Religious Activity vs. Spiritual Formation: Is Christ really being formed in us?

By Apostle D, Jerome Garrett

As I sit and reflect on the current state of the Church, I can’t help but feel a divine discomfort. I look around and see movement, noise, packed calendars, vibrant flyers, and dynamic lineups—but little transformation. We have become professionals at having church, but are we becoming the Church? There's a difference. What I see, more often than not, is a surplus of religious activity and a shortage of spiritual formation.

Religious activity is the visible motion of church culture. It's the service, the singing, the dress code, the programs, the meetings, and even the charismatic expressions we often mistake for spiritual power. We say God is welcome, but many times He is boxed out by religion, tradition, legalism, and personal agendas. We’ve mastered the performance of presence without yielding to the Presence. We’re busy, but not necessarily becoming.

But spiritual formation is altogether different. It’s slow. It’s invisible. It’s uncomfortable. It’s the process of Christ being formed in you, not just being performed around you. Galatians 4:19 says it plainly: "My little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!" This is not about how many services we attend or how often we shout. It’s about how deeply we surrender, how intentionally we listen, how consistently we obey, and how fully we become like Christ in character, in thought, in desire, and in deed.

Spiritual formation is not just Bible study—it’s being studied by the Bible until it reshapes your soul. It’s not just worship—it’s becoming a living song to the Lord, even when the music stops. It’s not just prayer—it’s being broken open by prayer until your will melts into His. The formation is what happens when we stay on the Potter’s wheel long enough to take shape—not to look impressive to others, but to be usable by the Master.

Religious activity may impress men. Spiritual formation is what pleases God.

One of the dangers in this hour is mistaking movement for maturity. We shout, “God is here!” but do we really welcome Him when His presence disrupts our agenda? When His forming fire burns away our traditions, our performances, our religious routines—do we yield or resist?

Beloved, we don’t need more religious noise. We need spiritual depth. The Church must return to the posture of being formed—not just filled with events, but transformed in essence. The world doesn’t need another church program. It needs a Church in whom Christ has been formed, who carry His mind, His heart, and His nature into the world.

So I ask you, as I ask myself: Is Christ truly being formed in you?

Because if He’s not being formed, then all we’ve built is hollow.

It’s time to move beyond the activity.

It’s time to submit to the formation.

Apostle D. Jerome Garrett