God in the details

Before I left, a friend gave me John Eldredge’s newest book “Walking with God” and already in chapter one, it has me thinking. In the first few pages, John talks about intimacy and that is a subject we have all heard several times throughout our life—is God really in the details; is he really a god who desires to be intimate with us? John Eldredge says “We can’t find life without God and we can’t find God if we don’t know how to walk intimately with Him.” I think much of my life, I have always thought that God does care about the big things in my life—big decisions, big things that are on my mind, but the little things, nah, does He really care about those? And the answer is yes. A resounding yes. I think that is what I am seeing and feeling so clearly down here. Maybe He knew He had to take me away, away from all comforts and what I know, to a place where I can’t help but to see His hand in the intimate details of my life. He knew I needed to come to Belize, not China, Japan or Peru, but Belize. For reasons I can see and for reasons I may not see for years, He knew just where I needed to go.

God knows not only the hairs on our heads and when we rise and when we lie down, but He also cares to know what we are feeling, what we’ rethinking, what decision we have ahead of us, what concerns us, what bothers us, what eats away at us—He desires to know the DETAILS because He is a God of details. It is amazing, really. I look at my friends and know that I need EACH one of them in such different ways; they each bring something new to my life, they love me in such different ways and the details of their intricate care for me are endless. I have heard several friends, when talking about their husbands, say God knew just what kind of husband they needed-down to the very way their husband loves them and how his love languages compliments theirs. To me, that is a true picture of just how intimately involved God really is. If He can bring a certain person into our lives, someone that compliments us, challenges us, brings out the best in us, then He can do so much more in other aspects of our lives, if we just let Him. I am sick of not letting Him be in the details. Some may argue that God is really not IN the details of our everyday lives; why would he care what we eat for lunch; why would he care if I argued with a friend; why would he care if I bought green beans instead of squash at the store? I think what I am seeing is that while those do seem trivial to us, to God, He DOES care(a verse I love is from 1 Peter “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” ) He cares about the big things …and the little things just as much. Now, he might not care that you ate green beans, but I think the point is, He wants to be involved in every piece of our lives and not just put him on a shelf or in a box and pull him out when we NEED him, when something is going on in our lives that is bothering us, when a loved one is sick, when we are sad—the point is, I think, that He wants to be in the DETAILS of our lives so that he never gets put on that shelf, but that He is right there with us, holding our hand, picking us up, carrying us through life—through the good, the bad and the ugly. I am guilty of thinking He doesn’t; care about every piece of my life—but He does; He not only cares but wants to be involved. Someone told me once that if God is in the details of our lives, why do we just pray to Him either during bedtime prayers or in our journal; why don’t we bring him throughout our day. And I agree. Like a friend, God wants us to talk to him throughout our day, have Him be there with us in each part. I remember reading somewhere to pretend like God is in the car with you—tell him to put his seatbelt on. While that might sound ridiculous, I like the premise behind it—because on simple terms, God wants us to invite Him into every part of our lives, as we drive down the road, as we walk down the aisle, as we have lunch with a friend, as we go to work; if we involve Him in every piece of our lives, our lives, I believe, will be that much more rich and that much more full.

My mom used to (and still does, at times) arrange flowers, for weddings, funerals and for Sunday services at church. Her arrangements were beautiful, every detail of them. I used to sit in our basement watching her arrange them and wonder how she knew which flower to place where; how she knew which flower would compliment the other flowers in the vase; did she learn over time which flower looked best with which other flower? Isn’t that how our lives are? We could easily put just ONE flower in the vase and be done with it, but wouldn’t our lives be THAT much more full and overflowing and beautiful if we put several different kinds of flowers, some tall, some short, some red, some orange, some green. Now, in this symbolic imagery(go with me for a minute), let’s make God the water….the vase of flowers my mom arranged might be beautiful but they would soon die had it not been for the water she put in the bottom, which eventually, touched and kept all the flowers stay alive(at least for a few days more.) Our lives may be full (of color, like the flower vase) but in order to keep us alive and help us live and help us be beautiful, we need the water, and we need God. Life without God may feel fun and good, but life with God is a mountain compared to a bump; one cup of coffee compared to a whole pot; one friend as opposed to countless ones; a vase of dry flowers compared to a vase of flowers with water. Sorry for bringing some symbolism into here, but I think sitting there journaling this morning, this was all on my mind; just how God really IS in the details and asks us to invite Him into those details.

One more thing about this topic and then I’ll be quiet. When I think of details in my life and ones that remind me so much that God is involved, I look at my parents. To me, they are a clear picture of how God is involved in the details. My mom is, as many of you have heard me say, a firecracker; a bundle of energy, a woman of strength, beauty and limitless well, energy! She can run circles around most people I know and does it all with poise, grace and most times, without stopping. My dad is, in many ways, quite the opposite of her as he is more reserved, more subdued and while my mom may run circles, my Dad would rather be still and listen. I look at their relationship and their contrasting characteristics, and I see God’s intimate details. He knew that my mom, the bundle of energy, needed my dad, the voice of calm; they are to me, such a true picture of the beautiful details God creates in us, through us, around us and in our relationships. They balance each other out, they compliment each other and they embody what I think makes their relationship work so well—they bring out the very best in the other. My mom’s firecracker energy is made sweeter by my Dad’s soft nature; likewise, my Dad’s reserved calm is made richer by my Mom’s abundant spunk. Oh, God really is in the details!!