Not one iota or fragment of our lives is insignificant to God.  He cares about every detail.  Every up and every down.  Every tear we cry and every laugh we render – he knows of and he cares.  He is forever attentive to us.

Many of us appear to be all right in general, but there are still some areas in which we are or can be careless and lazy and it’s not always a matter of current sin.  A lot of times, most times, it’s remnants of our past life that tend to make us careless. Misguided thinking, selfishness, laziness, complacency – you name it, all of them can lead to carelessness that will eventually disconnect us from God.

Carelessness is inattentiveness. It’s negligence and it’s an insult to the Holy Spirit. If we are being lead by the Spirit, we should have no carelessness about us either in the way we worship God, or even in little things like the way we eat and drink.

Not only must our relationship to God be right, but the outward expression of that relationship must also be right. And, because we are to honor our relationship with God, we too should be ever mindful and attentive to every detail of our lives to ensure that we stay connected to him.  God, in his sovereignty,  allows nothing to escape.  Every detail of our lives is under his watchful eye.  Not looking to condemn us but to persistently brings us back when we veer off track.  In countless ways, he gathers us up and rehearses the same point over and over again until we learn the lesson because His purpose is to produce a finished product.  Sounds like the work of a father.

When we find ourselves sort of wandering off the path, there may be a problem arising from our impulsive nature, idle thinking or our human condition which is bent toward self-interest and self-gratification. In those swings of life, we should be mindful to hear God’s voice impressing upon us that something is not entirely right in our lives. And, we should thank him for his subtle reminders and his persistent patience toward us to make it right.

The process of God consistently reconciling us toward him is revealed truth of his redemption plan and the perfecting of our hearts toward him. His work in us help us to know that, overall, we are right with him if  we truly “let patience have its perfect work.”  Then and only then can patience become a finished product in us as explained in James 1:4. The Holy Spirit speaking through James said, “Now let your patience become a finished product.” Beware of becoming careless over the small details of life and saying, “Oh, that will have to do for now.” And, don’t mind that God often points out the little stuff to us in order to keep us safe from the bigger evils of life.

Trust all of your life to God and let your faith be perfected, not by you but, by him.

Adapted from “Becoming Entirely His” (devotional from “My Utmost for His Highest” by Oswald Chambers).