In this way, the truths you have learned will become firmly rooted. It will awaken a passion inside you to share, and you will experience a thrill as you watch your friends come to a place of rest and freedom. The seeds the Spirit planted within your heart soil will grow, blossom, and produce fruit as you share your personal journey and revelations with others.
Even though all the Bible verses are included within this book, I encourage you to pull out your Bible and write notes in the margins to remind you what the Greek definitions are. In this way, you will be replacing misunderstanding with greater understanding, more in line with the originally intended meaning.
For example, every time I read the word ‘faith’ in the Bible, I replace it with the words, ‘fully persuaded’. This way I will not misunderstand the passage with our cultural meaning of the word, but rather with the actual Greek definition of the word. The words we choose for replacement have to do with our relationship with words. One pastor I know says, ‘trust’ every time he sees the word ‘faith’. Both are correct, but ‘fully persuaded’ feels stronger and resonates better with me.
Helpful resources I use to assist in Word Study include the eSword app on my Windows PC, Bible Hub online, and an NASB Exhaustive Concordance (real book with pages). All Bible references are from the NASB 2020. All citations are included in the Endnotes.
This book is meant to be used. Write in it and highlight portions that speak to you. The Discussion Questions are optional for self-study, because they are meant for oral discussion, but if you love journaling, use them for that. The Before and After Chapter questions are not optional, and I cannot stress enough how important it is to take the time to write the answers in the book.
One last note: I am always learning and growing. This book contains my understanding of these topics as of the printing of this book. Wrestle with Jesus like Jacob did. Ask Him the hard questions. He is faithful, in His timing, to reveal to you the things He wants you to understand in each season of your life. If you’d like to read my statement of faith, you will find it on page 297.
If you have any personal testimonies, I’d love to hear them. Connect with me at www.lifeinthegarden.blog. I will not engage in theological arguments. Curious, respectful, kind questions are welcome. I realize that not all of Christendom agrees on all points in Scripture. I carefully weighed many differing doctrinal ideas and discussed them with trusted mentors and pastors while writing this book. The truths God has revealed to me have completely revolutionized my life and I pray you experience more freedom from religiosity and more freedom to love like Jesus did after walking this journey with me.
Have you ever transplanted a tree? When we buy a 1-year old or 3-year old tree from the nursery, we are actually transplanting it. How does that process relate to how God relates to us in our spiritual journey? Leave a comment and tell me your thoughts!
