The Details, a devotional by Keona J. Tann

This year I’m attempting to once again journey through the Bible in chronological order. I’m using The Bible Recap with Tara-Leigh Cobble on the YouVersion Bible app.

But I’ve got to be honest with you, the past couple of days have been a hard slog! In Exodus 25 God begins to give DETAILED instructions to the Israelites outlining very specific ways to construct the Ark of the Covenant, the Tabernacle (Exodus 26), the Altar that is to be used for burnt offerings and the courtyard leading to the Tabernacle (Exodus 27), and God even goes into great detail about the elaborate clothing the priests are to wear (Exodus 28). I was tempted to just skip through the chapters, I mean it’s not like I’m going to construct something like that or wear those clothes, but Tara-Leigh encouraged me to stick with it and to see God in ALL of those details.

Seahorses

I felt prompted to send my sister a card of encouragement, I didn’t have many cards in my stockpile to choose from and for some reason the seahorse card stood out to me. I grabbed it, went up to my study and sat looking at it praying for some divine inspiration to write inside. I figured that I’d put the ‘God in the details’ challenge into action and googled seahorse facts. According to my research I discovered that:

• Seahorses are fish because they breathe through gills.
• The female transfers her fertilised eggs to the male to carry in a pouch on his abdomen. The gestation period is anywhere between a few weeks right up to a few months, then papa seahorse spits out fully developed teeny tiny seahorses, which can take up to 12 hours because he could birth between 50 to 1,500! Wow.
• A seahorse’s curved tail isn’t just for show it is a valuable part of them that they can use as a weapon, it helps them to stay afloat during storms, they can also grasp hold of a fixed object and they can link tails with their partner in order to stay together.
• Just like human fingerprints each seahorse has individual markings and the small crown on their heads have unique variations too, they can also blend into their surroundings by changing colour and their spiny growths can extend and retract.
• Because seahorses lack a stomach, they require at least 30 meals a day. Which kinda seems mean because they are apparently poor swimmers so the hunt for food could be difficult.
• Seahorses have lifelong partners and every day they strengthen their bond with an hour-long courtship display. The complex mating ritual that the seahorses engage in could even last for up to eight hours!

As I read about these amazing little creatures I did see God in those details and I was really challenged about my marriage, now there is just no way I have the stamina to dance around for an hour to show my hubby how much I love him, and let’s be honest I don’t think he would find my poor attempt at dancing attractive, but I did think about other ways I could show my love and appreciation for him. I had a headache last night and was bone weary but I decided to spend 15 minutes packing away some clean dishes and washing up what dishes there were so that he didn’t have to do it the next morning. It took a bit of effort because all I wanted to do was crawl into bed, but it was my act of love. Now I need to come up with more creative ways so I can complete my ‘hour-long courtship display’ each day.

Our lives

What about us, how does ‘God in the details’ relate to us? David Jeremiah points us to Psalm 139 and explains that God dives into the intricate details of how He formed us in the womb and constantly thinks about us. David encourages us to look closely at this Psalm and see how God governs the large and small issues of life for this will grow our self-assurance, God-confidence, and inner contentment. Rachel Lee declares that we were created ON purpose, FOR purpose so let’s not become ineffective in accomplishing the good works that God has prepared for us to do.

Here is a prayer you can join me in praying:

I have been carefully created by God, wonderfully, mysteriously, and with complexity that is unfathomable. The Lord knitted together intricately all my parts in the womb. Though my mother did not know she was pregnant at first, God knew me before I was even conceived. Praise the Lord! All of my days are ordained, they are each written in God’s book. The good Lord knows my anxious heart and He tests my thoughts, He will remove any offensive thing within and replace it with His everlasting life! Any of my faulty DNA will be replaced with God’s perfect DNA for the Spirit of God has made me, the very breath of the Almighty gives me life! The Lord knows the plans He has for my life, they are plans for good NOT for disaster, He gives me a future and a certain hope. Almighty God I pray that I ALWAYS walk in Your perfect plans for my life‬, for I am Your workmanship, Your master work, Your work of art. Through Christ Jesus, God has made me new, I’m reborn from above, which means I’m spiritually transformed and renewed. The Lord has made me new so that I can spend my life doing the good things that He has already planned for me to do; take the paths which He has set; and live the good life which He prearranged and made ready for me. May my life become a beautiful poetry piece that is written by God’s very own hand as He brings forth all that He desires for my life. I pray that I become a glorious masterpiece as I complete all the good works He has planned for me to fulfil. As I trust His guidance and lean in to hear His counsel, I will walk the path of righteousness. Lord, help me to see myself as Your beloved, the one that You died to set free. Empower me to become the woman You created me to be. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

How does ‘God in the details’ relate to you? I’d love to hear your response.
Many blessings,
Keona

Seahorse facts are listed from La Galigo’s article, National Geographic and The Seahorse Trust.

My prayer is inspired by Psalm 139, Job 33:4, Jeremiah‬ ‭29:11 and Ephesians 2:10.‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