My Twelve-Month Fast

Today marks the half-way point of my New Year's resolution to not buy any clothes for myself. I decided six months ago that my closet holds all that I need to get by for at least a year, and if something did come up (like I absolutely had to attend a dinner where everyone wears purple polk-dots), I could try to borrow something.

But joking aside, I knew that I didn't shop for necessity. Sometimes, I shopped with that excuse in mind ("Oh, I need a pair of beige canvas shoes to go with that skirt... my sandals just don't look right") but those were never true needs. Shopping for me had become a habit, stemming from the time when I was pregnant with my last child. I wanted change, stimulation, or excitement. I was bored, feeling low, and I needed a pick-me-up, something to make me feel pretty and new. I was looking for satisfaction.

So, the best solution was to fast from shopping. I have found that, like many things, when I take a break from something long enough, I often find that I don't "need" it like I used to. When I abstained from chocolate (which I did for every baby I had to prevent baby tummy pains), it took me only a few weeks to stop craving it. I never even think about drinking soda anymore. And so it has been with shopping. The first few months, I had to intentionally avoid certain stores or turn my head when passing by the sale signs. Now, I hardly think about it. Occasionally, I feel the pull to "just look", but no longer do I have that nervous feeling of "missing out on something". Trends and sales will come and go, and I will not be naked or even poorly dressed. And the level of my joy has not decreased in the least.

I should add that this doesn't mean I haven't gotten anything new. I've had several gifts of hand-me-downs from my sister and friends, and I gladly accepted them as blessings from God. There is a difference between receiving something unexpectedly and going out and buying it for yourself.

We long for value and substance in our lives, and yet we cling to things that are tangible, immediate, and satisfying only in the short run. Those things can be simple (coffee, sugar, chocolate), harmful (alcohol, nicotine, pornography), or substanstial (new technology, a boyfriend or girlfriend, a job). Some of those things aren't bad in themselves... it is about the intent of the heart. We renew ourselves on the outside, rather than the inside. We store up our treasures on earth, instead of our treasures in heaven. We seek approval and attention from the world, when we should be seeking God. And so often, for women especially, we don't see how we substitute shopping for God. 

I've learned so much in the past few years about what I Timothy 2:9-10 means by "...women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire..." If you are interested in learning more, click on 'beauty' under 'read by topic...' (to your right), or click on the links below to read past posts.

Screwtape Comes A-calling
On Modesty and My Wardrobe
More on Modesty
The Last Word on Modesty