My Guidelines For Modesty

I believe that a woman should dress modesty and feminine. Now the Bible gives great help in talking about modesty and femininity. And the book 'Dressing for the Lord' by Bro. David Cloud is great for explaining and understanding what the Bible says. I still plan to do a post using that book, but a friend still has it. So I thought I'd go ahead and do this post. Some of y'all asked what my personal guidelines for modesty are, and I'd love to tell you. I'm going to try and explain why as well, but if I don't explain it well then just let me know. : ) First, I'm going to basically be telling what I believe is modest for a lady, or what I wear. Then I'll try to explain what I believe is right for a guy.

I do not believe that there is such a thing as a modest pair of pants or shorts, so I don't wear them. To say I only wear skirts and dresses leaves a bit too much room because there are more immodest skirts made then there are modest ones. I believe a skirt/dress should be loose, long, and flowing. Long being at least below the knee, but I wear mine almost to my ankle if not touching it. A long and flowing skirt covers, and in a sense hides, what is not meant to be seen by anyone but your spouse. And pants don't, they may not show skin but they show the outline of your body. As far as shirts, I believe they should also not be tight, see thru, or low cut. Once again, a loose and modest shirt will be covering/hiding what is not meant to been seen. As far as pajamas, well I have a hard time with this. I know many people wear pajama pants or shorts, and in the privacy of your own bedroom that's fine. But I don't believe its right for me to wear pants or shorts unless they are under a skirt that is just as long as I would normally wear or if the nightgown is as long as a skirt. I wear pants under my skirts most all the time in the winter, and in the summer I will sometimes wear shorts under my skirt if I feel it's needed for something I'm doing. Now for my really weird spot... :) Culottes. Of all the styles and kinds of culottes I have seen or owned over the years, I can only think of two that were truly modest. I own one pair now that really does look like a skirt and even when walking you can't tell that it isn't. And I don't mind wearing them. But most of the time culottes just look like a baggy pair or shorts, and shorts are not modest for a lady. I could probably keep going on naming things I do and don't wear, but when it comes down to it, I really just have to look in the mirror and ask God if it is modest or not. Do I look like a Christian young lady or am I trying to show off my body? Am I going to have a good testimony for the guys around me or are my clothes going to distract them? Am I pleasing God or Satan?

Now for the guys. The way our world is today, it isn't just the girls who are trying to show off their bodies, the guys are doing it too. Well, I guess what I believe about the ladies pretty much fits for guys too. Modest pants for a guy should not be tight, and shorts should be below the knee. Shirts should not be tight or see thru. And this thing about guys taking their shirts off in the heat or something...that is not modest. If it is immodest for a girl to have her shirt off then it's immodest for a guy too.

It's not just about what items of clothing you wear, but the style too. BUT, I'll get into that in the next post on modesty because if I start now I'll never finish this thing! lol I know I have some rather different views on this but it's what God has convicted my heart about. Don't base your convictions off of mine or even your parents (tho you do need to obey theirs while in their house). You have to go before God and ask him to show you what is right for you. For years I lived by my dad's standards for modesty and doing just what he asked of me. When I finally asked God to show me what he wanted for me, it all changed. I have a much better understanding of modesty and these are no longer my dad's standards, they are mine.