By Dhimas Anugrah

Have you ever felt the rush of trying to catch a train or a bus? Your breath quickens, your heart pounds, and you’re desperately hoping you’ll make it in time. That’s precisely what happened to me at Alexanderplatz Station in Berlin not long ago. My left foot was swelling, but I pushed myself forward with one simple goal: get inside before the doors closed. 

I made it, but as I caught my breath, a question came to mind: Why do we fear being left behind so much? And why does that feeling show up not only at stations and terminals, but in everyday life? The truth is, many of us worry about being “left behind” in other ways, falling behind in careers, relationships, achievements, or even the dreams we’ve carried since childhood.  

The Germans have a word for this: Torschlusspanik—the sinking feeling when it seems the doors of opportunity are closing one by one. A friend of mine, 31, knew that feeling too well. His peers had advanced careers and impressive positions, while he remained in the same job. But what troubled him most was deeper: as a believer, was his faith not strong enough to lead him to success? He asked me, “Have I missed it? Am I too late to receive the blessings God has prepared for me?” 

When Waiting Feels Too Long   

In Christianity, the feeling of ‘I’m too late’ is something familiar. Proverbs 13:12 says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick…” Scripture speaks honestly about how waiting can weigh heavily on the heart, yet it also carries tremendous potential for growth.  It is often the most humane aspect of struggle and most of the change takes place. 

Let’s recall the story of Mary and Martha waiting for Jesus to heal Lazarus. But, we also know that Jesus came “too late.” Lazarus was already dead (John 11:6). Hope was all but gone. However, it was in this “too late” moment Jesus made his power known: Lazarus’ resurrection became an undeniable proof that God’s timing is, by no means, too late. John Calvin interpreted Jesus’ delay as an act of obedience towards God’s will for the sake of His glory. Panic didn’t spur Jesus into action, the certainty of His love did (Calvin’s Commentaries, 2010).

Psychologists, Heckhausen and Wrosch explored humans’ two coping mechanisms against the march of time: by changing the external situation (primary control) or by accepting and adapting internally (secondary control). Christian spirituality takes this further. It invites believers beyond mere resignation, into an active surrender to God’s providence, a surrender rooted in trust rather than defeat. In Serenity Prayer, Reinhold Niebuhr wrote: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”

Christian faith helps us to see that being late is not the end of everything. Christ opens new doors, even when the old ones were shut. As James Fowler, a theologian, explained, spiritual maturation does not employ faith as a control device, but a frame for meaning: we believe God’s providence strengthens us even when life seemed to spiral out of control.

Thus, nothing in this life is ever wasted. We are never too old to grow, to make peace, to love, or to rediscover our calling. Better yet, “missed the moment” may be a sign of a new beginning. The point here is to view time not as a threat but a field where our soul is grown in the hands of ever-faithful, ever-loving God.

God’s Timing and Our Fear of Delay

What do we feel when God’s help seems to come “after the appointed time”? Our prayers left unanswered, our problems have no solution in sight, and our life tethering towards destruction. Our heart cries, “O God, where are you?”

Avoiding suffering is our wish all the time. God, however, often makes Himself known in the midst of it not just to offer solutions, but also to invite us to see Him. Panic doesn’t define His works; it is kairos, His divine timing that changed both our situation and our heart.

In the Scriptures, Moses waited 40 years in the desert before God called (Exodus 2:15-25); Jesus delayed His coming for four days until Lazarus’ death before resurrecting him (John 11:6); Abraham waited decades until the birth of Isaac; Hannah prayed in sorrow before she had Samuel. It isn’t in God’s nature to expedite process for our comfort; He wants instead to instill a prepared heart so we may receive His blessing as a calling, not a mere gratification.

One might argue God is intentionally “being late.” While there’s some truth in this, the cause is not Him forgetting us, but Him preventing us from falling into instant gratification. Molding, not merely satisfying, is His goal.

Unanswered prayers aren’t proof of rejection, but part of their fruition. God never left us behind. He prepares us instead. In what seems to be a silence, whispers of Psalm 31:15 becomes real: “My times are in your hands.” It is both a theological and existential confession that proclaims, despite time’s sluggish move, that God is never too late.

Formed, Not Forsaken

The unrelenting assault of torschlusspanik led us to perceive time as an enemy. As a result, there’s one thing we often ignore: in Christ, rather than an adversary, time is His tool to lovingly process us. The “too late” moments become a sign that He is doing much more than what we can see.

We’re afraid of being “too late” because of forgetting our identity as God’s children, turning to achievements and performance to measure ourselves. We feel unfilled and use other people’s success as a benchmark. The world preached quick wins and successes. Faith, however, invites us to walk rather than to sprint. To surrender our time rather than to control it.

In the same vein, prayer won’t make the process shorter. Instead, it is a sanctuary where our hopes are purified, and our lives are shaped according to God’s loving rhythm. We do not force God to walk in our footsteps; we walk in His.

Why? Because the narrative of the Kingdom taught us more about faithfulness rather than speed. God doesn’t leave us when things seem to be moving slowly. Instead, during such moments, He is the closest to us, sinking our roots deeper into Him.

And so, Psalm 31:16 became a full-fledged declaration of faith: “My times are in your hands.” Those hands were pierced and wounded on the cross for us, enabling us to believe every second of life, even the quiet ones, is held in the loving hands of always on-time God.

 

A Prayer for the Heart That Fears It’s Too Late 

Lord,
Give me peace at all seasons of my life,
The courage to keep walking, however slowly,
The wisdom to see Your hand at work in moments I don’t yet understand.
Teach me to believe that delays are never a sign of neglect,
You never rush,
Yet always right on time according to Your love.
In Your hands, I am not late.
I am being shaped, and that is enough for me.
Amen.

---

---

Our Daily Bread Ministries in Indonesia is supported by the freewill offering of individuals in Indonesia, who through their gifts enable us to continue to bring the life-changing wisdom of the Bible to many here. We are not funded by any church or organisation.

SUPPORT US