It was late in the summer of 1862 during the height of the Civil War, and Confederate General Robert E. Lee was leading his famous Army of Northern Virginia across the Potomac on an invasion into Maryland. Only a week earlier, he had handily defeated Union General John Pope at the Battle of Second Manassas. Pope, with the larger army, had boasted that he arrived to take command from the West, where they were used to ‘seeing the backs of our enemies.’ After easily defeating Pope, Lee hoped to gain a victory on Northern soil, thereby giving cause for Great Britain or France to join the war in support of the fledgling Southern States in their struggle for independence.
Whether out of overconfidence or quite possibly strategic genius, Lee decided to divide his small army into three separate commands and objectives. It was a masterful, well-thought plan and the results if achieved would possibly change the outcome of the war. Lee consulted with his commanders, explaining down to minute details what he wanted to accomplish and recorded the various plans into a document called Special Order 191. The order was submitted to his main commanders and each man understood his job. Almost immediately, everything began to fall into place. Marches were made, battles were fought, and all of the objectives were quickly being attained. The new Union General, George McClellan, had always proven himself to be slow to react in previous battles against Lee and in this case such a course of action would surely prove to be disastrous. The end of the war and certain victory for the South appeared to be within Lee’s grasp.
It was at the height of the campaign that things suddenly changed. Two Union soldiers, Corporal Barton W. Mitchell and First Sergeant John M. Bloss happened upon a lost copy of Special Order 191, wrapped around three cigars in an abandoned Confederate camp. They turned the written order over to their superiors and it was quickly taken to McClellan. With a copy of Lee’s plans along with all of the assorted details, the Union army moved confidently into battle. Lee was defeated a few days later at Antietam Creek, and you could say the course of American history was forever altered as a result of a misplaced order and three cigars.
There is an old saying that states, ‘The devil is in the details.’ I have found this statement to be truthful so many times over the course of my life. I have made plans which were well thought-out and left me certain of success – it was all but assured. But during some (majority) of those times, I’ve found that I can leave out or miss one important detail, and the whole thing will come tumbling down around me. I know this to be true in both my secular life as well as my Spiritual life.
Peter writes in his second epistle, “Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.” So many times I can get caught up in what I am doing. I pay close attention to details in my job and in my finances; dotting the proverbial I’s and crossing the T’s. Sometimes chasing my plans can cause me to miss the smaller details of what life is all about and the things that are actually important. If I get too wrapped up in my plans and goals, and forget to allow them to line up with what God would have me do each day, it can cause me to stumble. A stumble as such can result in missing the victory in my life that I so desire to achieve.
How can I overcome missing those smaller details in my life that can cause catastrophic failure? With so much going on each day, and so many responsibilities, that can be a tough task for anyone, but most of all – me! How can I find that measure of steadfastness that Peter writes about? He answers that question for me in the next verse: “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.” A Christian life is an ongoing growth process. When we stop growing or striving to learn more from God, we are going to hit some rough patches. Growth is such a small detail. You won’t hear it preached about in church or taught about in Sunday School as much as other doctrines. Maybe it is because it is assumed by me as well as other Christians that we will simply grow on our own over time. But growth is a detail that should never be taken for granted.
I can plan on changing the world. I can plan on reaching the lost, teaching my class at church, or being the ultimate employee for my boss. My goal of being the best father ever to my children or the perfect husband to my wife are both traits I should pursue – they are good and worthwhile goals to seek achievement in. But if I don’t grow as a Christian, I will become stagnant, possibly falling by the wayside, and missing out on the victory that is possible for me through my faith in Jesus Christ.
I need to pay attention to the details, because it is those smaller things that can get you.
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