Grasping Grace

It’s practically a month into Spring and for those of us who live in LA,  the weather is sunshine across the board.  And as modest ladies, as I know you all are, it starts getting harder and harder to find appropriate clothing to match the heat and not break your budget.  Here are some of my tips for the Spring as well as some items I’ve recently picked up for the season- enjoy! And as always if you have your own tips to share- leave a comment and let us know!

1. We’ve gotten used to wearing our favorite cardigan with our dresses, but at 90 degrees even a light sweater can make you feel like you’re suffocating.  Try wearing a nice shirt over your dress, it cuts down the heat yet gives the coverage we’re looking for.  This works best with slightly cropped shirts or a belt to cinch it in at the waist.  A spring scarf or necklace can go a long way in completing the look!

2. I LOVE coral and teal together. This may be off topic, but I can’t help sharing!

3. Maxi dresses and full length skirts are in style and can be found at stores like Forever 21 for less than $20 or Target for about the same price.

4. Know what length, in inches, will allow your clothing to fall where you want them to on your legs.  This helps so much when shopping for clothes online and can save a lot of walking around/window shopping time.  The simplest way to do this is to measure a dress that you already know fits well from the shoulder to the hem.  This will vary depending on your height and body type, for example I’m around 5’4″ and look for a 36″ to 37″ shoulder to hem spec.  Another good measurement is to know the inseam of your shorts, I look for about 5″ to 6″ which lands mid-thigh on me.  And when there are no measurements given- read the reviews!!

5. If you really like a store, sign up for their emails which notify you when there’s a major sale.  OR look around online for coupons and deals that you can print out before going shopping.  This sometimes works for stores like Express, the Limited, American Eagle, or Macy’s.

“WE ARE called to be women. The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian does make me a different kind of woman. For I have accepted God’s idea of me, and my whole life is an offering back to Him of all that I am and all that He wants me to be.”

“To make a choice is to accept the limitations.”

—–

Elisabeth Elliot wrote the quotes above in her book, “Let me be a Woman.” This quote has challenged me in my understanding of womanhood and the limitations it imposes on Christian women. Why spend our time here? Modesty is an issue that will continue to challenge us, Christian women, till we die. Because one of the first impressions we make on the world is through the clothes we wear, I think the topic of modesty deserves another post or two. My prayer is that after reading this post God will prompt you to honor Him in the way you dress.

What are reasons why women do not dress modestly?

1) Ignorance

2) She is not committed to serving and caring for her brothers

Do we understand how much of a struggle it is for our brothers to not think lustful thoughts? Here’s a youtube video from a fellow brother in Christ affected by the immodesty around him.

After watching this clip last year, I realized for the first time how much of a daily and constant struggle lust can be for our brothers. Furthermore, I concluded that one of the biggest ways that I could serve my brothers in this struggle would be through my clothing. I admit that sometimes it’s hard to not buy the shirt that is super cute but honestly is a little too tight or the shorts that fit just right but are a little too short. I heard about a lady once who had a pair of shorts that she loved to wear, but knew that they were a little too short. She often times would want to wear them, so one day she took them and cut them shorter so that she would no longer think twice about wearing them outside. I learned from her example of swift action against desires in her heart that did not match her convictions about godly apparel.

Are we willing to change the way we dress because it honors God when we make the effort to try our best to never present ourselves as a stumbling block to our fellow brothers?

I hope that we will wrestle hard with ourselves to determine what are our standards, what should be our standards, and then what action should be taken to serve our brothers in this way.

My prayer is that if you are a woman reading this that you do not simply identify yourself as a woman but as a Christian woman as Elizabeth Elliot wrote about in the above quotes. Being a Christian woman is an entirely separate category of identity because of the lifestyle it should bring forth. This lifestyle will impose limitations on us, and one such limitation is on our clothes. Do we choose to embrace the limitations that are pleasing to the Lord that our choice to be Christian women place on us in the area of clothes? What a cool opportunity we have to serve our brothers simply in the clothes we choose to wear! I pray that we will make the daily choice in what we wear to embrace the life of a Christian woman and all the limitations it requires in order for us to give back our “whole [lives as] an offering back to Him…”

I know that summer is already halfway over, but to follow up with the previous post on dressing WITH the glory of God I wanted to focus on the outward manifestations of a modest heart.  Before you stop reading because you don’t want to see a list of do’s and don’t's, or you think this subject has been beaten to death, take a moment to refresh your memory on the purpose of our clothing and if you have time: watch the video I put together that includes some of my favorite dress tips!

I used to think how I dressed was no body’s business and if someone tried to correct me I would make fun of their standards and pretend like I didn’t hear.  I had to take full advantage of my Christian liberties right?  That was until I became more aware of how our clothing can cause others to stumble, what my heart attitude was, and the kicker: why God made clothes in the first place!

To expand on that last reason, right after the fall of man Genesis 3:21 says, “The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.”  When Adam and Eve first sinned, it’s interesting that the first thing they noticed was that they were naked. And ashamed!!  They tried hard to cover themselves with their own efforts in fig leaves, but God covered their nakedness, exposure, shamefulness, and guilt with garments of skin.  This means the first death in all of creation was used as a sacrifice to cover Adam and Eve- there had to be a payment for their atonement.  Second, the word used for garment is the same word used later in the Bible to describe the intricate high priest’s robes and Joseph’s famous and carefully created multicolored tunic.  This means that God didn’t clothe them with just anything, He clothed them with care and dignity to make them presentable as children of a holy and perfect God.

So the question is not: Is this TOO __________ ?
But rather, am I dressing in a dignified and modest way such that God Himself would choose the same outfit for me in order that I may represent Christ to the world?
This question should apply to all situations whether you have trouble covering up or have a hard time getting out of those pajama pants in the morning!

Here’s a quick video I made to spark ideas on how to creatively wear your clothes: