Psalm 149:4
For the Lord takes pleasure in His people;
He will beautify the humble with salvation.
"He will beautify the humble with salvation"~~ If God were my Rachel Zoe, my own personal stylist, He would first choose to clothe me in salvation. "..Clothe me in salvation". Before He can do this He has to get me ready for my style session. This takes a bit of planning and thought. God must set the stage, so to speak. A good stylist plans, prepares, gathers needed material, and gets a full vision for the overall and complete look. In this case, I was so unattractive or plainly said, ugly as sin or maybe better to say "ugly with sin". This sin is so ugly that He cannot even look on me. If we started here God wouldn't even be able to take my measurements. God cannot be with sin. He sees this as a problem that must be fixed.
We've got to wash sin away. The sin must go before anything can be done. As you've seen on What Not To Wear so many times, they throw out all the clothes owned by the poor helpless soul who doesn't even know how lost and pitiful they are. The very sad part of this is that apparently everyone that has come in contact with this poor soul has recognized this fact but could never bring themselves to tell them of their pitiful state. God made the way. God made the perfect way to take my measurements. He sent His Son Jesus just for me and just for you, for the sole purpose of taking away our sin. And by repenting of our sin like in 1John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins (and here's the good part) and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." We can be cleansed--no longer dirty, no longer filthy, no longer ugly with sin. Hallelujah!!!
A new creature in Christ. Now I'm something the Master stylist can work with. I am now ready for my style session. All the plans that God has for me can now begin to take place. God has vision. In fact, God has big vision. Bigger than anything seen during fashion week in Paris, London or NY. And certainly God has bigger vision than anything seen on a red carpet in Hollywood. Jeremiah says He has plans to prosper you, not plans to harm you. My God and my stylist wants to clothe me in salvation for my first outfit. If you've ever seen a debut seasonal fashion show, the initial look that comes on the catwalk is the base signature piece. It sets the stage for the whole collection. I think it safe to say that if God chooses salvation as my initial look on which to build a collection around, then I'm super happy to oblige. God has been right so many times before that I just trust His eye for style.
Please let me know what you think. I'd love to hear from you.
ReplyDeleteI love the analogy that salvation is our "initial look". Now I'm looking forward to hearing what the elements are that make up the "collection".
ReplyDeleteYour whole idea of God being the master stylist is so refreshing. I've read lots of stuff, but this is new! Good Job, Jenny Leigh!
I especially like the reference to the show What Not to Wear. Have you ever noticed how those folks have a few pieces of ugly clothing they fight to keep? I think that is the way we are with God. We tend to hang on to some sins and they continue to creep back in if we are not diligently seeking him and walking with him daily. I know that I sometimes find myself wanting to point out other peoples' "style don'ts" while wearing my own favorite sins around like there is nothing wrong with it. Thanks for reminding us how important it is to let the Master stylist have the creative control in our lives. You have a gift for writing. I cannot wait to read more!!
ReplyDeleteYou are letting God speak through you - what a blessing - any woman can identify with your analogies! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHey Jenny... this is really nice. Keep up the good thoughts!
ReplyDeleteJust so you'll know... you can put other templates on your blog. This particular site has some Christian templates if you're interested:
http://www.magictemplate.com/files/free-christian-wordpress-themes.php
I can also help you apply the template if you need help. :-)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Janet
How fun!!!!You are so cute and such a blessing to have as a friend. From behind the chair, I know you have heard LOTS and knowing you; I'm sure you turn the bad into good, and the good into better. This is great. Oh, this is Tims account I think. HaHa, love ya, Heidi
ReplyDeletePreach it! Love it Jenny
ReplyDeleteThanks guys. We'll start working on "The Collection" as soon as God "inspires" me. I've got some other posts that I will put up in a few days in the mean time. Mrs. C, you are so right about our "style don't"s. I had a very hard time giving up the "scruchy" for my ponytail but with lots of determination I finally made the switch to the thicker black pony holder. Some don'ts are just harder to let go of. And Janet, I'll check out those sites. Thank you 'cause you know how blind I am in this computer world. hahahaha Thanks guys for reading.
ReplyDeleteTHanks Tim----I mean Heidi. hahaha
ReplyDeleteJenny,
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you started this blog!
I've enjoyed reading your friends comments. When Mrs.C said that we fight to keep those clothes that don't flatter us, I thought,"yeah, that's me!" but I really DO want to put on the garment of praise, or worship, or service... they are so much more becoming!