Last week, I was reminded of God's faithfulness in the little things. Often times, we think that God is too busy for the small details of our lives. We feel silly or like we shouldn't pray for those little things that only matter to us. I used to think that way, but God has shown me over and over that He cares about every detail of our lives, and sometimes we miss out because we are too afraid to go to Him about things we think are insignificant. In Matthew 10:29-31 says, "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father's care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." Our God is in the details, because He made the details. We just have to look around to see it.
My husband has been gone for over two weeks on a trip for work, so my life has been a little busy, to say the least, trying to keep up with everything going on at home. Tuesday evening, I was in the middle of one of my trips running kids to different activities and noticed that one of my diamond earrings was missing. I never take these earrings out and a little twinge of panic came over me. I instantly began to retrace my steps of the day in my mind and tried to remember the last time I knew I had it in. These earrings have sentimental value to me that means more than the monetary value, which made it even more heartbreaking that I had lost one. You see, my husband is wonderful in so many ways, but romantic gestures and gift giving is not one of his strong suits. He is also very frugal and doesn't like to spend money on unnecessary things. So, when I received these earrings as a gift from him to celebrate an important honor in my life, I was thrilled. I was so touched that he had gone through the trouble to get me something so meaningful to commemorate a special occasion; without me telling him or giving any hints, I might add! All that to say, I had to find this earring!
All week long I searched. I looked in every possible place I could remember being in the days before I recognized it was missing. I searched parking lots. I searched vehicles. I searched businesses. I searched the house, the shower, the closet, the garage...you name it, I searched it. Days had passed and I prayed every time I would search for it. I prayed whenever it crossed my mind. My husband would be home in a few days and I prayed with all my heart that I would find it before he returned, so that I wouldn't have to tell him I had lost it.
One evening I was taking a shower and again praying about my earring. I was searching the drain one more time, just to be sure and I was reminded of a conversation I had had with some friends earlier in the week. We had been talking about how so often God calls His people to remember in the Bible. He had people build alters to remember what He had done. He would tell His people to remember the times of His faithfulness. We talked of how Moses reminded God of His promises. And so, I began to remember and was reminded of two specific times that God was faithful to hear and answer my prayers for something small and insignificant to the world, but very important to me.
The first instance was several years ago when my oldest daughter was about five. We had gone to Disney World that year and she had gotten a pair of Tinker Bell earrings. They were her prized possession. She loved Tinker Bell and it was her favorite souvenir. She wore them constantly. We had gone to my brother and sister-in-law's house for a family gathering. My parents live next door and my dad had made a train out of old plastic barrels and pulled them behind the four wheeler. They rode that train all day long. Shortly before we left, Hally came to me in tears of panic. One of her prized earrings was gone. She had lost it somewhere that day and could not be consoled. The search began. The probability of finding that earring in the acres of grass that the train had driven was slim to none. We split up and began to search the property. We searched and searched to no avail. Finally, we decided all hope was lost and we needed to leave. The look on my daughters face broke my heart. I sent up a silent prayer to God. "God, I know it's just an earring, but to Hally, it's a big deal. I know it seems impossible, but please let us find her earring." We gathered our things and began to leave. As we were walking through the garage going to our car, there on the floor was her earring. She was ecstatic and so was I!! Many prayers of thanksgiving went up to God! It was a small lesson in His faithfulness in the small things.
Another instance came to mind as well. The year after Hally was born, I went on a Christian women's weekend retreat. In many ways I was still a baby Christian and had only been walking with the Lord for about two years. I was struggling with many things in my life and had no interest in going on this weekend, but God is faithful and He met me there in a very personal way. The ways I experienced God that weekend are countless, but one experience came to mind. It was a couple of days into the weekend and I was wanting to take a shower. There were two showers for about 15-20 women and getting into the shower was hard enough, but hoping for hot water was near to impossible. It was late at night and I was the last in line. It had been a long couple of days and I longed for a hot shower to soak away some of the junk I had been wading through. As I finally stepped into the shower, as I suspected the water was freezing cold. In desperation, I cried out to God. "If You can turn water into wine, surely you can make this water Hot!!! Burning Hot!!!" As soon as the words came from my mouth, I could feel the heat returning to the water. Within a few seconds, the water was so hot I had to step to the side out of the spray and keep turning it down until it was cool enough to step back in. Tears were streaming down my face as this was my first miracle. It was my own, personal, miracle. It was God showing me that He cared, even about something as insignificant as a hot shower.
So, as I stood in my shower remembering, I again cried out to God. I reminded Him of the times He had been faithful in the little things of my life. I asked Him again to help me find my earring. "Father, I remember Your faithfulness. I know that You care about the things that I care about. You know that this is just an earring, but to me it's important. I don't want to have to tell Jeremy that I lost it when He comes home, so if you could let me find it before he comes home I would be grateful." I turned off the shower and got out, continuing to pray as I went through my after-shower routine. I went into the closet to get my pajamas on and I bent over to pick up a few things on the floor. As I leaned over, there on the floor of my closet was the front and back of my earring within three inches of each other! It was unbelievable! Not only had I looked in my closet, but had been in and out of that closet multiple times a day over the last few days and never saw that earring. Again, the tears began to fall and praises to my Father in Heaven went up.
Everyday, I'm reminded that God is in the details. I see it in the way He works out my crazy schedule so that everything gets accomplished. I feel it in a song that I needed to hear at just the right time. I recognize it in the beauty of creation all around me and the intricate details of every living creature. I cherish it in that ten minutes of down time He gives me in the midst of a crazy day. Just look around and you will see Him in the details of your day as well. And when you do, say, "Thank You!" The more you do, the more He will show Himself to you.
My friend, is there something in your life that you are afraid to ask Our Father in Heaven? Do you think it is too small or too petty to ask for? I want you to know that Our Father is a personal Father. If you have children, you know what it's like when something is important to your child. It may be something totally insignificant to the world, but to them, it is everything. Our Father knows what is important to us and He wants to bless us with the desires of our hearts. Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that God is a genie in a bottle and will grant us our every wish, but when our desires are pure, He takes delight in giving them to us. Our God is in the details and He is faithful in the small things, so trust Him, because He cares. All you have to do is ask.
Blessed in the Small Things,
Lorissa
