Keeping Up Appearances

Since the young age of five, I was allowed to dress myself. My outfits were a plethora of bright colors and quirky patterns and made me feel most confident that I had picked them out. Though I have since learned the definiton of "tacky," I still like to feel confident in my style. Now that I have long forsaken the trendy 90s mini skirts and tie-up shirts, my concern is: "What should I, as a Christian woman, be wearing?"
Every woman has what she considers her "best asset." Whether it is her smile, hair, lips, curvature, or skin- she is proud when that asset is on display. Most people will notice, but when they do not, surely the woman will try her best next time to say: "Look at me- I have the best [fill in the blank]!" Little does she know, she is actually down-playing her value.
Anyone who is deserving of a Christian woman's attention is not going to judge her by her amount of cleavage, her heavily made-up eyes, or any other physical attribute which she might spend hours perfecting. If a woman is married, all of her physical body is reserved for her husband, but if she is single, her body is still reserved for her husband. Even a woman gifted with singleness has reserved her body for the Lord. In essence, a Christian woman should respect her body. Sound familiar? Look at 1 Corinthians 6:19 "Or don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God?" This scripture tells us that our bodies are honorable gifts from God. Therefore, we should want to keep it pure.
When a woman gets dressed each day, she should ask herself: What aspect of my character am I displaying today? Though everyone has what they believe are flaws, character can easily overshadow a slanted eye or chipped tooth. Psalms 139:14 says we are "fearfully and wonderfully made," so never should we be self- conscious about our appearance. A meek character greatly enhances the appearance of any being. Whoever God foreordains to be together will instantly be attracted to each other on a deeper level than visual. How wonderful is God's plan- The very thing that a woman may not like about herself is attractive in God's eyes and her husband's!
In conclusion, women (and men) are to clothe themselves in modesty. When I was in high school, the slogan for dress code was "Everything that is trendy is not necessarily appropriate." This statement could not be anymore truthful. Applying this slogan to Christians, everything that the world finds attractive is not attractive to God. We are called to glorify God in all aspects of life, which includes our obvious physical being. We cannot spread the glory of God while looking like the world- it's impossible. So let us strap on our belts of truth (Eph 6:14) and display our Christianity!