Captivate: Extreme Makeover: True Beauty Part Two

One topic that always seems to come up when talking about Christian beauty is the idea of modesty. This idea is something I’ve dealt with a lot recently, and at least for me, it was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever had to do. Because first off, how do we even define modesty? Some people would have you believe that applying their rules like a dress code to your life will make you modest. My problem with this statement is that sometimes these rules do not cover every girl’s body or every man’s imagination or vice versa.

For example, there was a survey done in which in one particular survey question said that 7.6% of guys thought that painted nails were a stumbling block. I don’t know about you, but I love painting my nails, and I’ve never thought “Well, I’d better not paint my nails or it might cause a guy to think sexually about me.” The truth is, no matter how hard you try, guys will think about you sexually. However, there are things that are serious stumbling blocks that I didn't even know about. One that surprised me is that 71.2% of the guys surveyed between ages 18 and 25 thought that showing any amount of cleavage was immodest. It may seem legalistic to us, but if it causes guys to stumble shouldn't we think about minimizing that?

In fact, modesty isn’t even about us. And quite honestly, it isn’t about guys either. Sharon Hodde Miller writes: “Men and women are urged to pursue a modesty by which our glory is minimized and God’s is maximized. The body the spirit and the mind all have a created role that is inherently God-centered. When we make ourselves central instead of God, we display the height of immodesty.” To have a healthy relationship, a man should first be attracted to the relationship with God he sees in us and a physical or sexual attraction should not exceed that.

The point is, when you choose your outfit, try to think more of who you are looking to honor with what you wear. If you are looking to honor yourself, when people see you, they’re only going to see you. When you are looking to honor God that is who others will see. The truth is, Christians shouldn’t just honor God in the way they speak or the way they act, but also in the way they dress.