Wearing Your Heart on Your Sleeve

      Have you ever heard of someone who wore their heart on their sleeve? When we use that phrase, we usually mean either that they are extremely sensitive and it is easy to hurt their feelings or we mean they make their emotions very clear. You don’t have to guess with them what they are feeling.

      In a sense, Christians need to wear our hearts on our sleeves, but not out of oversensitivity or overt emotionalism. I Peter 3: 3-4 says, “Your adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.”

      We should dress in such a way that people can see what is in our hearts. Actually, we probably already do.

      Granted, I know some people have never really thought about the way they dress. They are dressing just to fit in. Of course, that demonstrates something about their heart as well.

      What are we telling others about our heart with the way we dress? Are we telling them we are sexy? …wealthy? …popular? …lazy? Or are we telling them we are moral, holy, pure and godly?

      I Timothy 2:9 says, “Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness.”

      We are making a claim to godliness. That is we are claiming to honor and glorify God. Does our dress declare we are doing that? Or does our dress try to focus people’s attention on us? What does our dress claim about us?

      I Thessalonians 4:7 says, “God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification.”

      We have been called to be set apart as holy in service to God. Impurity is diametrically opposed to that holiness. Is our dress holy? Or is it impure?

      How much flesh is revealed by low cut blouses, high cut skirts and bared midriffs? How much of the body’s form is revealed by tight-fitting shirts and pants? What kind of messages are written on our clothes? If someone is going to read those message, where are they going to have to look?

      We should be a people who wear our godly, discreet, chaste, pure heart on our sleeves. We should not be speaking one message with our mouths and another with our clothes. We should be consistently holy in word, conduct and dress.

      Be honest. What do your clothes say about your heart?

Edwin L. Crozier