It’s not over for you yet! God has the final word in your situation. You may feel like your situation is hopeless, but God specializes in impossible cases. Dare to believe God and take a step of faith. You’re about to make a comeback.
God Is Always on Time
In John 11, Jesus’s dear friend Lazarus became very ill to the point of death, so Lazarus’ sisters, Martha and Mary, sent Jesus an urgent message. “Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick” (John 11:3, KJV). But Jesus did not come right away. In fact, He stayed where He was for a few days.
Finally, Lazarus died, but Jesus told His disciples, “I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe” (John 11:14-15). The Lord may not show up when you want Him, but He is always on time. Delay does not mean denial. Jesus was not ignoring Martha and Mary’s request. He was operating in God’s timing.
Divine Visitation
When Jesus finally arrived in Bethany, He discovered Lazarus had been dead for four days. “Where have you laid him?” He asked. “Come and see,” they said. When Jesus arrived at the gravesite, He wept. Aren’t you glad we serve a compassionate God? He is moved by our struggles, pain, and disappointment. He sees our tears and hears our cries, and He is about to act on our behalf.
Turning to the crowd that had gathered, Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” “But Lord, he has been dead for four days,” Martha argued. “There will be a terrible stench.” Jesus replied, “Didn’t I tell you that if you would believe, you would see the glory of God?”
Nothing is too hard for God. Your situation may stink. You may feel like your marriage is hopeless, that the cancer has spread too far, that your pit of financial debt is too deep, that your sins are too bad. But nothing is impossible for God. He is so wide, you can’t get around Him, so deep you can get under Him, so high you can get over Him. He is your Savior, Healer, Deliverer. He is the Resurrection and the Life, and He is telling you to take away your stone of doubt. Take it away and just believe, and you will see the glory of God.
Get Up!
Those at the grave took away the stone, and Jesus prayed. Then He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!” “And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, ‘Loose him, and let him go’” (John 11:44). Lazarus came back to life!
The Bible says his hands and feet were bound in graveclothes, which means he probably came out leaping. His face was wrapped in a headcloth, which means he couldn’t see. He probably hit his head coming out. He probably stumbled over something coming out, but what matters is he came out.
Some of us are so consumed praying for direction. We want to see where God is taking us, but sometimes God just wants us to get up, and when we take a step of faith, He will order our steps and show us the fulfillment of His promise to us.
Decision of Faith
Remember Abraham. The Bible says he went not knowing where he was going, which means he just started moving. Evangelist Oral Roberts used to say, “God cannot steer a parked car.” Some of us think we are waiting on God, but God is waiting on us! We have a part to play in our deliverance.
God will do what we cannot. He is not going to do what we can. He is telling you to get up. Now you have a decision to make. Are you going to lay in your grave of doubt, disappointment, and failure, and say, “Lord, I can’t see. Lord, I can’t move?” Or are you going to be like Jacob? He had a limp, but he wrestled with the angel all night until he got his breakthrough. Are you going to be like the woman with the issue of blood? She was bleeding, but she pressed through the crowd until she grabbed onto the hem of Jesus’ garment. Are you going to be like the four friends of the paralyzed man? They couldn’t get through the crowd carrying their sick friend, so they ripped the roof open.
You may be bound in graveclothes, but wiggle and squirm and fight until you get to Jesus. Why didn’t Jesus go into the grave, uncover Lazarus’ head, take him by the hand and lead him out into the sunshine? Sometimes your miracle requires some radical determination. Sometimes God will require us to fight. Sometimes He will tell us to jump out of the boat even though the winds and waves are still raging.
We have a decision to make. Deliverance is more than a divine visitation. It is also a decision to respond to whatever the Lord is telling us to do. What is the Lord asking of you?
Decisions Determine Destiny
There is power in your decisions. I think about when we received the word from God to launch our ministry. We could have sat on that word. We could have waited for everything to be perfect before beginning. But we chose to launch out into the deep with God, and God has used that decision to align with His will to touch the lives of millions around the world. C’mon, somebody! And you – when the Lord moved on you to support us, you could have said no. You could have said you’d do it later and then forgotten all about it. Instead, you made a decision to trust the Lord, plant seeds and allow us to water them – and just look at the miracle harvest He has reaped as a result! May we always be people of obedience, quick to follow God wherever He may lead us.
God is stirring many things in our hearts that we will be moving on even before the end of this year. The time is short. His return is near. We must be about His work while there is still time. As you continue sowing seeds into us, we believe that God will move on hearts to supply just what is needed for what He is calling us to do. It all works out in the end for His glory. Thank you for trusting God and thank you for trusting us. We love you. You matter! And we pray every day that God’s plan for your life will unfold and reveal that His favor and blessing follow you.
Or mail your donation to:
Sean Pinder Ministries
P.O. Box 2726
McKinney, TX 75070
God Bless,
Pastors Sean & Aimee Pinder
