The hidden man of the heart

1 Peter 3:3-4 Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting of the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.

4:00 AM found me up with my baby for his early morning snack. For some reason, I was wide awake. I myself had a little snack and though I tried to go back to bed and get some shut eye my mind was going 100 mph.

I'm going to open up a little here so bear with me. This past week we had the fashion show at our church. Well, I don't know about the rest of you from TVBC but it has been on my mind since. Or should I say my conscience. God has been working in my heart on the subject of modesty for a while and this mother daughter banquet really put it over the top. I want to thank all who were involved in making that night possible. Thank you for all your hard work and for taking on stand in a very unpopular subject. It needs to be addressed. I know it needed to be addressed in my life.

Sometimes during the invitations at the end of each church service I say to myself I'm good, I can't think of anything that is between me and my Savior. Nothing blatant anyway. However, recently I have realized that this subject of modesty effects the heart in a major way. It is subtle but very dangerous. Not only for the men who fall prey to our immodest ways, but also for our relationship with the Lord. When I'm focused on the outward adorning it requires me to be more in touch with the world and what they think is trendy and "popular". There is little room for my Savior when I'm in this mind set and my relationship with Him comes to a screeching halt. So when I wonder why I'm not getting victory over some areas of my life, no matter how simple they may be, I now realize that it has been a subtle, underlying heart issue. When the subject of modesty means nothing to me and I'm pushing the lines on everything, even though it may not be blatant, my heart is not in subjection to my Lord and Savior or my husband.

1 Peter 3:5 For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands:

When someone looks at me do they say "that is a "holy woman of God", "that looks like a Christian"? Or do they just think I look trendy and then compliment my shoes? Shame on me for not glorifying my Savior with my dress choices.

I do want to send out a thank you to all the young ladies in the church. Many of you High School and Junior High girls have been an example to me with your clothing choices. You honor your Lord and your fathers with what you wear and I thank you for doing what is right. A while back I went shopping with one of my young friends and she put me to shame as she wisely shopped for clothing that would be Christ like. That is probably where the conviction started for me on this subject and God has been working on my heart since. This banquet really helped me take a step forward.

So, as I am still wide awake, I'll be going through my closet this morning and asking myself, "Does this honor my Savior or feed the flesh?" Like that poem that preacher reads sometimes about the old man and the new man. The one you feed will dominate. Does my clothing feed my fleshly desires or help the new man grow closer to God? You may think that is an extreme way of looking at this issue but that is the truth of the matter. If nothing else getting a handle on this issue will help our men to serve the Lord without distraction but it will also help our relationships with Christ.

I pray for you all as sisters in Christ that we can encourage each other in this issue, and may we be examples unto the believers and to this dark world. May our choice in clothing, shoes, and accessories, allow Christ to shine forth and accent the smile on our faces and not our trend setting attire.