Daniel C. Okpara
Prophetic Declaration for the Year:
“I have victory over everything that strove with me in the past, for God has given me room to flourish in the land.
“Therefore this is My Year of REHOBOTH.”
Today’s Reading:
“Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.” – Ecclesiastes 11:4 (NLV).
REFLECTION
If there is one thing that God wants you to overcome this year, it is procrastination.
Procrastinating about anything is not wise especially when it becomes a habit. It starts off first by procrastinating about one thing, then it leads to procrastinating about other things.
When you know you have things to do, it’s best to organize yourself and make sure those things get done.
Let’s pray for help to overcome procrastination this year.
WAYS YOU CAN PROCRASTINATE.
- Because of fear we procrastinate about sharing our faith to people at work.
- Because of slothfulness you wait for the last moment to do something that needs to be done.
- We try to wait for the best time to do something rather than doing it now.
- God tells you to do something, but you delay and rationalize it.
- Delay in saying sorry and apologizing.
HOW TO OVERCOME PROCRASTINATION.
- Pray for God’s help. We all need help with procrastination.
- Realize that tomorrow does not exist. Today is the tomorrow you talked about yesterday. Every tomorrow ends up becoming another today.
- Stop being afraid of what people will say. You will never have a smooth ride to Canaan. No matter how you try to avoid failure, you will still fail at times. We all fail our way forward. No matter how you try to stay away from people’s comments, they will still talk.
- Realize that the perfect time never comes. Everything will never become perfect for you to start. Waiting for the perfect time equals waiting till eternity. You will never really know what you can do until you try.
- Stop worrying about things you don’t have. What you already have will create what you want – if you put them into use. God will use what you have, not what you don’t have
Don’t forget, what you cannot start, you cannot finish. You will never really know what you can do until you try. Waiting for the perfect time equals waiting till eternity.
SCRIPTURES FOR MEDITATION
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.
Colossians 4:5 – Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.
James 4:17 – Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.
John 9:4 – We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work.
PRAYER TO OVERCOME PROCRASTINATION
“O Heavenly Father,
I come to You this day asking for help with my tendency to procrastinate and put off important tasks, studies, assignments, projects and serious personal conversations until the last minute. Thank You for all of the times You rescued me from my own bad habits when I really didn’t deserve it because I didn’t work and plan ahead.
LORD, here are the specific things I always find myself putting off until they absolutely have to get done…
(Mention specific areas of procrastination)
I now confess my faults and offer my guilt, my stress and the loss of personal productivity to you, asking for Your helping presence.
I pray that You will give me self-knowledge into the reasons and into the root causes of why I put things off. Is it avoidance because of fear of failure, anxiety over whether I can do the job that keeps me from starting or finishing?
Is it that I am too easily distracted by things I really like doing?
Is it because I have been running on the false assumption that I work better under pressure?
Is there something else going on that you’d like to show me?
LORD, I ask that You to please give me a greater appreciation of the preciousness of time.
I thank You that You are the Lord of order, of creation and of history. You have created seasons, months and days, sleep and wake, life and growth.
I am grateful that even though You live outside of time in eternity, You understand how I feel because Your son Jesus had to make decisions and take actions about what things He should make a priority.
Help me to define my priorities and then follow the example of how Jesus got up early before sunrise and went off to lonely places to pray because it was on his priority list and He knew if He put it off till later, it wouldn’t get done. (Mark 1:35)
Please guide me LORD. Help me set good time priorities and stick with them. Give me self-discipline.
Empower me to ask others for help when I don’t know how to get started or how to finish up. Give me confidence in my ability to do big tasks. Help me to overcome the temptation to do other things that I’d rather be doing that are less important. I know that You want me to live a healthy, productive life. Help me learn how to break this habit. Empower me in my weakness. Bring me back when I stray. Focus me. Organize me. Remind me. Energize me.
Help me make this year a year of great productivity.
In Jesus name.
Amen.
NOTE:
The entire teachings and prayers for the 21 days New Year Fasting is Culled from the book, PRAYERS FOR 2017. There are only few additions. It is highly recommended that you get the book, Prayers for the Year, 2017, from Amazon.
Daniel C. Okpara
Daniel C. Okpara is the author of numerous best-selling books, including, What Do You Have in Your House?, Parable of the Serpent, Pillars of Excellence in Life and Business, Take it By Force, Prayer Wave, and Many others. He is the founder of Better Life World Outreach Center, a non-denominational ministry dedicated to global evangelism and equipping of God's people to live a better life. He is also the founder of Breakthrough Prayers Foundation www.breakthroughprayers.org), an online portal leading people all over the world to encounter God and change their lives through prayer. He has authored over 50 books on business, prayer, relationship, and investment.
Comment…I now know the true meaning what seek, and thou shall find is. Many years Pastor I have been searching the internet on books on how to pray, books on faith, Books and more Praise God my search is over. I have finally found true edification. I have downloaded your books, I cannot stop reading and praying. I believe my search is over you, have given me hope, Bless you May God abundantly bless you.
Hallelujah!!! To our king; Jesus I bless your name. For allowing me to prayer with the ones you have allowed me to prayer with. Bless your servant lord Daniel Okpara the pastor that you have given the vision for this mission.
Thank you JESUS because I know that this year is my year.more grace to sir.