Exodus 13:17-18
Then it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, “Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by way of the wilderness of the Red Sea. And the children of Israel went up in orderly ranks out of the land of Egypt.
INSIGHT
-Delay in Hebrew is written as mahah & it means inhibit, hinder, detain, reject, postpone, lag, tarry, overstay, procrastinate & linger. Delay in life can result from : – negative mental conditioning, a test of one’s patience, a process of preparation for Gods promises, a result of disobeying God, influence by principalities etc.
-When the Lord delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, He did not lead them through the shorter route but took them round through the Red Sea. The first reason was because there was war in the land of the Philistines which would cause them to go back to Egypt because of their mental & historical conditioning. At one point they accused Moses of wanting to kill them as there were no graves in Egypt & stated that they would rather serve the Egyptians than die in the wilderness (Exo 14:11-12). Moses successfully took the people out of Egypt but failed to take Egypt out of them. They were accustomed to slavery & found comfort in oppression thus unable to receive Gods blessings. The other reason is found in Josh 5:6, where the people walked for forty years in the wilderness until one generation passed on because they disobeyed God. The Lord has prepared a table for us where cups run over, but we have to prepare to sit at the table. Our mental attitude & willingness to change determines how we receive what God has told us is ours.
PRAYER
Blessed are You Oh Lord in all the earth. We thank You for we have begun a new week in perfect health. Your word is a lamp to our feet & light to our path. Teach us Your statutes & make Your face shine upon us. Hide Your precepts in our hearts that we may always be obedient to Your word. Renew our minds to be ready to receive from You. Hear our prayers from the deepest parts of our hearts & fulfil them for us. May Your merciful kindness be our comfort now & forever. Amen
Exodus 32:1
Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.”
INSIGHT
-Moses went up mount Sinai to collect the ten commandments when he took 40 days & the Israelites perceived delay. The people were too quick to find themselves a god made of gold & claimed that through its power they were delivered from Egypt. God tested their patience & knowledge of Him in which they failed terribly. The Israelites were thereafter attributed as a stiff-necked people for they could not completely turn to God & follow His statutes.
PRAYER
Lord our Father, in humility we seek Your face that You may teach us to be patient & follow Your will. There are many idols that come our way to divert our focus; direct us Father. We place all our hopes & trust in You. Help us to wait for Your blessings; for You have great plans for our lives. Journey with us in times of drought & in abundance. All glory & praise belong to You. Amen
Daniel 10:12-13
Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.
INSIGHT
-Daniel fasted & prayed persistently to God & an angel went forth to deliver his message. Unfortunately, he was caught up in the heavens by the prince of Persia causing a delay of 21 days before Archangel Michael intervened. We note in Dan 10:20-21 that there are other princes of darkness like the prince of Greece but Gods servant; Archangel Michael is stronger than them all. To note also, God created all things including principalities (Col 1:16), & at one point in the last days He will lock them up as prisoners in the pit (Isa 24:21-22). Principalities can therefore delay our prayers causing a stagnation in a section of our lives. Jesus calls us to pray without ceasing with the assurance of complete protection. He gives charge to His angles who gather up around us to keep us in all our ways (Psa 91:11). He has also given us authority to trample over all powers of the enemy & assures us that nothing can stop us. He gives a disclaimer though against rejoicing in this notion but proposes delight in the fact that our names are written in heaven (Luke 10:19-20).
PRAYER
Oh Lord incline Your ear to our petitions & deliver us from all evil. No evil plan fashioned against us, against our families, against our friends, against our nation shall prosper in Your name Jesus. We implore You with humility in our hearts; do not delay, come to our aid we call on You. Be with us & guide us in all things. All glory & honour belongs to You. Amen
Hebrews 11:11-12
By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.
INSIGHT
-Sarah was old & way past the conception age. She waited long for a child, got frustrated & gave her husband the chance to bear children with her maid servant Hagar. She lost hope because of this delay & at some point laughed as God delivered the promised of child birth to Abraham, who was also old & perceived as good as dead & her womb alike. God tested their faith reassuring them that nothing was too hard for Him. He strengthened them & promised to establish His promise at the appointed time. Abraham had strong faith which was accounted to him for righteousness & later became the father of many nations. Sometimes we wait long for answers to prayers & loose hope just like Sarah. Discouragement sets in & we start looking around comparing ourselves to others. Jesus says do not be anxious about anything but with prayer, supplications & thanksgiving make your request known to God. He also tells us not to worry; for He will be with us till the end of time. This gives us hope & encouragement that God loves us & cares for us despite our shortcomings.
PRAYER
We believe in You Father & Your promises for our lives. Thank You for loving us & giving us hope of a better future. We have many physical, emotional, psychological & spiritual wounds, heal us Lord. We place all our trust in You, strengthen us when we have little faith & are weary. Nothing is too hard for You Lord, hear our prayers. We glorify You & give You thanks always. Amen
Matthew 25:1-6
“Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’
INSIGHT
-In the parable of the wise & foolish virgins, Jesus explains a concept of the kingdom of heaven where the master delayed & the virgins slept. The wise ones carried extra oil but the foolish ones were not well prepared & had to go to buy more when the master arrived. Unfortunately, the foolish virgins were locked out of heaven as they were not prepared for Christs’ coming. We are thus reminded to love God, others & always maintain good conduct in our walk of life.
SUMMARY
-Delay in Hebrew is written as mahah & it means inhibit, detain, reject, postpone, overstay & procrastinate. Delay in life can result from : – negative mental conditioning, a test of one’s patience, a process of preparation for Gods’ promises, a result of disobeying God, influence by principalities etc.
-The Lord delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt & lead them round the wilderness through the Red Sea which was a longer route compared to the war-torn Philistines territory, on their way to Canaan. This is because there was war in the Philippines nation which would make them go back to Egypt because of their mental & historical conditioning. Moses successfully took the people out of Egypt but failed to take Egypt out of them. They were accustomed to slavery & found comfort in oppression thus unable to receive Gods’ blessings. The other reason was that; they disobeyed God thus walked for forty years in the wilderness until that generation passed on. Later; when Moses went up mount Sinai to collect the ten commandments, he took 40 days & the Israelites perceived delay. They made a golden calf, worshipped it & made it their god. They failed in the test of patience & knowledge of God. Unlike in Moses’ experience where delay was evidenced in the Israelites lives, delay affected Daniel personally. He fasted & prayed & his answer delayed for 21 days as the angel sent was caught up in the heavens by the prince of Persia before Archangel Michael intervened. Principalities can therefore cause a delay in our prayer answers; affecting our lives. Sarah was also a victim of delayed blessings as she waited long to bear a child due to barrenness. She lost hope, got frustrated & gave her husband Abraham a chance to bear children with her maid servant Hagar. She could not believe it when God promised Abraham a son since they were both old & considered as good as dead. God tested their faith & at the appointed time fulfilled His promise by making Abraham the father of many nations. We might also be undergoing delay in our lives due to various reasons as sited above. Jesus reminds us to hold on to our faith, pray without ceasing & at the appointed time, He will answer our prayers & bless us abundantly.
PRAYER
You satisfy us with Your love Father, we thank You. Increase our faith to illuminate our hope in You; as we wait patiently for what You have promised. Bless us Lord & enlarge our territories, that Your hand may be with us to keep us from all evil who cause us pain. We place all our trust & desires in You, direct our steps. All glory & praise belong to You, now & forever. Amen