DRESS FOR SUCCESS
Then put on the garments that suit God's chosen people, his own, his beloved: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience. Col. 3:12, N.E.B.
Everything we choose to wear is a statement of who we see ourselves to be. If we wear the latest designs from Gentleman's Quarterly, or Sak's Fifth Avenue catalog, we are saying that we see ourselves to be current, aware, artistic, and not a little affluent. If we choose to wear well-worn khaki or denims, and very "familiar" shoes, we are projecting an image of casualness, a laid-back disregard for the highbrow expectations of society, and a penchant for personal comfort.
Employers have learned to gauge their prospective employees by seeing how they dress. When considering subordinates for promotions, executives note, among other things, how they dress. It is no wonder that the book Dress for Success is selling in the millions of copies.
A young man of a royal line--destined to sit on a monarch's throne--will have a dignity, a bearing of self-confidence and poise, that will be evident to others. This will be revealed to a large degree by the clothes he will choose to wear. They will express who he knows himself to be!
Paul says that if we will recognize who we really are--chosen, claimed, and loved by the King of the universe--we will "dress" accordingly. That Spirit-interpreted understanding will impart to us a dignity, a self-image, that will be expressed naturally by those character qualities with which we clothe ourselves.
Each one of the qualities that Paul mentions in today's verse is an expression of a person dealing from a position of strength. He whose own needs for love have been met is set free to be compassionate to the needs of others. A secure person can come out of himself enough to let kindness flow to others. Humility (or teachableness) will mark the life of one who knows he already belongs to God. Beholding our gentle Father and seeing how powerful He has been in our lives through His gentleness will give us the courage to be gentle with others. And one who has benefited from God's patience will be quick to grant others time and space to grow.
"Dressing" with these character qualities, as Christians, is more than a self-chosen statement about our tastes and preferences. It is an accurate statement to the world of who our Father is and how wonderfully He adorns the lives of His people.
Then put on the garments that suit God's chosen people, his own, his beloved: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience. Col. 3:12, N.E.B.
Everything we choose to wear is a statement of who we see ourselves to be. If we wear the latest designs from Gentleman's Quarterly, or Sak's Fifth Avenue catalog, we are saying that we see ourselves to be current, aware, artistic, and not a little affluent. If we choose to wear well-worn khaki or denims, and very "familiar" shoes, we are projecting an image of casualness, a laid-back disregard for the highbrow expectations of society, and a penchant for personal comfort.
Employers have learned to gauge their prospective employees by seeing how they dress. When considering subordinates for promotions, executives note, among other things, how they dress. It is no wonder that the book Dress for Success is selling in the millions of copies.
A young man of a royal line--destined to sit on a monarch's throne--will have a dignity, a bearing of self-confidence and poise, that will be evident to others. This will be revealed to a large degree by the clothes he will choose to wear. They will express who he knows himself to be!
Paul says that if we will recognize who we really are--chosen, claimed, and loved by the King of the universe--we will "dress" accordingly. That Spirit-interpreted understanding will impart to us a dignity, a self-image, that will be expressed naturally by those character qualities with which we clothe ourselves.
Each one of the qualities that Paul mentions in today's verse is an expression of a person dealing from a position of strength. He whose own needs for love have been met is set free to be compassionate to the needs of others. A secure person can come out of himself enough to let kindness flow to others. Humility (or teachableness) will mark the life of one who knows he already belongs to God. Beholding our gentle Father and seeing how powerful He has been in our lives through His gentleness will give us the courage to be gentle with others. And one who has benefited from God's patience will be quick to grant others time and space to grow.
"Dressing" with these character qualities, as Christians, is more than a self-chosen statement about our tastes and preferences. It is an accurate statement to the world of who our Father is and how wonderfully He adorns the lives of His people.
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