I am revisiting a word I heard in my spirit in August 2016. It still challenges me today.
As I embrace my apostolic gifting—helping the local church grow and move forward—I share this with humility. My heart is not to condemn the church, but to encourage us to examine our hearts and draw closer to Jesus.
In August 2016, I heard the word stagnant in my spirit. Then I heard, “A stagnant church is a stench in the nostrils of God!”
I woke up and wrote those words down. What did they mean? I felt the Spirit lead me to Isaiah 1:13–17 in The Message Bible.
“Quit your worship charades. I can’t stand your trivial religious games:
Monthly conferences, weekly Sabbaths, special meetings— meetings, meetings, meetings—I can’t stand one more! Meetings for this, meetings for that. I hate them! You’ve worn me out! I’m sick of your religion, religion, religion, while you go right on sinning. When you put on your next prayer-performance, I’ll be looking the other way. No matter how long or loud or often you pray, I’ll not be listening. And do you know why? Because you’ve been tearing
people to pieces, and your hands are bloody. Go home and wash up. Clean up your act.
Sweep your lives clean of your evildoings so I don’t have to look at them any longer.
Say no to wrong. Learn to do good. Work for justice. Help the down-and-out. Stand up for the homeless. Go to bat for the defenseless.”
These passages reminded me that worship is more than meetings, prayers, and religious routines. God calls us to turn away from wrongdoing, do good, seek justice, and help those who need protection. Our worship should be reflected in the way we live and treat people.
We can attend every service and still have hearts that are far from God. Acts 17:24–25 also reminds us that God is not confined to a building or dependent on what we give Him. He is the One who gives us life and breath.
What Is a Stagnant Church?
Stagnant means not moving, growing, or making progress. For me, a stagnant church is not simply a church with few people. The deeper question is whether its people are growing spiritually.
Are we becoming more loving? Are we learning and living God’s Word? Are we serving others? Or are we repeating the same routines without allowing God to change us?
Think of a pond with no fresh water flowing in or out. It can become overgrown and unhealthy. A running stream gives us a different picture: fresh water moving, sustaining life, and drawing those who are thirsty.
That picture makes me ask: Are we a stagnant pond or a flowing stream?
When Gifts Lie Dormant
A church can be busy while the gifts within its people remain unused. Dormant gifts are gifts that have not been put into action. People may keep attending without being equipped or encouraged to serve.
Ephesians 4:11–14 describes apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers helping to equip God’s people for service. The purpose is to build up the body of Christ and help believers become mature and steady in their faith.
We need more than activity. We need sound biblical teaching , spiritual growth, and room for people to use their gifts to serve others. The question is not only, “Who is coming to church?” It is also, “Who is being equipped?”
Receive, Grow, and Share
I believe we must keep seeking wisdom and understanding from God, then live out and share what we receive. Revelation means something being revealed—God helping us understand what we could not see clearly before.
Proverbs 29:18 connects revelation with direction and restraint. In Ephesians 1:17, Paul prays for believers to receive wisdom and revelation so they can know God better.
For me, this is not about chasing every new message that sounds exciting. It is about knowing God more deeply, staying grounded in Scripture, and putting His truth into practice. Like a stream, we receive and then give. What God teaches us should flow into how we love, serve, and care for others.
Return to Our First Love
The messages to the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3 call us to listen and examine ourselves. The church at Ephesus especially speaks to my heart.
Jesus recognized their hard work, patience, and perseverance. Yet He also told them they had left their first love (Revelation 2:2–4). They were doing the work, but something important was missing.
That is a serious reminder: we can work hard for Jesus and still lose the love that should guide our work.
His call was clear: remember, repent, and return to the things they did at first (Revelation 2:5). I hear that as a loving call to come back—not just to more activity, but to a renewed love for Him.
What Gospel Are We Preaching?
Are we leading people toward religious routines, or helping them know Jesus and follow Him? Does our message encourage changed hearts, loving actions, and lives of service?
As I revisit this word from 2016, I want to begin with my own heart. Have I become comfortable instead of growing? Am I using the gifts entrusted to me? Is love for Jesus still at the center of what I do?
I believe the church can grow and thrive as we return to our first love: to know Jesus and make Him known. That may require us to change familiar habits, listen with humility, and make room for others to serve.
Let us not settle for busy churches and sleeping gifts. Let us seek changed hearts, growing faith, and love that reaches beyond our church walls.
Lord, renew our love for You. Awaken the gifts that have been lying dormant. Help us become like a flowing stream, sharing Your love and serving others. Amen.
Minister A Francine Green, November 2026