I am hyper-conscious of what I wear to church.  It’s a combination of factors that instilled this in me.  First, I sit up front and everyone sees me.  Yes, that’s pretty vain of me but I am a woman and we worry about what to wear.

Second, my mother told me so.  Ok, that’s a little cliche but the fact is, I cannot forget my mother teaching me that I am supposed to dress up and give my best to God.  I still feel mildly guilty over the fact that my wardrobe contains only a couple of little-used skirts and one dress that I have only worn twice.  My staples are pants, because I’m most comfortable in them.  But I still feel guilty not doing the skirt/pantyhose/dress shoe combination, especially when there are special church occassions.

I went through this back in January when my husband was installed at our new church.  I spent a few days freaking out while shopping, and ended up wearing something I already owned.  I have been going through that again this week because of the impending Easter Sunday dilemma.  This is always an issue, because I remember growing up wearing the pretty Easter dress and white shoes.  There is a small part of me that still feels like that is proper Easter attire, never mind that I’m not a little girl any more.

I feel pretty comfortable with what I’ve bought for this year, because for once I bought pieces that can go with other things.  I’m a little nervous over the fact that the ensemble includes white pants, but they are beautiful and fully lined and fit well, so I’m going to attempt to relax and remember that it really isn’t about me.

I think that is one of the hardest lessons to learn, that it’s not about me – not what I prefer, what I think, what I say, what I wear.  Yes, those things can be stumbling blocks to people if I wear crazy outfits, say inappropriate things, or disparage people through my looks or actions.  But beyond avoiding being a stumbling block, my responsibility is to worship God and forget about everything else.  Oh, to be able to do that on a regular basis…