Cast Off Your Formal Attire

With a bold display of pageantry My troops have marched out onto the field; dressed in formal attire they have strutted about as if proud peacocks displaying their plumage. For though these soldiers regularly boast of My army’s strength and might, when I issued the latest ‘call to arms’, the overwhelming response was slight, with most under My command unwilling to give up their extravagant events and weekly displays of showmanship to instead don their battle fatigues and step into the trenches of warfare.

So, as if ordered by some heavenly edict to line up in “parade formation” each week, the bulk of My army gathers, pacing the cadence of their carefully orchestrated processions to fill a specific allotment of time, where each movement is choreographed from beginning to end so that the whole assembly is kept to a spiritually restrictive plan.

But when did I ask My troops to gather in this fashion? Who told them that this rote formation of meeting weekly was per My design? While some believe there to be a higher spiritual significance to these customary gatherings, in actuality, this tradition of assembling was established by man. 

Yet since, for centuries, the practice of Sunday worship has been widely accepted, not only within the Church, but also society at large, shaking this mindset from within My Body shall prove challenging for most, because this generation of believers, as with those in the past, won’t be easily persuaded to let go of their religious practices: those days, dates, times, and customs they’ve determined as being more sacred than others.

Although the pandemic lockdowns where given as an opportunity to break away from this religious bondage, because the majority of My troops misunderstood the freedom I was offering in those moments, the assumption was made that this change to their routine was an enemy attack, and so, they fought until their meeting halls were once again opened.

Sadly, in this nation, the overall view of believers has been extremely shortsighted, for like King Hezekiah, who was only concerned with peace in his days (though trouble was predicted for those who came after him), they too just want to be left in peace so that their weekly assemblies can go on as before; unconcerned that holding on to these religious practices will have a negative impact on the Church as a whole.

Then a shift in perspective must come upon My children, where those shallow thoughts are exchanged for the broader vision of My Kingdom, so that those who now line My ranks have their focus set beyond the length of their own days, and thereby desire to partner with My greater advancement plan, thus making it much easier for the implementation of this divine strategy to be carried into each successive generation of believers.

So in the coming days, when your usual gatherings are again challenged, don’t become incensed and assemble in protest. Understand that this outside pressure is meant to dislodge My troops from their old traditions and structures so that a much stronger and more unified army can be built.

Therefore, cast off your formal attire now, and clothe yourselves in battle fatigues; for it is time to prepare for the fight just ahead, as the enemy is set to launch an all-out assault against the Church. Stop longing to maintain a sense of normalcy, for surely in this season, “change” shall abound, as it is during these days that I have come to usher a new paradigm into the Church: one that resembles an ancient model and flows in sync with My eternal purposes.