"So what's with the fancy clothes?"
"...The crazy clothes?" I asked, looking up from my open wallet to the gas station cashier, a little taken back by his word choice.
"The fancy clothes." he repeated. Yes, I had misheard him.
He was in his mid-twenties, friendly, and curious about my younger sister's and my choice of clothing. I don't blame him. In a society where a lot of girls spend an hour or two to achieve the "messy look", even wearing something casually feminine and modest can peak interest.
"It's just the way we choose to dress daily." I explained, smiling. "Our desire is to draw attention to the Lord by dressing in a way that honors Him, instead of drawing attention to ourselves."
He was soaking in my answer with interest, and said with an air of refreshment, "Well, it looks nice!"
"Thank you!" I replied and we continued on with small talk while I paid for our drinks. It's not uncommon at all for someone to ask similar questions such as this, like another man who just last week asked me, "So. . . are you required to [dress like this] all the time?" (Who, by the way, thought it was "Cool!" after I explained.) Questions like this makes me smile. :) I like it when people are bold enough to ask what's on their mind, and often it leads to talking about my relationship with Christ and how it plays out in everyday choices.
God gives us so many invitations to bring the attention to Him! We need not wait for a traumatic event to start talking about Christ to others. Evidence of His existence is all around us and in us - evidence a good steward can use as a springboard to direct conversation about Him!
When your child is holding a kitty, tell them of creation. Tell them how the Scriptures say a righteous man is to care for the life of his beast. Yes, we are to look Christ-like! Yes, we are to act Christ-like. But don't forget the need to speak truth, to hold forth the word of life, to communicate with more than appearance. Seize every opportunity to talk of Him!
