We all have hopes, dreams, and even needs we long to see become reality—and it can be painful in the waiting. You see, when we experience delays, we’re all tempted to sway… to veer from our intended course… and even give up. Yet, often, God is actually using life’s delays to prepare us for the wonderful plans He has. This is why it’s important we learn how to manage life’s delays.

In the Old Testament book of Exodus, we read what happened when the Israelites swayed in their delay. As they were journeying through the wilderness, the Israelites came to a stopping point where they spent an entire year in the Sinai Desert. During this time, Moses repeatedly went up to the top of Mount Sinai to hear from the Lord.

On one such occasion, Moses was gone for 40 days. Despite all God had promised and the many miracles the Israelite people had experienced, the people became restless in Moses’ delay—and they felt abandoned by God.

Exodus 32:1 says, 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.”

Wow! The Israelites believed the lie that God had abandoned them… and the results were tragic—they went back to the gods of Egypt that the Lord had delivered them from. Much like the Israelites, when we are discouraged, disappointed, and depleted, we can become prey for the enemy, too. We can end up running to idols and other sources to soothe our feelings of abandonment.

Friend, let me encourage you—in life’s delays, watch out for the lies of the enemy! Psalm 27:14 encourages us, Wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the LORD!

To discover how you can stay strong in the delay, dive into this message with me…