When I write I target a very small percentage of Christians. In this writing I am targeting even less–no more than a handful of ladies who are actually seeking to get closer to our Lord, to please Him, to live for Him a holy and blameless life. I am seeking those few ladies who are asking, “What can I do to get closer to Him? What can I do to be more like Him? What can I do to take my faith to the next level.†Let me tell you a story:
Few years ago I was working in a warehouse as a general laborer. One day after I finished my lunch I decided to go sit in the warehouse reading my Bible for few minutes before my lunch time is over. So I sat on a box and I opened my Bible and prayed to the Holy Spirit to speak to me about anything in my life that He wants to change. I opened my Bible and started reading James 3:8,
“Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.â€
I closed my Bible in disappointment because I thought God did not speak to me as I had hoped because I had “never†stolen in my life. Since I was a child my parents had taught me not to steal—I did not so much steal a small pencil from my school mates! As I got up and walked I could hear the Holy Spirit, “Is that right? You don’t steal?†That disturbed me, so I started thinking about everything I had to see if I had any stolen property! After few seconds I considered my computer and then it hit me: almost all the software and songs I had on my PC were stolen from online!
As soon I reached home I formatted my PC, and broke all CD’s that contained software and songs I had stolen. My PC after that day looked so depressing but I was never that happy or peaceful before, because I knew I had removed a sin from my life. My relationship with Him and my prayer life improved dramatically afterwards too.
(Summer 2011; Toronto, ON.) by Fadi
I did not ask anyone if “pirating†software and songs is stealing or not. Why should I? If God speaks who is man to approve or disapprove what He said? The apostle Paul said in Galatians 1:15-16,
“But when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, my immediate response was not to consult any human being.â€
So my question to you is this: if the Holy Spirit has convicted you of the sin of immodest dressing and dressing for sensuality’s sake, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to consult an “elder†or a “Christian counselor� Are you going to wait until your pastor preaches about modesty? Or is the prompting of the Holy Spirit enough for you?
I am not asking you to wait until you have to buy new clothes then you start dressing modestly, because that does not show commitment or love. What I am asking you is that you first go in prayer and confess your sin of dressing sensually, and repent (have a change of heart about immodest dressing). Then to go and get rid of all your immodest clothes. The Bible says in Matthew 5:29-30:
“If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.â€
This is the life of faith: doing what you know is pleasing to the Father. True worship starts with obedience. Worship is not about dressing sensually then going to church and singing worship songs, feeling goose bumps, and thinking you have been touched by the Holy Spirit. Goose bumps have to do with emotions, and not faith. Goose bumps have no spiritual value–you can get goose bumps from watching an emotional scene in a movie with an ungodly story line.
Stop being the “nice†church-attending Christian lady and do an act of rebellion against sin, Satan, and this world. An act that screams, “I LOVE YOU LORD!â€
