The Ghetto State of Mind

Image
                     The Ghetto State of Mind  The Ghetto state of mind is an intriguing concept. In my hometown this mind set is on an upscale. It has always been there but in the last 5 years its grown rampantly like wildfire. The ghetto state of mind comes in all colors and nationalities. You can identify it by how someone carries themselves and by their words and actions and how they treat others.   Let us explore this unaesthetic mind set.  This mind set is at one of the lowest mindsets. In this mindset the person always has to be right, always gets their way. Putting their needs first is always on their agenda. Some examples are screaming and honking at an elderly to cross the street as opposed to a more noble mindset of going out of your way to help an elderly person cross the street. This mindset is also displayed by not letting people merge on the highway knowing that now they will now have to exit. In some states not merging is against the law but it is just human decency tha

Glorious Garments


             Glorious Garments

           A Spiritual Fashion Show
                           

      Most of us have heard about the armour of God from Ephesians 6:11.  I want to explain another perspective on how to dress ourselves. It is more a perception from a woman and how to dress gloriously. 

         I love wearing dresses and I have a large collection of dresses. Whenever I go clothes shopping, I go straight to where the dresses are! A couple months ago I went to a ballet at a church and was delighted to see all the beautiful dresses being worn. When I wear a dress people treat me different and are extra nice and polite to me. I want to give you a perspective of what it means to dress gloriously.                      

       Even if we are wearing jeans and a t-shirt physically, we can be wearing a beautiful, glorious, dress spiritually. We can put on this Spiritual dress on everyday. We may have to put our battle armour on over our dress, but today we are just going to focus on our spiritual dress.
                                
      I got initially inspired over this idea of clothing  spiritually through a sermon at church, were the pastor was talking about spiritual bling. I can't remember exactly what he said but I had a picture in my head of someone wearing two necklaces. One that had a charm on it that said, Truth and the other one said Grace. He explained you can't have one with out the other. So we can put on our spiritual necklace and remember that we can tell the truth in love and gentleness and not with judgment and criticism. 
                            

         Let us start putting on our spiritual dress! In Colossians 3:12 it says... Therefore, as God's chosen people,holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion,kindness,humility, gentleness and patience.


         First we must start with the anatomy of the dress. The first part is the silhouette which is the foundation of the dress. It refers to the overall shape of the gown and is the most essential element because it sets the mood for the entire look. The Silhouette of our dress is Jesus Christ. If we don't have a silhouette we don't have a dress! In Romans 13;14 it says, "rather clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh."  Let us clothe ourselves with Jesus. We start by believing in him, and making him the Lord of our lives.We start by taking off our stinky grave clothes we are wearing full of stains of sin. They are filled with death and hopelessness. God cleans us and we repent of our sins. Now we are ready to put on the new clothes of Christ! John 3;15 says, "that everyone who believes may have eternal life".  Jesus is our foundation and silhouette and he sets the whole mood for our lives.



       The neckline of a dress is very important because it is the first thing people notice about your dress. The neckline of this dress is made of love. The first thing people should notice about you is your love for God and your love for others. Colosions 3:14 says,"And over all these virtues put on love which binds them all together in perfect unity". This neckline of this dress is very unique.  You will know it is the authentic "brand name", by the neckline because no other dress has this particular neckline.In John 13:35 it says, "By this everyone will know you are my disciples,if you love one another". So let us distinguish ourselves and prove we are authentic in how we love each other! The neckline makes a dress and you can tell by it whether it is a fake or original.  If you do not want to be like a fake Lui Viton then you must clothe yourself with love!

                                          



      The waistline helps to bring a signature style to the silhouette. It adds shape and balance to a gown. Our waistline is made up of patience. Patient with others and with ourselves. Let us not grumble and complain but let us be filled with thanksgiving even when we do not understand things. Let us put on the belt of patience. 


      The sleeves of this gorgeous dress are made of compassion. In this world that can be quite dark. Let us remember to use our sleeves to wipe the tears of others and to show great compassion.As Ed Sheeran says in the lyrics of his song,"When salted tears won't dry, I'll wipe my shirt sleeves under your eyes".

