As I have been praying for the Church over the last few weeks coming into 2023, I have heard the Lord saying loudly, "Throw down your crowns!"

Praying into this phrase led me to Revelation 4:9-11-

"And whenever the living creatures gave glory, honor, and thanks to the One who is enthroned and who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fell facedown before the one seated on the throne and they worshiped the one who lives forever and ever. And they surrendered their crowns before the throne, singing:

'You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory, honor, and power, for you created all things, and for your pleasure they were created and exist.'"

These elders that are seated on thrones and crowned in Heaven choose to surrender and throw down their crowns before the Lord. They aren't trying to hold onto them! I had a vision of many churches where the leaders aren't willing to throw down their crowns. I saw this hesitancy in them to let go of their crowns because they are worried about getting them back.

I heard the Lord say, "As you surrender and thrown down your crowns before Me, I will keep crowning you in levels of greater glory! Don't hold onto your crowns! I'm trying to do a new thing. New things in worship, in how you do 'church,' and in so many other areas, but to keep aligned with me, you have to first lay down your crown."

I had the sense that this surrendering of the crown season wouldn't be comfortable or easy for many, but it would be necessary to keep up with what He wants to do!

Over the next years, the Lord is going to radically shift how we do things as His Bride and He so wants us to be on the same page!

I want to encourage you to pray about what this throwing down of the crowns looks like for you, and what it means for your heart, especially if you are in a leadership position in your church or worship team.

Let the Lord re-crown you as you surrender before Him! Don't miss the new things He is doing! The worship will look and sound different, but it's going to be so much greater than we have ever experienced before!

January 16, 2023

-Jenny Johnson

Originally published January 16, 2023 @ jennyjohnson.net