A few weekends ago I was at a park with my family. It was a lovely, warm, summer day as we were walking on the sidewalk around a peaceful duck pond. The bright blue sky and radiant sunshine were beaming overhead. I had stopped to take pictures of my little sister and we were catching up to the rest of my family when two girls in their early teens walked by. They both wore very short shorts and cut off tee shirts with their midriffs showing. I smiled at them as they passed and one of the girls met my eye and insecurely tossed her hair behind her shoulder. Her face looked strained. I couldn't help but feel sorry for both of these girls who are so young, yet so hungry for love and value.
Immodesty isn't really beautiful. Yes, I'll admit, some people who dress immodestly can look great - in a worldly way. But that's not beauty in the way that God envisions and defines beauty. His ways are different than the world's. The world puts value on "the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—[which] is not from the Father but is from the world" (1 John 2:16). God's values are very different.
We were all at a family wedding two weekends ago, enjoying the celebration of my cousin’s marriage. A woman walked up to my mom and asked which kids were hers. Mom pointed us out and the lady said, "I thought so, and I told my sons, 'there's a mother who knows how to dress her girls'". My mom smiled, and replied, "Their dad knows how to dress them." We stood out to this woman because she saw the beauty and value of modesty.
God puts a very high value modesty. Modesty reflects true beauty (Proverbs 31:30). It reflects the significance of the heart (1 Peter 3:4). It reflects purity (Ephesians 3:5). It reflects the value we find in God (Isaiah 43:4). It reflects God's light within us (Matthew 5:16). And so much more! Modesty captures everything good about womanhood in the form of clothing. It is so very beautiful and reveals God’s vision for beauty.
Pursuing modesty is just one way in which we can follow the greatest commandment:
"Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
~ Matthew 12:29-31
If you are seeking modesty with me, my friends, keep up the good work. Don't grow weary in this beautiful effort. If you aren't yet walking in modesty, please join us. This is such a beautiful journey of faith as we take each step with God (in His strength, by His grace!) and seek to display His beauty through the clothes that we wear. Is modesty beautiful? Yes. God says it is!
Modestly :),
Christina
Soli Deo Gloria ~ To God Alone Be the Glory!
