“Details, details!” Ever heard that? Ever SAID that? It’s like we’re trying to blow off ‘the little things.’ I have been learning God is the God of the details. In fact, He likes to show Himself in – and through – them.
I’ve to a lot of stories in my past of God showing up in the details – sometimes in a big way and sometimes in a way that let’s me know it’s Him.
He is attentive to those details. Take a quick look through the book of Leviticus.
Leviticus 19:1-7
19 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.
3 “‘Each of you must respect your mother and father, and you must observe my Sabbaths. I am the Lord your God.
4 “‘Do not turn to idols or make metal gods for yourselves. I am the Lord your God.
5 “‘When you sacrifice a fellowship offering to the Lord, sacrifice it in such a way that it will be accepted on your behalf. 6 It shall be eaten on the day you sacrifice it or on the next day; anything left over until the third day must be burned up. 7 If any of it is eaten on the third day, it is impure and will not be accepted.
Look at the instructions given Moses.
Exodus 4:1-5
Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?”
2 Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”
“A staff,” he replied.
3 The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.”
Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. 4 Then the Lord said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. 5 “This,” said the Lord, “is so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.”
Or Noah.
Genesis 6:14-16
14 So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. 15 This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high. 16 Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit high all around. Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks.
Or the apostles.
Matthew 10:5-10
5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7 As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[a] drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.
9 “Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts— 10 no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep.
God tends to be very specific and I fear we blow that off a lot. This week, however, I have had a few instances of those pesky details showing God in all His glory.
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Seattle, WA
No, I wasn’t in Seattle this past week but God was. My cousin had her car stolen about 2 weeks ago. She has a lot of rental properties so not having wheels just as students are returning and in need of a good rental is a rather key detail. She had a model of SUV that had a tailgate window that would open…something hard to find in more recent models.
First of all someone who has done work for her in the past went above and beyond. After her car was stolen she was open saying she was praying for the person. And a few days after the stolen car not being found by police she posted this on her FB page:
A happy ending to my stolen car story. My old Honda CR-V was just perfect for me, but the latest model doesn’t have the opening rear window which I used a lot for hauling rental stuff.
So on my way home from doing rental work in Tacoma, I stopped in at Honda of Fife
where I bought my old car to see if they could find the most recent model that still had the same rear window, with low mileage and in perfect condition (you’ll note some things don’t change…. still asking for perfection here! ).
I was over the moon when the first person I saw was Tom Bryant, who sold me my car in 2001. I always remembered him as a real gentleman who truly believed in customer service — and there he was in front of me! Not only did he have the perfect car for me, but gave me a great price, and DELIVERED it to my house even though I’m 33 miles from the dealership! I am so happy.
God is in the details! I was so encouraged by that story! Many would say ‘what luck’ or ‘nice coincidence’ but she and I both know it was the Lord. God is in the details! All the way down to car windows.
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My house
Nuisance and details. Just a few weeks ago I used that phrase. In my August 10, 2016 post I wrote “Up until then I was all ‘nuisance and details.’ That’s what I told folks: “It’s attached. It works. It’s just nuisance and details after that.” And it is. But notice already the subtle shift to downplaying the seriousness of the injury? That’s an old eating disorder (ED) trick…deflect the attention from lack of self care. There’s a balance between good attitude and lack of self care and I was coming close to crossing it.”
They say “it’s all in the details” and they would be right. My injury is a nuisance. No doubt. It’s those little details that have become the hurdles I am in the process of jumping. When I saw the bruising coming out I knew I had to go to the doctor. I’ve never pulled a hamstring, had no idea how to treat it, and in the research I was doing improper rehab cold lead to permanent problems. I told myself then that I was going to rehab it properly, regardless.
Now remember…I have been aggressively paying off debt this year. My mortgage goes full amortization – officially tomorrow – so the budget has had my full attention for a year as I’ve been planning for this a year. I’ve been attentive to the details and had a plan I’ve been working for a year all in prep of this day. You read a few weeks ago of the headache I was having with insurance. Turns out PT IS covered….for my copay of $55 per session! That is still cheaper than the self-pay rate of $65 per session. I had it figured out for how to pay for the first 5 session without running up a credit card. But when the healing was slower than we had hoped and I’m still on crutches we had to schedule two more sessions this week. Which meant another $110 just for PT. I had an idea of what I was going to do. Until God showed up. In the details.
Sunday afternoon we had a meeting for our multi-site that launches in 3 weeks. It was my first time seeing these folks since my injury and I was excited to see them again. Concern was expressed, questions asked, stories told, and love communicated.
One of the key focuses of the small groups – called Naz at Home – is based on Acts 2:42-45:
42They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.
In modern-day terminology it’s called being an Acts-church…living in community…body life. That has attracted me greatly to this multi-site as I’ve had about 15 years of being in small groups but not feeling connected. I’m ready for it to end, for me to find a place to land, and a place to settle my heart, live, love, grow, and serve. I barely know these folks but I believe I’ve found that with them.
During the meeting the campus pastor discreetly handed something to me…a small envelope…with the simple message “It’s not much but we wanted to help out.” Okay….I’m still relatively new, don’t really know anyone and don’t have relationship with anyone outside of church yet…until I get into a Naz at Home group. And what was happening?! I was about to be blown away.
A small group of the believers from the multi-site donated some money to offset some of the expenses from injury. I’ll let this text tell the rest of the story. TRUST ME….GOD IS IN THE DETAILS!
(As an aside, I return to the doc today for my follow up. The Physical Therapist is concerned about the knee and why I’m still having so much pain. She is hoping for an xray or MRI. Either way I know God is in that detail as well!)
More detailed thoughts from Jenn can be found at http://jennfreeatlast.com and Leisa at http://life4inga.blogspot.com
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