What NOT to Wear
I love that show – “What Not to Wear”. I enjoy fashion. I think it is fun! I have been an accessory stylist for Premier Designs jewelry since 1997 and I love helping women create their sense of style. If you haven’t seen “What Not to Wear” – they plan a sneak attack on someone who has been nominated by her friends, family and/or co-workers. They have submitted photos and video footage of this. . .should I say poor girl or lucky lady – not sure which applies – who has been selected to have a makeover of her clothing style, hair and makeup. They go through her clothing and throw out most of it. They toss things that are not age appropriate, things that are out of style and items that really no one should EVER wear. The lucky part – is this lady receives a $5,000 New York shopping spree for a new wardrobe. (Now, THAT would be FUN!) They give them a fabulous new hair style and teach them how to apply their makeup. Those ladies leave looking like a brand new person. It is unbelievable what a difference a makeover can truly make, not only in how others view her – but in how she sees herself. Do you think a makeover would be fun? Is that something you would enjoy? Sometimes, as I watch this show it seems somewhat painful to the person receiving this makeover. But once they discover what it is they should be wearing there seems to be a newness about them – a confidence and a sense of security.
Hmm…do WE need to be on “What Not to Wear”? What are we putting on every day? What would our before and after pictures look like? Do you ever wonder, “What if I look like a BEFORE picture and no one is telling me?” Haha. That is funny…sort of. Well, there are plenty of ways to improve our physical appearance and how we present ourselves does matter. How we dress makes a statement about what we want the world to believe about us. As an accessory stylist, I often share that there are 11 assumptions that people make about us in the first 30 seconds of meeting us. Those assumptions include if we are successful, if we are educated, if we are honest and if we are trustworthy. Wow, all in 30 seconds. So you see – I want my appearance to say, “I am honest and trustworthy. I care about myself as well as others. I am kind and outgoing. I am friendly.” And because of my job – my appearance should say, “I know a little about fashion and know the importance of accessorizing.” But are our clothes, accessories and hairstyle all that matter? No, absolutely not!
We clothe ourselves in more than cloth. Do you know that the Bible tells us in Romans 13:14 to “clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.” What? Read that again. It says to clothe ourselves in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, how in the world do we do that? Well, we all carry around attributes. They have become a part of who we are. Apart from Jesus, we are self-centered, viewing the world through the filter of what about me? We focus on who we like and who annoys us. We gossip and judge and compare. We often become angry – feeling slighted or mistreated. We wear the badge of insecurity. But, if we were to have a “What Not to Wear” makeover based on that verse – what would it look like? I can imagine Stacy and Clinton throwing out our jealousy and envious spirit. They would hold up and mock our lustfulness and immorality. They would toss our rivalries and our conflicts and send us on a shopping spree! That would be painful as the worldly things we cling to would be torn away. But now we would have the incredible opportunity to replace those items with Christ’s presence. By clothing ourselves in Him (accepting Him as our Savior and seeking Him through daily Bible study) we would take on the Christ- like characteristics such as truth, righteousness and peace. We would be humble and content. We would throw away our self-centered spirit because no one should EVER wear that. We would replace it with a love for others and esteem them better than ourselves. We would have a newness about us. We would have confidence in ourselves knowing that we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength. We would have a sense of security. Can you imagine our before and after picture? That would be fascinating to see.
More than we focus on how we look – let’s all hold hands and focus on who we are and whose we are. I am praying for you today – praying that you will clothe yourself in Christ and experience the peace that only He can provide. (Pray the same for me – please.)