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Day 5–God’s delays

Scripture reading for April 10: Psalms 37:7 “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him;. . .”

John 11:1-5“Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to Him, saying, “Lord, he whom You love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that Lazarus was ill, He stayed two days longer in the place where He was.”

It isn’t easy to be patient when a loved one is near death. We call ‘911’ and summon help expecting urgency. The EMT’s and support helpers from fire also seek to go quickly to provide timely help. We pick the best route and turn on lights and siren as we speed to the scene. We want action and and have high expectations.

But in this story, sisters Mary and Martha sent word to Jesus of a serious illness afflicting His friend and their brother Lazarus. Their expectation was speedy action and quick results. But Jesus had other plans that would demonstrate the Father’s love and bring Him glory. He told His disciples that this sickness would not lead to death. He then delayed two more days before announcing that they were headed to Bethany. Most believers know the story of Lazarus dying and placed in a tomb. Jesus came and wept over the tomb and called Lazarus out. Death was defeated through a God-directed delay.

There are some lessons responders can learn about time management from this story. Our human tendency is to hurry and expect quick results, especially from Jesus. We often think we have things figured out but God has other plans and a bigger picture we don’t take time to see. When we are delayed or get lost on the way, we should always trust God to work out the delay for our benefit and the blessing of those we come to serve.

Prayer: Father God, thank You for working out our lives with a bigger picture than we see. Help me to be patient and wait on You when delays come into my hurried schedule. Let me see how You are bringing glory to Your Name and blessing those who are hurting. Amen.