FASHION ADVICE FROM THE DISTRICT MODERATOR
by Christy Waltersdorff
Did you buy new clothing for Easter? I have memories from childhood of getting a new dress to wear to church on Easter Sunday. And not only did I get a new dress, but so did my four sisters. And the dresses were identical. I am sure some of you are thinking, “How adorable—five little girls all dressed alike.” Not only did we have the dresses, but we often had identical hats and gloves and frilly socks and black patent leather shoes, too. I hated it! I was number three of five and hated looking like everyone else.
Even though my sisters and I dressed alike for the holidays, we were (and are) very different people with very different personalities. There is a family resemblance, and we share some similar traits, but even if we dress alike now (which we don’t!), we would not be mistaken as identical.
In his letter to the Colossians, the apostle Paul instructs all Christians to wear the same things: compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forbearance, forgiveness, and love. Even though we are called to wear the same things, the ways in which we wear these characteristics in our own lives will differ. Hopefully, we all bear a family resemblance to Jesus Christ and live our lives as the unique individuals we are. We can “allow the word of Christ to dwell in us richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in our hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God” (Colossians 3:16) and celebrate the ways in which others do the same in their own way. We are called to be faithful, not identical.
The diversity of our district is one of our superpowers. We bring the strength of our faith and our community from north and south, east and west—from the country and the city, from suburbia and small towns. We gather as a district wearing different sizes of the same design of the love of God. All are welcome, all are crucial, all are beautiful, all are unique, and all are adorable!
Did you buy new clothing for Easter? I have memories from childhood of getting a new dress to wear to church on Easter Sunday. And not only did I get a new dress, but so did my four sisters. And the dresses were identical. I am sure some of you are thinking, “How adorable—five little girls all dressed alike.” Not only did we have the dresses, but we often had identical hats and gloves and frilly socks and black patent leather shoes, too. I hated it! I was number three of five and hated looking like everyone else.
Even though my sisters and I dressed alike for the holidays, we were (and are) very different people with very different personalities. There is a family resemblance, and we share some similar traits, but even if we dress alike now (which we don’t!), we would not be mistaken as identical.
In his letter to the Colossians, the apostle Paul instructs all Christians to wear the same things: compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forbearance, forgiveness, and love. Even though we are called to wear the same things, the ways in which we wear these characteristics in our own lives will differ. Hopefully, we all bear a family resemblance to Jesus Christ and live our lives as the unique individuals we are. We can “allow the word of Christ to dwell in us richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in our hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God” (Colossians 3:16) and celebrate the ways in which others do the same in their own way. We are called to be faithful, not identical.
The diversity of our district is one of our superpowers. We bring the strength of our faith and our community from north and south, east and west—from the country and the city, from suburbia and small towns. We gather as a district wearing different sizes of the same design of the love of God. All are welcome, all are crucial, all are beautiful, all are unique, and all are adorable!
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