My friend Jasmine and I agree on basically everything. Okay, so maybe we don't agree on who to vote for Tuesday, but we have genuine respect for each other....which helps make up for our differences. But while reading her latest post today, I found myself nodding my head in agreement with everything she said.
Read it here. And then come back and listen to my own thoughts.
I can flip flop on many things. Indeed, as the Lord grows me and changes me, I find that my opinions and standards change right along with them. Things that I once thought were okay, I don't necessarily anymore. But I never talked about going to skirts all the time. I am all about dressing femininely and with beauty. For my friend, Anna, that can mean wearing skirts and dresses exclusively. For me, it is something entirely different.
Wearing a skirt or dress does make one feel feminine. All I have to do is put on my 40's dress and twirl in it to realize how wonderful it is! But there was a time when I did think pants were a no-no if you wanted to be thought a woman into femininity and Biblical Womanhood. I never took the plunge, but boy, if someone was coming over who I wanted to impress, the skirt would come on quick as a flash! And no one would ever know =)
But the Lord has freed me from that bondage to legalism. It is not in the Bible "Thou shalt only wear skirts." I sort of stuck it in there myself. Until the Lord showed me that beauty comes from the heart, that femininity can be expressed in many ways. Including the wearing of pants.
Now, don't get me wrong. I am all about modesty and femininity. Skirts are the primary staple in my wardrobe. I love my 40's dress. (Though they don't exactly work in 30 degree weather--you get rather cold.) But in the names of modesty and keeping covered what should be covered, we can border on frumpiness and not being polished. Because [looking around] we are made to believe that polish and class somehow are connected with sexiness and feminism.
Big lie!
The Lord made us women and there is a balance between keeping covered what needs to be--and yet not hiding that we are women. I am still trying to find where that is. But one thing I do is I always have a feminine twist. With jeans, I try to wear pretty tops and not a grubby t-shirt. I usually wear heels like open toed sandals or my black pumps (which I just love =) with anything I wear. Mom is a big help when it comes to this. She too has had an interesting jounrey in this dressing issue (and I am sure she will share it in a comment.)
Never will I condemn a girl who wears skirts all the time. Provided she doesn't make it a legalistic issue, I don't have a problem with the way the Lord has directed her. IN fact, if given a choice between skirts all the time or pants all the time, I would take the more feminine way. But the Lord has me in a different camp right now. He wants me to mostly have skirts in my closet--yet jeans handy as well. God wants me to promote a feminine lifestyle in how I dress.
But never neglecting the heart first and foremost!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
This comment is going to be pretty much the same as the one I left on Jasmine's post.
After spending years in legalistic churches, I had come to the point of equating modesty and femininity with shapeless blue denim jumpers. That was all I wore, for wanting to be modest, I sought to totally mask my womanhood.
The Lord has freed me from that legalistic attitude (and other legalistic things as well). I now realize I can still be modest and yet not hide my femininity, so I am free to wear dresses with a fitted bodice (although not skin-tight).
While I do not choose to wear pants very much, that is because I don't find things around my waist very comfortable, not because I think they are sinful or un-feminine. On the contrary, flowing pants and a pretty shirt CAN be very feminine. What I struggle with, though, is young ladies who choose to wear jeans with holes in them, or sloppy, baggy carpenter-style jeans, clunky sneakers, and manly-looking T-shirts. That is what the vast majority of women wear, and I truly do not think that exhibits any femininity. Or women that run around the stores in sweat pants, sloppy T-shirts and unkempt hair. Many homeschool moms dress that way pretty regularly, and I don't think that shows feminine loveliness either. However, I would never presume to tell those women that they are in sin for dressing that way. But do I think it shows the beauty of womanhood---NO!
I think you always look lovely and feminine---well maybe not on Game Day when you wear that big over-sized Bronco shirt, but every other day---whether you be in pants or skirts.
Love,
Mom
Thank you for the beautiful post, Ella! For some reason, I needed to hear that this morning!
I have been through rather the same experience you have, with legalism causing me to dress a certain way, then finding "freedom in Christ" to include wearing pants. :) Something I have found to be true is that when we wear skirts for legalistic reasons, we really can't be truly feminine (as you said - it all begins in the heart) because we are not dressing that way for the right reasons. It's getting colder outside now, so the majority of my wardrobe consists of pants (though I really miss my summer skirts!), but I feel that my relationship with Christ is more "real" than it was when I was being legalistic about my clothes. We should never trade genuineness and sincerity for legalism.
Very good post, Ella!
I actually wear pants most of the time, but I'm careful that they're not revealing whatsoever. :) But, if I am going to a nice evening out, church, or somewhere a little special, I love wearing a skirt. Skirts and dresses feel so lovely and feminine! :)
I really enjoyed reading your post. Keep up the great work! :)
Julia
Good post, Ella! It's neat to see how each person has their own particular style. For me, it is primarily skirts and dresses. There are things I wear pants for, and maybe times I should wear them more, but I feel more comfortable in skirts. I try to make sure that I don't get sloppy, however. Feminine and fun is what I aim for!
Hello Ella! I have been reading for awhile now (and just started following).
Everything you said in the post is completely true. I personally wear skirts and dresses for pretty much everything, but I wear pants when needed (i.e. mountain climping, horse riding, working) because I think it all has to do with the modesty issue. If you are playing basketball in a knee length skirt (which you could do, providing the skirt was long and flowy) and the skirt flew up, that would be far from modest. Just as riding a horse is hard to do in a skirt (but cool lots are awesome!).
I agree with you on the legalistic issue. It is so important that we do not jugde others who do not agree with us. Just because we are called by God to dress a certain way, doesn't mean that others are as well.
We used to go to a church that had a few legalistic families. I don't understand how people could be so judgmental sometimes. Wearing pants does not make you any less of a Christian, nor does it mean that you are sinning. It all has to do with personal convictions and what you feeled called to wear.
Okay, I have let this go on and on!! Haha!
I love your blog Ella! Keep making awesomes posts!
-Camille.n
I don't know how the random "n" ended up at the end of my name. lol.
Post a Comment