What If the Delay Is Protection?

• By candidasullivan
• January 15, 2026
• No Comments

How often do we allow the little things in our lives to steal our peace and joy?
The enemy sets traps for us. He wants us to become angry over small inconveniences and complain about our lives instead of appreciating them.

While we can’t choose our circumstances, we can decide ahead of time how we are going to respond.

I used to get upset about traffic or standing in long lines. While I waited, irritation would build inside me. Then I would carry that irritation with me and pass it on to others throughout my day because I made it all about me. Waiting felt inconvenient.

Then one day, something shifted.

What if I am stalled because God is protecting me from something?

Since that day, I’ve learned to wait with patience. Now, when I’m delayed, I read a book on my phone, pray for someone else, take a deep breath, or simply sit in the present moment.

Whether I am upset or patient doesn’t change how long I will have to wait, but it does change who I am while I’m waiting.

It’s the same with prayer. Sometimes we have to wait for the Lord to answer. We can wait with resentment, or we can wait with patience—trusting that God answers in His perfect timing. So often, we try to rush the Lord, but what we want is not always what is best for us.

God has a reason for the waiting.

My first Zippy book was almost published years earlier by a different company. I was impatient and wanted it released, even though something in my spirit felt off. That impatience caused unnecessary heartache.

Years later, when the book was published by a different company, I finally understood. I rewrote the manuscript the night before submitting it. The version I was originally going to publish wasn’t what God wanted shared.

God works in His time, according to His will. We can’t get ahead of Him, and we can’t lag behind Him.

The present moment is all we will ever truly have. One of the enemy’s greatest lies is convincing us that the next moment will be better, or that the best moments are already behind us. Anxiety grows when we try to fast-forward or rewind our lives.

Neither is possible.

Every step of the journey matters.

So let’s pause and fully live this moment.
Maybe there’s something God wants you to see.