Until the spirit of stagnation is confronted, you cannot move forward in life.
Then we turned, and took our journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea, as the Lord spake unto me: and we compassed mount Seir many days. 2 And the Lord spake unto me, saying, 3 Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward. Deut 2:1-3 (KJV)
I don’t know how long you have been roaming about in life, move forward by fire, in the name of Jesus
• God has no glory and honour in your stagnation. So, anything telling you, “it’s God” is a liar
The spirits of stagnation are powers that stylishly waste destiny and time.
I speak to you this day, move forward, in the name of Jesus.
“And the Lord said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward:” Exo. 14:15
I speak to someone that has been stranded, move forward by fire, in the name of Jesus
Stagnation is the major cause of frustration. When someone is stagnated, he complains about everything. Complaining is a sign of stagnated life
Stagnation is not ordinary, it is a curse
– Stagnation is no progress
– Stagnation is no movement
– Stagnation is no increase
– It is a satanic hold down
– It is an evil device keeping you away from your destiny.
Any device, keeping you away from your destiny, break by fire, in the name of Jesus
God wants His children to advance, so everything holding you down shall break by fire, in the name of Jesus
“And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great:” Gen. 26:13
Proverbs 4:18 says, “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.”
CATEGORIES OF STAGNATION
1. STATIC-LIFE STAGNATION: No matter how they tried; no growth, no movement, no increase, no progress
Anyone under the sound of my voice, that they have concluded evil agenda that you will not move forward in life, by the authority that called me into the ministry, break in the name of Jesus
2. SLOW-MOTION STAGNATION: This is when movement comes at interval; although there is progress, but it is very slow.
Slow-motion Stagnation is not a divine agenda for your life.
If you are experiencing such, I stand on the cross, those powers saying although you will move but it will be at interval, they shall die, in the name of Jesus
3. TIED-DOWN STAGNATION. Matt. 21:2-3
The danger of being tied down is that there is a rope. Being tied down will make one operate freely but when he wants to move forward beyond the rope, then he will know that there is a rope.
4. STAGNATION BY OPPRESSION.
5. MOVING IN ONE CIRCLE: Working but making no impact
Dealing with stagnation spiritually is easy. The yoke can be broken easily by repentance and spiritual warfare.
“So when he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered himto four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people after Passover. Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church. Acts 12:4-5 (NKJV)
THE DIFFICULT PART IS WHEN THE STAGNATION IS A PRODUCT OF DEADLY PRACTICES, CUSTOMS AND HABITS.
Below are 8 deadly practices of highly stagnant people.
“Are you the same person you were last year?”
Years ago, I realized the above statement is a dubious reality of many people. Twelve months had gone by, and they had little to show for it. They hadn’t moved forward. They are stagnant.
First, Look At Characteristics of a Stagnant Waters:
· It has nothing flowing in or out.
· It becomes overgrown with algae.
· It becomes poison.
· It stinks.
· It is abandoned.
Am I Stagnant Or Moving?
8 Deadly Practices of Highly Stagnant People.
1. The Practice of Unneeded Sleep
The sleep gear has murdered good intentions for decades. “I will get up early and workout, read, pray, study….” Behind every unrealized personal growth goal, lies an overused sleep button.
Contrary to popular belief, people who sleep six to seven hours a night live longer, and those who sleep eight hours or more die younger, according to a California study, the largest ever conducted on the subject.
The controversial study, which tracked the sleeping habits of 1.1 million Americans for six years, undermines the advice of many sleep doctors who have long recommended that people get eight or nine hours of sleep every night.
The bible has many things to say about sleep in proverbs:
Proverbs 20:13 Do not love sleep, or you will become poor; Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with food.
Proverbs 6:4 Give no sleep to your eyes, Nor slumber to your eyelids;
Proverbs 6:9 How long will you lie down, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?
Proverbs 6:10 "A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest"--
Proverbs 10:5 He who gathers in summer is a son who acts wisely, But he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully.
Proverbs 19:15 Laziness casts into a deep sleep, And an idle man will suffer hunger.
Proverbs 23:21 For the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty, And drowsiness will clothe one with rags.
