Does God Care About the Details?

For 40 days, Moses met with God on the mountain. During that time, God told Moses in extreme detail how to design, make and put together the Tabernacle – the colors to be used, the materials to be used, how to get the materials to be used and who would do the actual work. This included the details of the content of the incense to be burned on the Altar of Incense and the incense that was to be ground into fine powder and put in front of the Testimony and the Tent of Meeting. God must have impressed this on Moses’ brain because I’m pretty sure he didn’t have a legal pad and pen let alone a laptop to take notes. Yet he was able to oversee the building of the Tabernacle down to the finest detail. The only written notes that we are aware of is what God had given him: “the two tablets of the Testimony, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God.” Exodus 31:18b

Many people today believe that God created the world – at least in some fashion. They believe that he got it going and then stepped aside and that he doesn’t care about the details in our lives. But as I read through the Bible, I keep seeing details… Abraham, you are to leave and go to the land I will show you… Isaac, you are to stay put and not go back… Jacob, I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying… Joseph, you will rule over your brothers… Moses, you will lead the people out of slavery and back to the land I have promised them… Here are my plans for you (right down to the number of loops and rings to hold the curtains in place) so you can meet with me in spite of your unholiness… David, I choose you to be king over Israel… Hezekiah, I will rescue you from the armies that surround you… Daniel, I will shut the lion’s mouths so they will not harm you… and on into the New Testament where Jesus touched people and they were healed, he spoke to their emotions, their lifestyles and choices they made, he raised people from the dead, and he spoke new life into people who had no hope. To me, this is a God of detail.

So I wonder… Can I trust God to work out the details in my life? Does he care about what clothes I buy or where I go for vacation? Will he open up a parking space for me or make an opening in traffic when I need to merge? How far does this detail God go?

The more intimate with God I become, the more details in my life I see affected by him… yes, even the detail of my son’s death a month ago. My human nature wants to yell, “Why would you do this to me, God?” But in my soul there is a peace that says, “Yes, I can trust you God, even with this difficult and sad detail in my life because I know that your love for me is still amazing and that you won’t leave me without the help I need to travel on this journey and the hope and knowledge that we will be together again in eternity.”

Our son’s fiancée told us that he would not so much as buy a shirt without seeking God’s wisdom. We know that to be true about him. He cared about justice – will my buying this shirt cause someone else to suffer? Was it made in a ‘sweatshop’ where people are taken advantage of so the wealthy can buy things for less money? Is the company that made this shirt known to be caring and fare or does it hurt people in need? Do I really need this shirt?

Yes, I believe God cares about the details in our lives… and he expects us to care about them too. God’s heart for the poor, the widow, the fatherless, the sick, those who are mourning comes through over and over in Scripture. God expects us to care for those who need to be cared for. He expects us to care about how others are affected by our decisions. He expects us to love others like he loves them – even those we find unlovable. And if we are open to it, he teaches us with his wisdom to see these things and to know how to respond.

Does God care about a parking space? Yes, but not necessarily the way I think he should. If he needs me to meet someone and I won’t be able to if I have to walk a quarter mile to get there, he may open a close space for me. If I need the exercise and/or the fresh air or to see the beauty of his creation or there is someone else I need to meet on the way, he may let me walk the quarter mile.

Yes, I believe God cares about the details. The question is do I and am I open to God’s wisdom to show me what he would like me to see.

Lord, open my eyes to see the details as you see them and to respond to them with your wisdom and love.