BREAKING THE CYCLE OF STAGNATION AND CONFUSION

 

By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi

  

   2 Sam 5:23 NKJV“Therefore David inquired of the Lord, and He said, "You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees.”

              In 2Sam.5:19, king David had obtained the best military strategists to draw up a battle plan against his enemies : the Philistines , he committed his plans to God for success and got the lord's approval to engage the enemy and was victorious. However, in 2 Sam 5:23. when faced with the same challenge, he consulted God and was instructed to jettis.on his military strategy: God had another plan. A plan which involved using trees to fight the enemy. The scriptures say in 2 Sam 5:24 NKJV “it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance .."  Victory is achieved as a result of responding to specific instructions and God is not bound by any particular way of achieving a desired result. God’s answers to our prayers are either “yes”,“no” , “not yet” or “I have a better plan" 
         The desire for individual freedom and adventure in a rapidly changing world has made patience a scarce commodity. Patience is needed to know God’s plan for us. Most motivational speakers encourage us to ‘press on until we get it, life is there for the taking’ without recourse to whether it is God’s plan or not. They say "do not take ‘No’ for an answer" and impatience is celebrated as a virtue. Modern preachers call it  'walking in God's speed'.

        This way of reasoning was  behind apostle Peter's desire to walk on water as a proof of the integrity of God’s word (Matt 14: 27-33). No sooner has he left the boat to meet Jesus did he began to sink .God will not alter divine principles of faith because of our impatience. You could be moving in circles maritally , financially and in your ministry like David was (2Sam.5:23) momentarily but you are making progress with God ;yet, the world may see you as a failure, 
      Impatience leads to unsustainable progress .There is need for spiritual discipline to sustain progress .We frustrate and endanger ourselves when we embark on ventures which may not be in tandem with God’s plan while living Him with no options to do His will. Samson did the same by  his desire to get married to Delilah at all cost (Judges 14:1-3). The lord fulfilled His greater purpose of saving Israel from the enemy through Samson’s presumptuous attitude (verse 4) but it cost Samson his life. We should not be ashamed to retrace our steps in the face of imminent disaster, the scripture says in Prov 14:16 TLB “A wise man is cautious and avoids danger; a fool plunges ahead with great confidence.”  A simple prayer before marriage should be 'Dear lord,  if this union will not lead to a lifetime of peace, joy and righteousness, do not allow me marry (name) no matter how much I try . The same applies to businesses and relationships. 

         The absence of perfect peace is an indicator that God does not approve of a particular venture even if there are noticeable temporal benefits. Let peace be your guide and not only a prophet or prophetess , they could be in error (1kings 22:6-38) . We are guided by God’s peace ,the scripture in Isaiah 26:3 AMP Bible says “You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You.” 
Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I receive him as lord and saviour and receive the Holy Spirit and grace for sound judgment and deliverance from stagnation in Jesus name.  

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