      The fabric of our dress is embroidered with gentleness and gold. In Psalm 46:10-14 it says, "Listen, O daughter, consider and give ear:Forget your people and your Father's house. The king is enthralled by your beauty;honor him, for he is your Lord.The daughter of Tyre will come with a gift,men of wealth will seek your favor.All glorious is the princess within her chamber:her gown is is interwoven with gold. In embroidered garments she is led to the king;her virgin companions follow her and are brought to you".God loves you and thinks you are a beautiful princess! In 3;2 it says,"To speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people". Let us be careful with our speech and gentle towards others.

    Lace, subtle yet strong. Lace is Grace. Our dress has grace overlapping every part of the dress. God was merciful and gave us grace let us be so full of grace that is brings a glow to our dress that shines with the Glory of God! Let us not forget to add some grace lipgloss as well, so that all of our speech will be there to lift up and encourage others instead of tearing them down.

     Embellishment is the icing on the cake. Done right it adds glamour and individuality to a gown.  We are not people of the world, but we are set apart. Our individuality is our identity in Christ. We are royal citizens of God. Let our embellishment shine of our uniqueness that distinguishes us from this world. Embellishments can be anywhere on the dress to decorate and give that extra detail. For my own person spiritual dress, My sons are the embellishment on my dress. Isaiah 49:18 says.."Lift up your eyes and look around;all your children come and gather to you. As surely as I live declares the Lord, they will be like jewels or bridal ornaments for you to display." I cherish this scripture and what it represents.

    Skirt details is where much of a gown's personality can be found. They can add volume and length, romance and depth. The skirt is where most of the gown's personality can be found. Our gorgeous skirt is made of 100 percent pure organic kindness. Let us not be overbearing and harsh with one another. When people describe our personalities they should describe us as kind.

     The train of the dress is the elongated back portion of the dress that lies on the floor and trails behind. Our train is made up of humbleness.The train of the dress is the most transitional piece. A long train can be quite grand. We know that we are special and chosen in Christ. Yet we do not brag about ourselves but about Christ. We can also detach the train too. In detaching it we become humble yet we know that we have the train and can put it on anytime. In the bible it says, you will know them by their fruits. One thing that is very noticeable in someone that does not have the gifts of the spirit is someone that is very prideful and a know it all. Call it a Jezebel spirit or whatever you want but it is a red flag that the garment they are wearing is from Kmart and not a glorious garment. Let us humble ourselves just as our Lord did. In 1 Peter 5:5 It says, "Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older,All of you,clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble".


    Let us not forget our feet!! I do not want to feel uncomfortable and wear heels. Sorry Cinderella fans. I will be sticking with sandals. They are like Dorthy's sparkling slippers from the Wizard of Oz, only they are sandals.They are pure leather and woven with gold and have a power to them just like Dorthy's slippers. These sandals are powerful! They have the power to transform you! These slippers are made from the Holy Spirit.  In Luke 24:49 it says, "I am going to send you what my father has promised, but stay in the city until you have been Clothed with power on high. These sandals have a lot of power and in order to activate it you must use the name Jesus. We become very strong when we use these shoes. They even give us special knowledge to help guide us. In Proverbs 31:25 it says, "She is clothed in strength and dignity and she laughs with out fear of the future".  It also says in the bible in, Isaiah 52, "Awake, awake O Zion, clothe yourself with strength. Put on the garments of splendor".When you tap them together just as Dorthy did, they will also take you home. Home to your heavenly father in paradise. In Song of Solomon 7:5 it says... "How beautiful are your sanded feet,oh queenly maiden. Your rounded thighs are like jewels."   Wow, my callused feet are beautiful and I don't even have to go on a diet now because my fat thighs are like jewels! Hallelujah!!  We paint our toe nails with graceful nail polish. Also my feet bring good news!



      Since we have our toe nails all nicely painted and polished we can not forget our finger nails! God gives us the manicure and prepares are hands for good works. He himself has prepared our hands in advance to good works and this is not of ourselves but because of his grace. We remember that are good works are not a way to salvation but a way of just having our outfit just bling out more for Christ so that others may want to follow him. If you are painting your nails with good works in order to try to achieve salvation. Within one day your painted nails will have started chipping and it would have been better, to have never painted them.Many religions of the world try to work their way to heaven by there so called "good works".  We don't want to be religious with dead works but we make our rose gold nails sparkle by having a relationship with him!! We let God paint our nails with goodness and this is not from ourselves.



