God is in the Details

Are you a detail person? Or are you a "just give me the big picture/bottom line" kind of person?

Call it a control issue (I know you will), but I want it all. Give me the goal, and then I want all the details that will get me there.

Some say "the devil is in the details," which is true if those details go awry. However, God is a God of order, and therefore I can trust him with the details.

Here are some details I'm dealing with right now.

  • My mastectomy surgery is on Wednesday, but I still don't know what time. I'm told that the hospital will call me on Tuesday with the time I'm to arrive. Important detail.
  • Before surgery, I will first go for sentinel node mapping. (What are the details of that, you ask.)...
  • Head to Nuclear Medicine in the hospital. I'll be wheeled there, thank you very much. Mark can follow me.
  • I'll change into "the gown." 
  • I'll be given an IV.
  • Cream will cover the surgical area (they don't want to slow blood flow during this time, so no lidocaine).
  • Hop onto the exam table.
  • More numbing from topical spray (that feels like you just jumped into a bucket of ice, apparently).
  • I will receive four injections of blue dye that may burn.
  • I'll be given a warm pack for comfort after the previous jolts.
  • Wait for 15 minutes while the dye works its way to the lymph nodes.
  • Then come four 5-minute scans.
  • I'll be wheeled to OR, where I'll chat with the anesthesiologist (yeah, right) and the surgeon. 
  • Followed by possibly waiting for one hour before surgery. 


I'm told that the surgery will take 1-1½ hours. Sounds like a good nap to me.

So, please pray that ...

  • Every one of those details runs smoothly.
  • I have a bold and trusting attitude, considerate of those who are working with me.
  • The surgeon and anesthesiologist have every one of THEIR details under control.
  • I will relax into the knowledge that God has every detail under control, and me in His loving hands.
  • The final outcome is ... all clear! "Clear" to me means no cancer remaining, no infection, and no lymphedema.


Thanks to all you detail-oriented people who can pray specifically now. And thanks to all of you bottom line people who will pray for that final outcome.

The biggest God detail I want to remember is that, because of His power, I can have peace.


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