Dressing warmly

I delight greatly in the LORD…For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and dressed me in a robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10).

When the weather becomes chilly, it forces a change of wardrobe. As much as you might love wearing shorts and tees, they are impractical when the wind is cold and overnight lows drop near freezing or below.

Maybe you are one of those stubborn sorts who won’t let the weather dictate how you dress. I know the type—wearing sandals while walking through snow, going bareheaded in sub-zero temperatures because hair spray and stocking caps don’t mix.

I’m a practical man. If the weather is cold, I bundle up. For me, being warm and dry trumps any concern over how I look. But I know that a lot of people are willing to suffer and even risk getting sick for the sake of fashion.

I’ve seen this same mentality at work in how people think about God. It’s not fashionable to be a Christian. You don’t turn heads by being humble. You don’t draw attention for watching your tongue. If you are devoted to Jesus over everyone else, you won’t be the life of the party.

The world is a cold place to live, and it’s getting colder all the time. A person can be attacked on the street, and those who see what’s happening just watch instead of helping. Celebrities make the news for bad behavior, yet their popularity increases instead of shrinking. This kind of coldness deadens the heart and extinguishes the warmth of goodness.

Jesus offers you warm clothing to wear, so the chill of sin does not numb your heart and kill your soul. This garment of salvation is a robe made of His righteousness. He offers to cover sin with the shelter of His forgiving love. But many people reject Christ and His generosity. Despite the frigid situations they find themselves in, they would rather be fashionable, cutting edge. They push Jesus to the side so they can be the center of attention, even as they turn pale and shiver uncontrollably.

Don’t be that person. You can be warm and safe in Jesus’ arms. Don’t suffer for the sake of appearances. There is nothing more attractive than a face warmed by God’s love.