    We got the dress on now! Wow does it shine. It is invisible. No one will see the dress but they will be able to see the shine that it brings! Oh no, we forgot a couple of finishing touches to our look. We have on our intertwining necklace that have truth and grace on them. We still need some earrings. Our earrings are a made up of a Jewel called Peace. This jewel is very rare and yet with the power of the splendid sandals it will instantly appear on your ears.They are made with jasper and are clear as crystal and have a small dove carved into it. We keep these earrings on to help against worries and anxieties. In John 14:27 it says, "Peace is what I leave with you, it is my own peace that I give to you.I do not give it as the world does.Do not be worried and upset, do not be afraid." So if we are given in to fear and worry let us check to see if our earrings of peace are on! 


    We need a little bit more jewelry to make sure we are completely blinged out for God. Oh I see two bracelets that are sparkling with a glorious radiance. One bracelet is made of emerald, and is called self control. I am not going to lie but I usually rush out the door and forget to put on the emerald bracelet! This does me no favors. I then struggle with my eating habits and other things. I have always struggled with being disciplined but if our splendid sandals can have the power to help us know how to wear the emerald bracelet correctly. In the bible it says in 2 Timothy 1:7," For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid,but gives us power,love and self-discipline". On the other hand we will wear the the brilliant bracelet made of crystal mica and is called faithfulness. Let us be faithful to God, and to the people in our life. When  feeling the pressures of life, pain persecution,illness,criticism, rejection etc, a person's true colors come to the surface. When these things happen we put our trust in God because he is always good and he is faithful. Let us wrap are arms in self-control and faithfulness. In the book of Revelation(Rev.19,11-16) Jesus is called Faithful and true.


     There is one last piece of important jewelry. It is the ring!! This ring is made of a beautiful Sapphire. Wow, is it stunning!! This ring is called baptism. It represents us getting married to our king, Jesus Christ. When we look at our ring in all it's glory, we remember who we belong to. "He is mine and I am his." is inscribed in the ring to remind us of our beautiful relationship with our Lord. 


      We want to make sure we smell good and are glorious garments smell with the aroma of Christ. Let us put on the anointing oil of Joy on. Psalm 30 says,"You turned my wailing into dancing, you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy".  It also says in 2 Corinthians:15, "For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing". Let's spray on that perfume called Joy and let people come up to and ask us what we are wearing?We will then tell them we are wearing joy that comes from our Lord Jesus Christ.



     We are almost fully adorned and lastly we need to but on our crown! This is the crown of life! It is bright red and when it is placed on my head it gives off a light that brightens a whole room up. This crown is red ruby and is made from the blood of Jesus.. Without this crown I am nothing. This crown represents forgiveness of sins and the everlasting life. Isaiah 62 says. "You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,and a royal diadem in the hand of your God."  This is the crown of salvation. You always have your crown on when you become a child of God. Some of the other parts of our dress are removable and we forget to put them on. This crown is not removable. Good thing because with my A.d.d. I might forget it on a daily basis! This is the crown of salvation that was bought for us with the blood of Jesus for the remission of our sins. In Isaiah 61:10 it says, I delight greatly in the Lord, my soul rejoices greatly in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with jewels." Please make accept this costly gift that Jesus offers to you, that represents eternal life.




     So there is the compete attire of Glorious Dress we should be wearing every day! You may have most of the outfit put together but forget to put on something, such as when I forget to put on my emerald bracelet of self control. What do you forget to put on? Or maybe you are still wearing your grave clothes and have not accepted the crown of life given freely through the blood of Jesus by believing in him and making him Lord of your life. Gurrrrl, it's time then for a make over!




Blessings!



       

      

       






     

     

       

    

     

     

      











      



        


       

Popular posts from this blog

Is it ok to be Gay?

Leggings Leggings Leggings!!!

The Strange Woman (The bible warns you of this type of woman)