Daily Archive

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. Colossians 3:12-15 (NLT) 

How do you get up in the morning? The attitude we have when we get out of bed with has a large part to do with the rest of the day. If we get up anticipating a good day, no matter what happens we’ll be more positive than if we start out on the ‘wrong side of bed’. Colossians says we have been raised to new life to share in God’s glory. That means each day should be looked at as a new day! A new beginning. All the old stuff from yesterday is gone. We start new. When you have positive anticipation it’s simply easier to get out of bed. Why do kids that normally sleep in get up early Christmas morning? PRESENTS! The anticipation of the new outweighs the comfort of the familiar.

Once you get up in the morning you prepare yourself for the day. Physically, you shower (or the world hopes you do) and do all the things necessary to make you presentable for the day. In a Spiritual sense we need to put off all the old and put on the new. Approach each new day with the attitude that ‘Christ is all that matters’. You do that by spending some time with your Savior. A word of prayer, some time in his Word. Think of it this way. Would you get up in the morning and say, “I just don’t have time to get dressed this morning. I’ll go naked this once. No one will notice.” Of course not. But we often put off the spiritual preparation for the day because we don’t think it important. Consider your spiritual preparation as important as your physical preparation for the day.

Now you are ready to get dressed. Clothes tell others a lot us. The first thing others see is our clothing before anything else. A person full of cancer, but well dressed looks better than a healthy bum. The following article appeared in a magazine:

Clothes tell a lot about us, our era, our jobs, etc. But the Swiss bank UBS raised eyebrows last month when it’s very conservative dress code was leaked on the Internet. The comprehensive, 44-page document defined how men should knot their ties, and how women should care for their skin. Underwear in a neutral color is, apparently, a must.

The reason we have dress codes is essentially this. Companies or organizations expect a certain look for their employees. The dress code assures that everyone that aligns themselves with that group look the same.

The Bible says we clothe ourselves so others see us as being merciful, kind, humble, gentle and patient. Paul goes on further to say that our ‘clothing’ ought to be such that we ‘make allowance’ for the weaknesses and failures of other people. Why? Because Jesus takes your weakness and failures into account and forgives you time and time again. He wants you to clothe yourself in the same way so that others will know you are associated with him.

The last thing you put on in the morning may be a belt. That’s what it was in the NT times. The belt pulled all the garments together. It was security and it was aesthetic. Going out without your belt would be like going out naked.

So what’s the ‘belt’ we wear to pull all this together? Love. The most important thing you do in the morning, before leaving for the day’s activities, is to put on an attitude of love. Love like Christ gives. Love that says ‘no matter what, I’ll never give up on you.’ The last thing you put on is the first thing others will see!

Now you are dressed for the day. Your earthly situation doesn’t change your heavenly calling. A calling to represent the cause of Jesus Christ. Follow these guidelines and you’ll be dressed appropriately for any weather changes that come your way.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, may I dress each and every day for the activities you lay before me. Empower me to love, endure and embrace those I meet with grace and forgiveness as you have me. Amen.