Devotional: Delayed, Not Denied

Jesus was the greatest teacher in all of history! In the book of John He used signs to teach us lessons. Throughout the Gospels, there are three different words for miraculous works – miracles, wonders, and signs. A sign is a miracle with a lesson attached to it, and in John 11, we encounter an expectation of Jesus performing a sign. But before He does, there is a significant delay.

Mary and Martha, friends of Jesus, lose their friend Lazarus, and fully expected Jesus to prevent this from happening. Jesus, though, teaches them an important lesson about waiting on God, and how to deal with delays in life. As Christians, we must get our heads around the fact that the faith life has delays. The faith life means that we pray and wait. As we wait, we rejoice because we believe God is working for our good.

Questions for Meditation

1. Jesus shows us that what we’re really waiting for on earth pales in comparison to the ultimate resurrection. Why is it that we often get so caught up with the earthly and temporal things of life and forgot about the heavenly and permanent? How can changing our mindset help us in times of delay, and how can we try to change our mindsets like that?
2. In what way was the delay development for Mary and Martha? Why was that development so important?
3. What is the difference between a denial and a delay?
4. When has a delay been developmental for you in your life?
5. Are there any delays in your life now? If so, what do you think God is trying to develop in you?
6. Delays are often what precede a display of God’s ultimate power. If we received everything as we expected, we wouldn’t depend on God’s power for to move in our lives. When has a delay given room for God to do something greater?