Jeans in Church

I grew up in a very strict church. You had to talk, worship, and dress a certain way each Sunday in order to be accepted and even allowed into the church. I'll never forget one woman, a guest that Sunday, who wore jeans. She was quite respectful and appeared to want to be there. But the congregants were whispering about her and glaring at her throughout the service. When she tried to mingle with the church members after the service, she was completely ignored. Looking hurt, the woman left that Sunday and never came back.

When I came to Hilmar Covenant Church for the first time, I was nervous about propriety. I kept asking my husband how I should dress, how everyone would expect me to act. I was more concerned about fitting in than I was worshiping God. At the service, I was amazed at the love and joy of the congregants. I saw some people in jeans sitting with the formally-dressed people. All of them worshiped together, regardless of how they dressed.

So I wear jeans to church now. When I wear my everyday clothes to church, it reminds me that I can worship God anytime, anyplace, and in any outfit when the need strikes me. Being a Christian, a child of God, is about our spiritual relationship to Him. It's about worshiping in spirit and truth. I remember that Adam and Eve didn't wear clothes until they made that fateful choice to let sin into their lives. However, I also remember Romans 14:19-21, which illustrates the importance of not offending your neighbor. That's why I acknowledge that there are some inappropriate things to do and wear in church. It's not right for me to distract anyone else from worship just to prove a point. It's not about me and what I want. It's about worshiping together, and sometimes worshiping God together requires me to let go of my opinions for the sake of unity.

Whatever you wear or do, do it for God. And when you see another congregant dressing or worshiping in a different way than you prefer, try to see their perspective. Let's allow one another to do what we do for God, even if it's different from what we do. But if you are in doubt about wearing jeans, then do not wear them. Wear only what you do out of faith, for "everything that does not come from faith is sin" (Romans 14:23b).

Two verses really sum up what I'm trying to say: "Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean" (Romans 14:13-14).