2. The Practice of Cable TV Addiction.
Television addiction, you may think its harmless, but its not, let me show you that it can be harmful to you. Television watching has been a favorite past time of families since the television set first debuted in households. Today, the volume of channels and show choices has increased and there is something for everyone to enjoy.
How do you watch television and how often do you watch it?
Somebody said and I quote,
“The more television you watch, the more you see people who seem richer than you. Research shows that you will then overestimate the income of real people, and underestimate the value of your own. So the more television you watch, the more dissatisfied with yourself you become. You’ll also spend more money: By one estimate, you’ll spend an extra four dollars per week for every hour of television you watch. Of course, television is about drama, which means violence, infidelity, and amoral behaviour, and you end up overestimating the frequency of these things in real life. You may conclude that the world is less safe than it actually is, and decide that you’d better stay home and watch more television.” — From Rewire by Richard O’Connor.
Signs of Addiction to Television:
Here are some things to look out for in yourself and the members of your household to recognize signs of addiction to television:
You watch television mindlessly, unaware of anything going on around you or even what exactly it is you are watching.
You have televisions in every room of your home and often fall asleep with the television on.
You cannot sleep without the television on.
You neglect personal hygiene, work, family and other responsibilities because you are too involved in a show you are watching.
You cancel recreational events or rearrange your schedule so that you don't have to miss a show on television.
You relate to characters on television and feel more connected with them than you do with people in your real life.
You associate television watching with food or certain emotions (for example, you grab a bottles of ice chilled coke and flop down in front of the television after you've had a bad day or are feeling low).
You often stay up late watching television
You experience withdrawal symptoms when you are unable to watch television, including anxiety, depression and seemingly incurable boredom.
If you've experienced similar symptoms from above, you may be suffering from television addiction.
These tips will help you give your addiction to TV a slap equivalent to those received by television sets in the olden days:
Find other hobbies; a healthy hobby, like reading, it will distract you and entertain you simultaneously.
Limit yourself to only watching television after accomplishing tasks and at set times (in other words, no channel surfing, just scheduled show watching).
Limit your household to one television set, this will reduce television watching at bed time and while eating meals.
Take the focus off of your television by making another furnishing the focal point of your living room. Rearrange the room or hide the television within an armoire.
3. The Practice of Uncontrolled and Endless Time Spend With Friends
Time spend with Friends is good but can be harmful when uncontrolled. Some people cannot just stay alone. They will do anything to escapes from the world around then, including spending uncontrolled time with so called friends. They add very little to our lives except more entertainment. If you want to grow this year, you don’t really need more uncontrolled entertainment time spent with friends.
When you understand that through the power of change in meaningful solitude you can become great, so many pursuits you’ve been wasting your time on will no longer matter to you. You will even run away from some certain friends.
4. The Practice of Talk Radio Addiction
For those who are often on the road or in the market place, talk radio can be a constant companion. But I submit that listening to the rants, raves and opinions of ON AIR PERSONALITIES (OAP) for hours and everyday, does little to build your own intellectual bank account.
5. The Practice of Social Media Addiction!
Social media is a norm in our society and it provides a new way we communicate. But, using these social networks, like Facebook, can become a real addiction. Updating your status while you drive; checking in the first thing in the morning and falling asleep with your phone in the evening; Spending too much time on social media can be a real problem!
The bane of this generation’s intellectual growth is often spending hours watching for life updates from former high school classmates and celebrities. The daily ritual of repeatedly checking in on Facebook to read about another person’s day does little to keep us moving forward with our lives.
Social media is addictive precisely because it gives us something which the real world lacks: it gives us immediacy, direction, a sense of clarity and value as an individual.
Having to explain to a child of today, who has learned to swipe mobile touch screens before they can speak, that certain aspects of a person’s life must remain private for the preservation of one’s sanity is almost frivolous.
If your friends and family joke that you're addicted to Facebook, they may be right. Researchers in Norway have identified six signs that you may be addicted. They've used those signs to develop a test to help you figure out of your suffer from a social media addiction.
