5-Day Devotional: It's Not Over Until He Says It's Over

Reading: John 11:1-6

Devotional: When Mary and Martha sent word to Jesus about Lazarus's sickness, Scripture tells us three times that Jesus heard them. Yet He stayed two more days. This seeming contradiction—He loved them, so He stayed—challenges our understanding of God's timing. The moment you pray, God hears you. Your unanswered prayer doesn't mean God is distant or uncaring. Like Daniel who waited 21 days for his answer, spiritual battles we cannot see may be unfolding. Today, thank God that He hears you. He always hears you. Your delayed answer doesn't equal denial. God's timing serves a greater purpose than your immediate comfort—it serves His eternal glory.

Reflection Question: What situation in your life feels unheard by God? Can you thank Him today for hearing you, even without the answer?

Closing Prayer: Father, thank You that You hear me. Thank You that You always hear me. Even when I don't understand Your delays, I choose to believe You love me. Even when things look dead, I trust You specialize in resurrections. Give me faith to worship in the waiting and strength to believe it's not over until You say it's over. In Jesus's name, Amen.

Reading: Habakkuk 2:1-4; Psalm 27:13-14

Devotional: We've lost the art of worshipping in the waiting. Like spoiled children at the store, we pitch fits when God says "not yet." But God's delays aren't God's denials—they reveal a hidden purpose that far outweighs our immediate request. Mary and Martha wanted healing; Jesus wanted resurrection power displayed. What looks like divine absence is often divine preparation. Your delayed season doesn't mean God has forgotten you. It means He's orchestrating something greater than you can imagine. Faith isn't tested on the mountaintop but in the valley of waiting. Will you trust His heart when you can't see His hand?

Reflection Question: What "dead" situation in your life needs you to roll away the stone of disappointment and trust God again?

Closing Prayer: Father, thank You that You hear me. Thank You that You always hear me. Even when I don't understand Your delays, I choose to believe You love me. Even when things look dead, I trust You specialize in resurrections. Give me faith to worship in the waiting and strength to believe it's not over until You say it's over. In Jesus's name, Amen.

Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:50-58

Devotional: Lazarus had been dead four days—beyond all human hope. Yet Jesus stood at the tomb and declared, "It's not over." Death—whether physical, relational, financial, or spiritual—never gets the final word in a believer's life. Jesus died on Friday, and hell celebrated. But early Sunday morning, death had to let Him go. What seems finished in your life today may simply be awaiting resurrection morning. The marriage you've given up on, the prodigal you've stopped praying for, the dream you've buried—none are beyond Jesus's power to resurrect. O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory? Stand flat-footed today and declare: my God specializes in resurrections.

Reflection Question: What have you buried that God might be asking you to believe Him for again?

Closing Prayer: Father, thank You that You hear me. Thank You that You always hear me. Even when I don't understand Your delays, I choose to believe You love me. Even when things look dead, I trust You specialize in resurrections. Give me faith to worship in the waiting and strength to believe it's not over until You say it's over. In Jesus's name, Amen.

Reading: Philippians 4:4-7; John 11:38-44

Devotional: At Lazarus's tomb, Jesus prayed, "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me." Thanksgiving unlocks the work of God. Even before seeing the miracle, Jesus thanked the Father. This is the key to peace in the graveyard seasons—gratitude in the waiting. When you face impossibility, don't just make requests; give thanks that God hears you. Thank Him that He always hears you. This isn't denial of pain but declaration of faith. Your thanksgiving testifies to those watching that God is faithful even when circumstances aren't favorable. The way you respond to delays determines whether others believe God is real.

Reflection Question: Can you thank God today for hearing your prayers, even the ones still unanswered?

Closing Prayer: Father, thank You that You hear me. Thank You that You always hear me. Even when I don't understand Your delays, I choose to believe You love me. Even when things look dead, I trust You specialize in resurrections. Give me faith to worship in the waiting and strength to believe it's not over until You say it's over. In Jesus's name, Amen.

Reading: Mark 4:35-41; John 11:43-44

Devotional: "Lazarus, come forth!" One word from Jesus changes everything. No power, no person, no circumstance can resist His command. He speaks to your storm: "Peace, be still." He speaks to your dead situation: "Come forth!" He speaks to your bondage: "Loose him and let him go." You may be in a delayed season, a difficult diagnosis, even a death situation. But it's not over until Jesus says it's over. And you'll only know it's truly over when you're walking streets of gold. Until then, run your race. Endure your cross. Deny yourself. Follow Jesus. Let Him get glory from your faithfulness in the valley. Your greatest testimony isn't in the miracle—it's in worshipping Him while you wait for it.

Reflection Question: What would change in your life today if you truly believed one word from Jesus can transform your situation?

Closing Prayer: Father, thank You that You hear me. Thank You that You always hear me. Even when I don't understand Your delays, I choose to believe You love me. Even when things look dead, I trust You specialize in resurrections. Give me faith to worship in the waiting and strength to believe it's not over until You say it's over. In Jesus's name, Amen.