1 TIMOTHY 2:9
I remember one day in particular when my friends and I went on a huge shopping spree. It seemed like all of our favorite stores were having sales, and the sales racks were actually full of cute clothes. We piled into the dressing room with our arms to start trying everything on. I squeezed into a shirt that was the hottest style at the moment. My friends oohed and aahed, saying how grown up it made me look. I asked if they thought it was too tight, and they said no. But when I bent over, we all realized it showed way too much skin. Later, we started talking about how hard it is to find clothes that we like that are also modest. Someone mentioned that her mom always said to imagine that she had a stamp on her forehead saying “Image bearer for Christ,” and if she wouldn’t be comfortable in the outfit with that on her forehead, then she probably shouldn’t buy it. My friend had always thought it was a silly way to think about it, but it sort of made sense now. One of my friends announced that she was going to take back a skirt that she had just bought because it was too short for her. I don’t think it is easy to make choices like that, to say no to something we really like, but when my friend did that, I was so proud of her. And it challenged me to strive to be a pure example of Christ in what I wear and what I do.
Danae Downs, 15, home school, Grand Junction, CO
It’s hard to give up things I really like,
even if I know I should. God, give me
strength to make the right choices.