The test, called the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale, is based on six basic criteria, where all items are scored on the following scale: (1) Very rarely (2) Rarely (3) Sometimes (4) Often and (5) Very often. The signs are:
• You spend a lot of time thinking about Facebook or plan use of Facebook.
• You feel an urge to use Facebook more and more.
• You use Facebook to forget about personal problems.
• You have tried to cut down on the use of Facebook without success.
• You become restless or troubled if you are prohibited from using Facebook.
• You use Facebook so much that it has had a negative impact on your job/studies.
6. The Practice of Reading Junks
Reading not only has tremendous power when it comes to fueling the development of all aspects of language ability, its importance to the entirety of a human life in this day and age really can’t be overstated. Reading is a conversation. All books talk. Reading is enrichment, containing the qualities necessary for bringing to life the added elements of breadth and depth, expansion and intensity. Reading gives life more life. Reading is a pathway to a better life, a richer one. All good books are different but all bad books are exactly the same. What you read matters. Don’t Read junk materials.
7. The Practice of Wishing For More Time
“I just wish I had more time.” Get over it. Today, tomorrow and next 100 years, will all have only 24 hours. You can only have time for what I prioritize. So whatever you are doing instead of investing in your personal growth, is obviously the priority you have set for yourself.
8. The Practice of Procrastination.
You know what you want to do. You certainly know what you need to be doing. But you’re off somewhere else. Because procrastination has once again swept into your mind and actions. And so you escape. Onto Facebook, into a video game or a movie or simply by doing easier and less important tasks.
But what can you do about it?
The bible has the following to say about procrastination.
Ephesians 5:15-17 “Look carefully then how you walk,not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time,because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”
Ecclesiastes 11:4 - He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.
James 4:17 - Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth [it] not, to him it is sin.
Proverbs 20:4 - The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; [therefore] shall he beg in harvest, and [have] nothing.
Luke 9:59-62 - And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
John 9:4 - I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
might; for [there is] no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
None of these eight things are bad for us in and of themselves. The problem is when they become a habit. If I am habitually involved in any of these pursuits, I am well on my way to stagnation.
Read the following inspiring thoughts that will help move you out of procrastination:
1. “When you have to make a choice and don’t make it, that in itself is a choice.”
– William James
2. “If you want to make an easy job seem mighty hard, just keep putting off doing it.” – Olin Miller
3. “It is only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth – and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up – that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had.”
– Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
4. “Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can’t buy more hours. Scientists can’t invent new minutes. And you can’t save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you’ve wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow.” – Denis Waitley
5. “How soon ‘not now’ becomes ‘never.'” – Martin Luther
6. “Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.”
– Stephen King
7. “A year from now you may wish you had started today.” – Karen Lamb
8. “If you don’t pay appropriate attention to what has your attention, it will take more of your attention than it deserves.” – David Allen
9. “Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.” – Napoleon Bonaparte
10. “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”
– Martin Luther King, Jr.
11. “Think of many things; do one.” – Portuguese proverb
12. “Procrastination is the thief of time: Year after year it steals, till all are fled, and to the mercies of a moment leaves the vast concerns of an eternal scene.”
– Edward Young
13. “To think too long about doing a thing often becomes its undoing.” – Eva Young
14. “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” – Jim Rohn
15. “Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.”
– Pablo Picasso
16. “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” – Anne Frank
17. “Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work in hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus. “ – Alexander Graham Bell
18. “Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them.” – David Allen
19. “Don’t wait. The time will never be just right.”
– Napoleon Hill
The Bottom Line:
You are in control of your growth. If you are not growing as a man, a father, or a leader, it is my fault.
Finally, Look At The Characteristics of A Running Stream:
· It has fresh water flowing in and out.
· Its clarity and its depth are obvious.
· It is life sustaining.
· It doesn’t stink.
· It attracts others who are thirsty and hungry.
To be like a fresh running stream versus stagnant water, you must consistently absorb fresh information and then share it with others. The best way I know to avoid stagnation is to read, listen to audio books while I drive, learn from mentors and then share your new thoughts with others. You must realize that your choices determine whether you are stagnant water or a running stream.
Ask yourself then, “What customs or practices do I need to eliminate to allow for more capacity growth in myself and for more opportunities to show?”
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