Modesty: It’s not just for girls
Loving your brothers and sisters means acting differently to the rest of the world
Modesty is certainly something that is misunderstood or undervalued in our culture today. In fact at times it is totally disregarded. The biggest misconception is that modesty is something that only applies for girls. Here is how the dictionary defines modesty.
"Modesty: regard for decency of behaviour, speech, dress, etc."
Decency of Behaviour
Guys and girls reflect on how you act around each other. Don’t be violent or purposefully annoying but rather treat each other with love and respect. Be careful if you are giving out hugs not to lead others astray. Be seeking to act in a humble way rather than a proud, arrogant way. Use Colossians 3:17 as your motto: "whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."
Decency of Speech
Stop gossiping!! It’s not only girls that gossip, boys are guilty too. So whoever you are, think about how you are talking to people to their face or on facebook or behind their back. Before you say it, ask yourself “is that a loving thing to say?”
Part of Australian culture is purposely insulting people for fun. There is never a good time to insult someone (no matter how funny the joke may be!!). See in James 3:10
"Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be."
Decency of Dress
What we wear is one of the biggest parts of modesty. This is also where the focus is so often placed on females, which means sometimes males think it does not apply to them. I want to challenge this.
Girls: It does still apply to you so think wisely about what you are wearing. Don’t follow the world’s line of thinking by trying to show as much skin as you can. This is obviously applied especially when you are going swimming with boys. Don’t dress to draw attention to yourself, aim for purity. Clothe yourselves in good deeds rather than worrying about the latest fashion. We learn this from 1 Timothy 2: "I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God."
Guys: What you wear does matter! Girls find it unhelpful if you wear singlets or tight fitting shirts all the time. More to the point make sure you have a shirt on when you are hanging around with girls. Whether you are swimming or not put a shirt on. You should stop listening to your ego and aim for purity. It is unfair to expect girls to cover up when they go swimming if we go around half naked.
It's all about love
There are others things to think about. But I hope this has got your think about how you are behaving, speaking and dressing. Ultimately modesty should not feel like a set of rules. It should be part of a God driven attitude to loving your brothers and sisters.
This is how God tells us to relate to each other:
"Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity" (1 Timothy 5:1-2).
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