As I unfold and inspect each piece of clothing, I see them with fresh eyes. Some are worn out, no longer fit well, or are no longer fashionable. Times change, fashions change, my body shape changes, and so do my clothing preferences.
And with each changing season, new and beautiful clothes appear in the stores. This year, lovely soft knits and earthy tones I love to wear are on the shelves. I love carefully selecting a few new pieces to complement the things I have unpacked from storage. I don’t have a lot of clothes, but I love having a stylish capsule wardrobe of quality pieces that make me feel confident and attractive. I love clothes that represent who I am, my preferences and personal style. My clothing represents my identity. Maintaining my capsule wardrobe is a constant process of getting rid of old things and replacing them with new ones. As I grow and change, so do my clothing choices.
And this process of constant change doesn’t just apply to my clothing. It applies to my character as well. I am continuously identifying parts of my character that are unattractive and ill-fitting, and replacing them with new, more suitable virtues.
Ephesians 4:22-24 tells us, “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (NIV).
We are called to take off our old way of life, discarding the selfish and sinful desires of our past, and to put on the new clothing of righteousness and holiness. In Colossians 3:5–14, Paul gives us a detailed list of things we need to put to death in our lives. They include sexual immorality, lust, greed, anger, slander, and filthy language. He then goes on to give us a list of new virtues to clothe ourselves in. These include compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and love.
As I have been examining each item in my new season’s clothing choices, I have been reminded to examine what my heart and mind are clothed in. And to be honest, it has been deeply challenging. So many things on the list of qualities Paul tells us are not suitable for a Christ-follower to wear are very normal in our society today. Sexual immorality, greed and anger are part of the plot of every TV show I watch. Filthy language is more and more normal in the conversations around me. It can be hard to recognize these things as the sin that they are.
I have been examining the people I follow on social media, the articles I read and the shows that I watch, and asking myself, “Do these people promote immorality, greed and anger? Or are they challenging me to be more compassionate, kind, humble and loving?” I have had to unsubscribe and unfollow some influencers in my life.
The characteristics of my old sinful life are ill-fitting and ugly on me now. They don’t represent my new identity, my identity as a Christ-follower. They no longer represent who I am. They should not be a part of my life any longer. And so, I continue to work through the difficult process of taking off the old and putting on the new.
And, might I say, the new virtues look pretty good on me! (And I know they look good on you, too.)
Recently I had a moment of allowing the old man in to a response I gave to my son. The Spirit used his reaction to open my eyes to how I was speaking. If we’re open to it, Gods loving correction is all around us!