Your adornment must not be merely external—with interweaving and elaborate knotting of the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or [being superficially preoccupied with] dressing in expensive clothes; but let it be [the inner beauty of] the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality and unfading charm of a gentle and peaceful spirit, [one that is calm and self-controlled, not overanxious, but serene and spiritually mature] which is very precious in the sight of God. (1 Peter 3:3-4 AMP)
{reposted from June 28, 2022 }
The other day I spent several hours clothes shopping with my teenage sons. (Yes, I really did convince them to go shopping!) Two of them are going to a conference whose dress code includes “sport coat, dress pants, and tie.” We are pretty much jeans-and-t-shirts people around here, so these dress-up occasions take some planning. After shopping, washing, and even ironing (gulp!), I think their dress clothes are ready to go. I anticipate they will have a good week and having to wear professional dress will be a good life experience. (Eventually, a man has to figure out how to tie a tie, right??)
Does what we wear matter? In some situations, yes. First impressions are often made at a first glance. Sometimes dressing up shows honor for the person(s) you are encountering. For me, dressing up to go to worship at church on Sundays is important, showing that I recognize God as worthy of something above my norm. It doesn’t mean that God can’t love me no matter what I wear, but, rather, that I recognize his vast beyond-ness and I acknowledge that.
Perfect clothes, expertly coiffed hair, pristine make-up, are all worldly and external things that we put on for many different reasons. And in this world, there are many people who are much more interested in the external than the internal.
God, on the other hand, is not.
In 1 Samuel 16 God told the prophet Samuel to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as the future king. Samuel took one look at the oldest and thought, “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed!” But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:6-7 NLT)
God looks at the heart. You’ve probably read/heard this before; I have. But what we wear also comes out of our hearts. When we wear a smile, when we wear an encouraging word, when we wear helpfulness or kindness or love, those things come out of our hearts. Jesus scornfully told the Pharisees that, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” (Matthew 12:34 ESV) And this can be true in a positive light, too. When our hearts are full of God’s love, peace, and Light, those things will show in our words and actions. We will, in a way, wear God’s Spirit and others will see it.
What are you wearing today?
God Almighty,
Thank you that you have created us in your image, for a purpose, and you love us no matter what. Thank you that you see the fullness of our hearts and honor that which is good. Help us to wear what is good, kind, praiseworthy, lovely, admirable, and honoring to you. Help us to smile more and show your Light to this world.
In Jesus’s Name, AMEN.
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8 NIV)