Reason #891
We live in the land of the free. Freedom rings, and that means freedom in everything. You can say what you want, worship where you want, spend your money the way you want, study and work where you want, and you can wear whatever you want.
We went to eat dinner before going to watch fireworks at the park tonight. Everyone was sporting their red, white, and blue. Patriotism was flying high today, and I appreciated seeing that so many people were proudly displaying the colors of our nation. This is a good place to be, and I am forever grateful to get to live here. And because of freedom, we all realize that people have the freedom to make choices that are different from ours. People have the freedom to live their lives in a way we might not understand or recommend for that matter. And sure, no one can "make" you do anything, but I saw some interesting displays of freedom as we sat down to eat dinner that made me think differently.
Ladies, you have the freedom to wear pants. I know that sounds silly, but a lot of women around the world do not have the freedom to wear pants. In fact, pants wearing hasn't been the norm for American women for the entire 238 years we've been around. Women fought for rights, for equality, and with that came pants. And so, thank you, women of the past for changing that. I appreciate the opportunity to wear pants when I feel like it. I appreciate getting to show my legs, too. But tonight, sitting at a table next to a large group of college girls, I wondered where their pants where. I wondered where their shorts were, for that matter. All I could really see was pockets, and I certainly didn't have to wonder where their entire legs, backs, stomachs, and chests were. Those things were clearly displayed for all who walked by to see.
I am sure the girls at the table were really beautiful girls, but I'm not certain of that. Why, you ask? Because I never bothered to look at their faces. I was so distracted by their clothing, or lack there of, that I couldn't tell you what color of hair they had. I couldn't even tell you if they had hair. And I wondered why they chose to wear what they had on. Was it because they were craving attention? Was it because that's all they had clean in their closets and it shrunk in the wash? Was it because they were hoping that maybe they'd catch the eye of a cute guy at the restaurant? Or was it because society tells women that this is how they have to dress, how they have to look, to be accepted, loved, and found attractive?
It's okay to wear pants. It's okay to wear shorts. Wear a dress, a skirt, or capris. You get to decide. But that's the thing, you should decide. Don't let the world tell you what you do or don't need to wear. Don't let society trick you into thinking that there's only one way to fit in or win the heart of that guy you're desperately hoping will ask you out. Because your body is going to change. It is. And if your friends are only your friends because of how you look, they're not true friends. And if that guy only likes you because of the body you have now, he's not worth giving your heart to. I know it sounds completely contrary and a little counter-cultural, but you can be just as beautiful covered up. In fact, it may even be a greater advantage for you. We should be far more concerned about what's inside of a person rather than what's underneath their clothes. In the end, all body parts are the same, but all hearts aren't.
So know that you're free to wear what you want, and freely do so. You don't have to dress like your friends. You don't have to wear the same thing everyone else is. You don't have to let men dictate your wardrobe, and you don't have to let the world tell you what to put in your closet. You are beautiful in the skin you're in, and wearing clothes that appropriately fit don't make you any less attractive. Like my dad told me one time, "It's not the dress that makes the woman, it's the woman that makes the dress." So be that woman because you, lovely one, are created in God's perfect image.
#891 - Because true beauty comes from what's inside a person, not what's underneath their clothes.
"Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God." - 1 Peter 3:3-4
We went to eat dinner before going to watch fireworks at the park tonight. Everyone was sporting their red, white, and blue. Patriotism was flying high today, and I appreciated seeing that so many people were proudly displaying the colors of our nation. This is a good place to be, and I am forever grateful to get to live here. And because of freedom, we all realize that people have the freedom to make choices that are different from ours. People have the freedom to live their lives in a way we might not understand or recommend for that matter. And sure, no one can "make" you do anything, but I saw some interesting displays of freedom as we sat down to eat dinner that made me think differently.
Ladies, you have the freedom to wear pants. I know that sounds silly, but a lot of women around the world do not have the freedom to wear pants. In fact, pants wearing hasn't been the norm for American women for the entire 238 years we've been around. Women fought for rights, for equality, and with that came pants. And so, thank you, women of the past for changing that. I appreciate the opportunity to wear pants when I feel like it. I appreciate getting to show my legs, too. But tonight, sitting at a table next to a large group of college girls, I wondered where their pants where. I wondered where their shorts were, for that matter. All I could really see was pockets, and I certainly didn't have to wonder where their entire legs, backs, stomachs, and chests were. Those things were clearly displayed for all who walked by to see.
I am sure the girls at the table were really beautiful girls, but I'm not certain of that. Why, you ask? Because I never bothered to look at their faces. I was so distracted by their clothing, or lack there of, that I couldn't tell you what color of hair they had. I couldn't even tell you if they had hair. And I wondered why they chose to wear what they had on. Was it because they were craving attention? Was it because that's all they had clean in their closets and it shrunk in the wash? Was it because they were hoping that maybe they'd catch the eye of a cute guy at the restaurant? Or was it because society tells women that this is how they have to dress, how they have to look, to be accepted, loved, and found attractive?
It's okay to wear pants. It's okay to wear shorts. Wear a dress, a skirt, or capris. You get to decide. But that's the thing, you should decide. Don't let the world tell you what you do or don't need to wear. Don't let society trick you into thinking that there's only one way to fit in or win the heart of that guy you're desperately hoping will ask you out. Because your body is going to change. It is. And if your friends are only your friends because of how you look, they're not true friends. And if that guy only likes you because of the body you have now, he's not worth giving your heart to. I know it sounds completely contrary and a little counter-cultural, but you can be just as beautiful covered up. In fact, it may even be a greater advantage for you. We should be far more concerned about what's inside of a person rather than what's underneath their clothes. In the end, all body parts are the same, but all hearts aren't.
So know that you're free to wear what you want, and freely do so. You don't have to dress like your friends. You don't have to wear the same thing everyone else is. You don't have to let men dictate your wardrobe, and you don't have to let the world tell you what to put in your closet. You are beautiful in the skin you're in, and wearing clothes that appropriately fit don't make you any less attractive. Like my dad told me one time, "It's not the dress that makes the woman, it's the woman that makes the dress." So be that woman because you, lovely one, are created in God's perfect image.
#891 - Because true beauty comes from what's inside a person, not what's underneath their clothes.
"Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God." - 1 Peter 3:3-4