Have you ever had those moments where you felt like God overlooked what you asked Him for or He’s holding you back from that one particular thing that you have been longing for? Have you prayed to God about an issue or concern-days, weeks, months, or even years ago- but His answer is still delayed? Was there ever a time when you sought God with a sincere heart, but you are waiting for the Father to take action? Has your heart changed from being encouraged to feeling hopeless? If I could give you one piece of advice, it would be this: don’t give up while you are waiting.
Have you ever received a revelation from the Father, but you are still waiting for the manifestation of it from so long ago? If you have, the delay is coming from one of two directions-from the enemy or from God Himself.
Delays open the door for the enemy to work his worse. When delays come into your life, the enemy will try to put thoughts in your mind that will cause you to doubt. If the enemy can make you become doubtful, you could start questioning yourself as to whether or not you heard God speak, if you misunderstood what He said, or if you were thinking those things in your head. He will convince you to believe that God doesn’t hear you so if He doesn’t hear you, He’s not able to answer your prayers. This is his primary goal. He will do everything in his power to stop the manifestation of the Father’s promises from coming to pass for you so that you will give up and lose all hope in Him.
The enemy gets enjoyment out of placing delays in your life. If he can make you lose your focus, worry, and panic about what you are waiting for, he can distract you from the blessings that God has for you to receive. However, when you focus on Jesus during those trying moments, you will then be able to see how He is by your side and will remain with you every step of the way.
Even while reading this, there are some who will still have a hard time understanding why a delay has been placed in their lives when they have studied the Word, they’ve fasted, they’ve prayed, and even cried but yet, they still wonder why they are going through everything they are going through. It could be finances, your parents, your spouse, your children, a divorce, restoration of your marriage, your job, or even your health. I don’t know what you are going through, or what you may consider to be a delay in your life, but I know Someone who does. It may come as a shock with what I’m about to say but believe it or not, all of these are common. Let me drop something else in your spirit, if I may. If He chooses to, the Father can immediately deliver you, but if He doesn’t do a quick turnaround with bringing you out, He will give you all of the grace you need to get through while you are waiting.
In John 11:1-45, you will find the story about a man named Lazarus. Lazarus, along with his two sisters named Mary and Martha, were all friends of Jesus. When Lazarus was sick, his sisters had a message relayed to Jesus informing Him about the condition of their brother and His friend. When Jesus received the news that Lazarus was sick, He waited an additional two days before He went to Bethany- the town where Lazarus lived.
By the time Jesus made it to Bethany, Lazarus had already been dead for four days. When Jesus was almost at Bethany, Martha went to meet Him. When Martha saw Jesus, she expressed to Him how her brother would not have died had He been there when he was still living, but Jesus showed no state of shock by her statement. Instead, Jesus responded by saying, “Your brother will rise again,” but Martha misunderstood what He was saying. She thought Jesus was talking about Lazarus rising again during the last resurrection, but Jesus corrected her by saying He is the resurrection and the life.
After speaking to Jesus, Martha goes back to tell Mary that Jesus was calling for her. Even though she was deeply grieved by her brother’s death, Mary- along with the other people who were mourning with her- ran to meet Jesus. Mary fell at Jesus’ feet and echoed the same words Martha did moments earlier, “Lord, had you been here, my brother would not have died,” and she continued to cry as well as the others who came with her. Moved by the pain that they were feeling, Jesus cried.
Jesus-along with Mary, Martha, and the rest of the people who were mourning- went to Lazarus’ tomb. When He arrived, Jesus told them to move the stone that covered the opening of the tomb. He then went on to thank God for not only hearing Him but so that everybody around Him would believe that the Father sent Him. After Jesus had finished praying, He looked towards the tomb and told Lazarus to come out and immediately, he did just that. Lazarus came out of his tomb bound in his grave clothes, and Jesus told them to lose him and set him free. When the people saw this, they believed Jesus and put their faith in Him.
You’ve just read that even in a delayed situation, and what appeared to be over for Lazarus, Jesus was still able to do something miraculous to cause others to believe. This is proof that God has His reasons for causing delays in your life. The main reason why God delays is so that when the delay is over, He can get the glory in the end. This would be the case with the death and resurrection of Lazarus. When Jesus was informed that Lazarus sick, He intentionally delayed going to see him and during His delay, Lazarus died. Jesus did this not because He didn’t care, He did it because He did care. He wanted others to see this miracle so that the Father could be glorified.
Another reason why the Father chooses to delay you is that He is able to see the full picture. He can see the end of your story before it even begins. The Father has a way of thinking that is much higher than our thinking. Our way of thinking is limited, but God is unlimited with His thoughts so you have to trust Him and know that He has a purpose for your delay.
God also causes delays so that He can see how strong your faith is in Him. Responding to your delays with faith instead of doubt is what causes the Father to act. Through faith, He can see that you are still pressing while you are being pressed but just know that while you are being pressed, you are also being strengthened. This is how you build up your faith while you are waiting during the delay and in due time- on the Father’s timing- He will allow you to move forward.
The Father wants to bless you, but there will be times when He will allow those blessings to come when you have been delayed and are waiting. If you are truly waiting on the Father, He is going to bless you for it. He will be there to keep you and show you His love while you are waiting for His blessings to manifest. Even if it doesn’t feel like it, God is taking care of you while you are waiting for Him to move. Don’t think you have to wait until you get to the other side of the delay before you can receive blessings from God. If you choose to see it, waiting while you are in the middle of your delay is a blessing within itself.
The Father’s delay is not His denial. Just like Lazarus, God can bring life to your dead situation, BUT only on His timing. There were times when I’m sure we have waited for the Father when we were in the middle of a test or trial and wondered why He didn’t respond in a faster manner or when we thought He should have. It is during these times that God will let these delays go from bad to worse because He has a great plan in store for you that will even catch the enemy off guard! Take a lesson from Lazarus. By the time Jesus got to him, he was already dead so whatever your delay is, it can’t be worse than Lazarus because you are still alive; because you are still alive, the Father still has time- His time- to act on your behalf. Trust and have the faith in knowing that your delay- your trial, struggle, situation, or circumstance- has a purpose that will be revealed through the Father’s glory.
My prayer is that you will know and believe that your delay doesn’t equal denial. That you will learn to trust God during the delay so that your faith will become stronger in Him. That while you are waiting, you will guard your mind against the enemy’s lies by covering it with the Father’s truth and when you do, you will receive the blessings He has for you so that you will give Him the glory in Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.
