Ep. 162 The Devil is in the Details

It’s no surprise to folks who know me I’m super organized. I hate being late and don’t work well with procrastinators. In case things don’t go down the way I expected them to, I’ve got a plan B, C, and D ready to go.

Now there’s nothing wrong with being prepared, but you have to find a balance. I notice that when I work really hard to achieve a goal and I’m not able to do so because of actions outside of my control like the goalposts keep moving, I don’t have the resources, my enemies are getting in the way, etc. I become impatient.

As I’ve grown older, I’ve noticed that when things aren’t going smooth, it’s my cue to stop and check-in with God. He’s either telling me ‘not yet’ or no. Trust me, I’ve gotten much better at being grateful for the no’s. Check out episode 156 How to Be Grateful When God Says No to hear more about why.

Oftentimes, when God says ‘not yet’ or no, can be confusing because it looks the same. This grey area is right where the devil takes advantage of our vulnerability. The devil is in the details. The devil knows that folks like myself crave details that God oftentimes doesn’t give us. Our desire to gain access to details that God hasn’t felt compelled to share with us can turn us into micromanagers. We want to be in a position where we can approve the moves that God makes within our lives instead of trusting that God has a plan for us (Jer 29:11).

By the way, God is not a fan of micromanagers. He created us not vice versa. He does not like to be micromanaged because He doesn’t owe us an explanation. Like a loving parent, He’s all about developing our faith and strength to withstand the evil that we are certain to face in this world.

If we’re honest, our main purpose for wanting to know the details is so we can see if our efforts are in vain, identify any shortcuts we can take, see if there are things along the way that we can change, the list goes on. However, being in a position to do any of the aforementioned is demonstrating a lack of faith and an attempt to diminish God’s authority.

We need to be more patient and allow God to do His thing. We need to be patient and wait on God. Fight against the urge to move ahead of God’s timing. If you do, you will mess up everything God has in place and the wrath of God will be turned from your enemies onto you.

I know it is even more frustrating when there are people that seem to be in the way of you being able to achieve your goal. Don’t try to counteract your enemy’s actions because sometimes God wants them to do certain things so you can use their stupidity as ammunition to help you achieve your goal.

Meaning, your enemy may be trying to hurt you, but God causes all things to work together for good for those who love Him (Rom 8:28). For example, the situation that I’m going through with my crazy neighbors. Their stupidity was meant to hurt me, but in the end, it’s actually turning out to be a huge blessing.

God knew this was the case all along, but I didn’t have this information nor the details in how everything was going to work out. However, had I not allowed God to work in my life and checked in with Him first. I would have tried to resolve this issue using my own strength and alerted my neighbors that I was on to their game. This would have made God’s job 10X harder because then they would have been even more devious with their behavior.

When we’re feeling frustrated, we need to stop, pray and ask God for help. Then we need to have faith that He will follow through on our request. We must leave all the consequences and circumstances in His hands. When we meditate on God’s word, He’s going to direct us if we need to do something to help His agenda. He’ll tell us when to do something and when to speak. If we need resources or people to help us, He will send them those as well. Like God sent Aaron to help Moses, God will send key people into our lives.

Again, we can take comfort that God will tell us exactly when we need to do something and how to do it. Through relaxation and meditation, is how God speaks to us.

You will know that it’s God speaking to you because:

He is fair and honest. God is not the author of confusion. God does not contradict his laws. Despite how deceitful someone is being towards you, if you’re thinking of taking vengeance into your own hands don’t. That’s not God guiding you, that’s Satan.

We are to examine everything and take time to think before we react. Don’t be in a rush because God knows how slowly our minds work. He knows what the puzzle is going to look like and while we’re just dealing with one piece of it. Continue to ask Him for guidance. We will never miss out on an opportunity if we allow God to guide us. Just continue to put Him first and He will take care of the rest.

2. The answer to resolving your issue may not make sense. However, you have no other way to resolve the situation, but to proceed with taking the action that you don’t want to take. Oftentimes, our greatest victories in life come from taking detours.

3. You have a burning desire to take a particular action and it just comes naturally to you. You will still have fear in taking the particular action, but by analyzing the situation and keeping your fear in check you can proceed with even more confidence.

Don’t get so fearful or fed up that you want to quit. Hang in there! Stop being impatient and allowing your fear to get the best of you. The best way to stay in faith is to stop focusing on your circumstances. Keep your focus on God and this will give you strength, courage, patience, and wisdom to keep going.

Do your part. Pray, have faith, and patiently wait on God. God is on the job. God will never leave or forsake you. You may not know what God is doing, but he has not left you alone. The devil wants you to think that God has forgotten you. This is why Satan tries to get you to focus on your circumstances. Oftentimes, our circumstances are beyond our control and that can be scary.

Therefore, do not focus on your circumstances. Know that God has all your circumstances under control. God is behind the scenes. This is when your faith will kick in and give you the much-needed motivation to keep going.

Things happen for a reason. We may not understand everything at that point in time, but just pray and trust God is on the case. He never left our side. While we were sleeping God was working. While we were having a pity party, God was working on our behalf, while we were confused and scared out of our mind, definitely been there, God was standing there brave and strong working on our behalf.

Don’t get so arrogant that you feel that you know better than God. God hates this attitude and it’s one of the reasons why Satan was thrown out of Heaven. God gives arrogant people enough rope to hang themselves.

Regardless of how much we want to have the details in how God is going to resolve a situation or help us to achieve a goal, we need to have a balance. Remember, the devil is in the details and it’s up to us to make sure you don’t allow him to prevent us from receiving and retaining the lessons that God is trying to teach us so we can handle our blessings.

Keep your micromanaging instincts in check. One way to do so is to remember the following: