Fashion and Christian Identity: Practical Advice

It's "Fashion Week" here at Renewing Your Mind!  There will be a series of six posts this week on "Fashion & Christian Identity".  Introduction, Modesty & Our Bodies, The Purpose of Our Bodies, Tabernacle & Temple, So, Regarding Fashion, Practical Advice

Does a person have to spend a lot of money on fashionable clothing?
No.  The most important thing is to find clothing that fits well.  As Clinton Kelly of TLC’s What Not To Wear has said countless times, “if you don’t have fit; you don’t have style”.  If you are wearing clothing that fits your body well, you will automatically look better than if you are wearing clothing that is poorly fitting, no matter how fashionable it is supposed to be.  For example,  the jacket I am wearing I bought for $8 from a swap; it had been only worn twice by the previous owner.  Another item that women will often spend a lot of money on are statement purses, like a Coach purse.  I personally find the Coach logo kind of ugly and so even if I could afford a Coach purse, I wouldn't buy one.  In that instance, it helps to look at your motive for buying it:  is it something that you love and can afford, or is it something you want to make sure other people see that you have?

Does a person have to have a large wardrobe?
No.  One doesn't need a lot of clothes in order to dress well.  In fact, it is better to have a smaller wardrobe of clothes that fit well and that one feels fantastic in than to have a larger wardrobe of clothes that are just so-so.

The most important thing, when choosing clothes and accessories is to ask “is this honoring God with my body?  Is this how I want to represent myself?”, not to show off our bodies for the sake of showing them off, but for the sake of something higher, of being Jesus’ representatives to the world (2 Corinthians 5:20) through the use of the pop culture of fashion, not the evasion of it.


The Q&A Session after my talk was great; people asked some insightful questions and there was some good discussion.  Topics such as how does what I buy affect other people, dressing as a spiritual discipline, and modesty for men were among the thoughts brought up.