You know when you have that regular old piece of clothing that you wear A LOT. Now, it's not your favorite piece in your closet, not the one you would pick to wear out to dinner with friends or all dolled up with your new favorite Noonday pieces , BUT it's a STAPLE in the wardrobe.
Well, that was my black sweater (that I loved, but did not appreciate) from Target. And.....it disappeared! And I found that I was really really missing it. (Insert Matthew 8:12 -- being thrown into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth). And my wardrobe proceeded to fall apart. I vaguely remember grabbing it to put on later if I got cold, but had no idea where I had left it. It is not fancy (I probably paid $19.99 for it), but it covers all the fashion related bases that the clothes in my closet require. If it's cold (which it has been -- hello winter), it is a must have to wear over the thinner rayon-y type shirts that have become my uniform with black skinny jeans or regular old jeans. If I want to turn a summer shirt into a winter shirt -- black sweater. If I am okay in the morning but it may get cooler as the day/night goes on -- black sweater. Throwing on a t-shirt and jeans -- black sweater. When the olive green puffy vest won't do (my other favorite winter staple) -- black sweater. When I need to connect two pieces that might not quite match -- black sweater (I love my leopard sweater which is becoming a staple, but it just isn't the same kind of pure simple sweater love). I could go on...but simply put, I missed the sweater.
So, if you haven't caught on, I have been in mourning for my black sweater for the past week or more because it seems without it, NOTHING WORKS. My closet has become a giant abyss of nothing because it's too cold and I need my black sweater. And to make matters THE worst EVER, I have given up buying clothing for LENT (Noonday does not count as clothing in my eyes -- gotta help these women provide for their families y'all). Sheesh! And for me, the not buying clothes one is a biggie. I am what you might call a clothes horse. But I am trying to come out of it during this season of Lent. I even cancelled Stitchfix until May for heaven's sake (literally)! So, with that being said, things just got real up in here. It's gonna be hard hard hard because I love clothes...I just do and I'm sorry. It's hard for me to write this, but it has kinda become something that I struggle with (1st world problems, people). I confess, I love the feeling I get from a new shirt or new dress. It's silly, but it is TRUTH. But then here is what God is telling me:
Matthew 6:28-31 (and as I started reading those verses, I decided 25-34 are too good not to focus on with this).
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life ?
Well, that was my black sweater (that I loved, but did not appreciate) from Target. And.....it disappeared! And I found that I was really really missing it. (Insert Matthew 8:12 -- being thrown into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth). And my wardrobe proceeded to fall apart. I vaguely remember grabbing it to put on later if I got cold, but had no idea where I had left it. It is not fancy (I probably paid $19.99 for it), but it covers all the fashion related bases that the clothes in my closet require. If it's cold (which it has been -- hello winter), it is a must have to wear over the thinner rayon-y type shirts that have become my uniform with black skinny jeans or regular old jeans. If I want to turn a summer shirt into a winter shirt -- black sweater. If I am okay in the morning but it may get cooler as the day/night goes on -- black sweater. Throwing on a t-shirt and jeans -- black sweater. When the olive green puffy vest won't do (my other favorite winter staple) -- black sweater. When I need to connect two pieces that might not quite match -- black sweater (I love my leopard sweater which is becoming a staple, but it just isn't the same kind of pure simple sweater love). I could go on...but simply put, I missed the sweater.
So, if you haven't caught on, I have been in mourning for my black sweater for the past week or more because it seems without it, NOTHING WORKS. My closet has become a giant abyss of nothing because it's too cold and I need my black sweater. And to make matters THE worst EVER, I have given up buying clothing for LENT (Noonday does not count as clothing in my eyes -- gotta help these women provide for their families y'all). Sheesh! And for me, the not buying clothes one is a biggie. I am what you might call a clothes horse. But I am trying to come out of it during this season of Lent. I even cancelled Stitchfix until May for heaven's sake (literally)! So, with that being said, things just got real up in here. It's gonna be hard hard hard because I love clothes...I just do and I'm sorry. It's hard for me to write this, but it has kinda become something that I struggle with (1st world problems, people). I confess, I love the feeling I get from a new shirt or new dress. It's silly, but it is TRUTH. But then here is what God is telling me:
Matthew 6:28-31 (and as I started reading those verses, I decided 25-34 are too good not to focus on with this).
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life ?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the
flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in
all his splendor was dressed like one of these.
30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today
and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of
little faith? 31 So do not worry,
saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we
wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all
these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness,
and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for
tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Just goodness right there in those verses. Sticking those in my pocket!
Bottom line: I am so much more valuable that the clothes we wear. And look at verse 33, he knows we need them (I could spin this one Rob Yates), BUT (verse 33 that I love and we all know) "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and ALL the THINGS will be given to you as well." All the things...God makes all the things so much more beautiful, including US -- and he doesn't care what we wear. We are beautiful NO MATTER WHAT!! I think what He is wanting me to see is that I need to "look to Him first" before thinking I need something new to fill a void. There may be another area where that time and money might be used to glorify Him in a more special way. Because I know that these "things" will be eaten by moths (Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. James 5:2). Probably happening right now in my hall closet.
So, back to my beloved very special black sweater. I had contemplated just going back to Target and getting a new one because the last time I was in target, they had it. But I thought to myself, this is exactly what God is trying to teach me...I can't do it. Because, well, I am 37 years old, and RESTRAINT!! So I decided my own self (of course with God's gentle leading) that I would not be buying a new black sweater and would have to come to terms with the clothing in my closet and make it work. (BLANK STARES into the tiny but overflowing closet that is built into the wall of my circa 1950s home).
Well, yesterday after a long run with Stacy, I was putting something in the backseat of my car and what did I see among white pillar candles, candy wrappers, coat hangers, and a library book?
Drum roll...................................................MY BLACK SWEATER............................................
CUE THE SQUEALS!!! I really did squeal!
CUE THE SQUEALS!!! I really did squeal!
A miracle of God had occurred (no joke it was NOT back there yesterday). So my black sweater is back and I learned A LOT from the process!
Doesn't look like much of anything, but hopefully I have established that even things that don't look or seem important, really are. It truly can (and probably needs to be) the little things. This lesson is transferable from our closets right on over into the much more important area of LIFE!
Thank you JESUS!! "You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with JOY" Psalms 30:11. JOY and, well, my black sweater.
I realize this is a super trivial situation in the grand scheme of bigger life issues, and world problems -- I am well aware, but God has to reach us where we are some days and thankfully he met me in at my closet. Don't you just love it when God does these kind of things?
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