Lazzy

“Lord, you don’t understand…”
(John 11:1-44)
“Do you think I should call the Master
 now? He’s not getting any better”, 
said Martha. 
She glanced a worried look at her brother 
lying on the hospital bed with all kinds
 of tubes in his body. 
The life support machine was humming 
and the heart beat monitor was beeping 
at 10 seconds interval. 
Apparently, the doctors have reached 
their wits’ end.
Mary was trying to be brave. 
She wouldn’t want her sister to see her cry. 
“Yes, call him. Let’s hope and pray he gets 
here as fast as he can. I know he loves our 
brother and he would come over as soon 
as he hears…”
Martha picks the phone and she made 
the call. It rang a few times and the Master 
picked the call. Martha was happy he picked 
himself. 
He hardly answers the phone himself 
because he always seemed to be very 
busy. 
More often than not, the phone is answered 
by Philip, and as you talk you would hear the 
Master’s voice in the background, teaching 
and preaching. It was so good he would hear 
the problem first hand and not from Philip 
relating the information to him later.
“That was Martha”, the Master said as he 
handed the phone to Philip. 
“She just called to inform me Lazarus is in 
the hospital. He’s been there for about a 
week now…”
“Seriously? 
But why didn’t she call earlier then? 
Master, we have to head back to Bethany 
immediately- 
I hope it won’t be too late when we get there”, 
Bartholomew interjected; “Matthew, please 
go get the bus and let’s get going! Lazarus’ 
condition demands we leave NOW!” 
“We can’t go back to Bethany yet, gentlemen. 
I still have a few things to do here and it 
would take me a couple of days…” 
Thomas was surprised: “A couple of days? 
Master, I hope you won’t regret this- 
I know how you love Lazarus and his sisters. 
Let’s hit the road now, we can always come 
back here to continue what you are doing here. 
I hate to think I could be sick somewhere and 
you would prioritize doing something else than 
coming to lay your hands on me to heal me…”
The Master smiled. “Don’t worry, guys. 
Lazarus is going to be fine, TRUST ME!” 
He had a twinkle in his eyes they had not seen 
before…
Some days later, the Master said, “Let’s go back 
to Bethany now, gentlemen. 
Lazarus is asleep and I have to go wake him 
up from sleep” James smiled. 
“He’s asleep! That’s good, I guess that shows 
he’s improving. Mary said he had difficulty 
sleeping some days ago”. The Master turned 
to him and said, “Actually, Lazarus is dead. 
And it really is a good thing I wasn’t there 
before he died. 
Nevertheless, let’s go there…” 
Thomas was very upset. 
“I knew it! Master, you stayed too long here- 
now, my friend is dead! I always believed 
Lazarus meant more to you than this. 
Anyway, if he’s dead, I guess we’ll go and die 
with him”. 
Matthew started the engine and they drove 
off. Bethany was a journey of a few hours…
All through the journey, the disciples were quiet. 
They were all wondering why the Master 
stayed back the extra days until Lazarus died. 
It wasn’t as if what they were doing there was 
more important than Lazarus’ life. 
John looked across at the Master. 
He was relaxed. 
It seemed the death of Lazarus didn’t 
touch him. 
He seemed unperturbed! 
Did I just hear him humming a song? 
Honestly, I don’t understand this man anymore!
Peter asked, “Master, but why? Why? 
What I can’t comprehend is, that could 
have been me! I remembered when my 
mother in-law was ill. 
You came over immediately and healed her. 
I remember the centurion’s servant! 
You were very eager to help him. 
And he was even a Roman! 
If you were so willing to heal one of our 
oppressors, why not Lazarus? 
I honestly don’t know what to believe 
anymore”
The Master smiled again. 
The more he smiled, the angrier Peter got. 
“Peter, you must understand that all 
things work together for good to those 
who love God…” Peter sneered, “Yeah, right! 
All things work together for good to those 
who love God all right! I figure those you 
love have a different expectation. 
There’s apparently a big difference between 
those who love God and those who God loves. 
It just ain’t fair. It was as if you purposely 
waited for him to die before we started this trip. 
That is the most painful part…”
Judas cleared his throat. 
“Master, I think we should set up a burial 
committee. 
I can handle the funds for the burial- 
we would need to arrange a befitting burial 
for our friend, Lazarus. 
I know a very good undertaker whose charges
 are a bit high but out friend Lazarus deserves 
the best.
 If we could not come early enough to heal 
him, the least we can do is to give him a 
befitting burial. I can also arrange for OVATION
 to carry it in their next edition…”
“That won’t be necessary, Judas. 
He was buried four days ago. 
But thank you for your concern, although 
I know your motive, anyway, but thank you 
all the same,” the Master said.
“Dead for four days!” Nathaniel screamed. 
“If not that I don’t want to sound rude…” 
The Master cut in, “…You would have said 
I’m wicked, I guess? 
But Nathaniel, can you remember the 
first day I saw you? 
I told you you were going to see greater 
things. 
That day has finally come” 
Andrew murmured under his breath, 
“The problem with the Master is, 
he never talks straight. 
He’s always speaking in parables, 
giving us unnecessary problems trying to 
decipher what he means. 
Why can’t he just speak plainly? 
He’s just too esoteric”
In that moment, they saw Martha. 
Matthew stopped the vehicle and she 
came in. “Hello, Martha”, the Master said. 
“How are you doing?” Martha was not in 
the mood for niceties. 
“Why didn’t you come earlier? 
Maybe my brother would not have died if 
you had come when I called. 
What were you doing that was more important 
than my brother’s life?” 
The Master tried to comfort her. 
“Don’t worry, Martha. Your brother shall 
rise again” Martha put a cross across to 
Mary and she rushed out to meet them. 
“Hello, Mary. Where was he buried? 
I want to see his tomb. Take me there”.
When they got to the grave, the Master wept. 
Judas sneered. “Crocodile tears!” he said 
under his breath. The Master asked the 
stone be rolled away.
Martha protested. 
“Master, you don’t understand…
” Peter also protested; 
“Master, he’s been dead four days! 
Don’t you understand the corpse would
 be rotting and smelling by now?”
The Master looked at Peter. “Peter, do you
 remember when I first saw you and I asked 
you to let down your nets for a catch? 
What was your response?”
Master, you don’t understand… 
He turned to Andrew. 
“When you brought me that boy with 5 loaves
 and 2 fishes and I told you it was okay, 
do you remember what you said?”
Master, you don’t understand… 
He asked John, “When we went to that 
wedding and they ran out of wine and I asked 
they fill those jars with water and they pour '
some for the chairman to drink, do you 
remember the reaction?”
Master, you don’t understand…
He beckoned to Thaddeus: 
“When I asked the man with a 38 year infirmity 
at the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem if he 
wanted to get healed, what did he say?”
Master, you don’t understand… 
Until you learn to trust me with childlike 
faith, you will never get the best I have 
to offer you. Your mind is your biggest 
problem. You need it transformed and 
renewed. You need to unlearn a lot of stuff 
you have learned to get the best from God. 
Children believe unconditionally. 
Children trust unconditionally. 
You must accept the Kingdom of God like 
little children to enjoy the life therein…
The Master turned to the tomb and in a loud 
voice, he said; “Lazarus, come forth!”
And he that was dead came back to life…

-Haruna Daniels