I'd Rather See God Than Look At Your Navel

In honor of Modest Fashion Week, I could not resist posting a hilarious poem my dad wrote years ago in response to what people were wearing at church. I had to call him and ask him for it, and the only part I could remember was, "I'd rather see God than look at your navel." LOL! Thankfully, he was able to produce the poem in its entirety. Otherwise this would be a short post!

Take it in the light-hearted spirit in which it was intended.

The Modesty Poem

Bras, bra straps, cleavage, and hair,
Bosoms and cheeks
Are more than I can bear.

Folds, wrinkles, bulges, and breast
Are not expressions of offering God your best.

Not trying to be rude,
Not trying to be mean,
God wants our bodies,
But not to be obscene.

Comb your hair,
Wash your face,
Walk in love and
Enjoy His grace.

Worship the Lord,
The Lord Most High,
Show Him your humility,
But not your thigh.

We need to get the attention of God,
But not the attention of men.
We are covered by His grace,
So why reveal the skin?

Exposing chest hair is not a sign of manhood.
It is modesty and discretion which are signs of our good.

God is great; He is more than able.
I’d rather see God than look at your navel.

So, button up your shirt and pull up your pants.
Women, put on a slip, because the light does enhance.

I’ve seen things I don’t need to see,
Things have become like they should not be.

Man has lost all his shame;
Disrespect has become his game.

(Gabe Abdelaziz, June 27, 1999)

Fashion: It's for the greater good

In honor of Modest Fashion Week I interviewed my sister. Well, actually I dared her to put up her hall of shame, but she wouldn't. So, instead I asked her some fashion questions. Like adult vitamins, her thoughts are not sugar-coated. Hang onto your Jimmy Choo's......she may step on your toes.




But, keep in mind....it's for the greater good!





1. What is your earliest fashion memory?

The all-time ultimate accessory—plastic charm necklaces—duh!

But, really I’ve always loved catalogs even as a child. I remember the JCPenney’s big book catalog as a little girl, admiring children and adult clothes, jewelry, and wedding section.

And I remember experimenting a lot in my preteens with clothes and accessories in my room to see if what was in my head was as good in real life.



2. What is one fashion no-no that you wish you could correct for everyone? And what is one modesty no-no you wish you could correct for everyone?

ONE?! *sigh*

Fashion: Making comfort the highest priority when getting dressed. Please! We’d ALL live in sweats then! Then we wouldn’t feel motivated to work. Then we would just sit around the house and never leave. Then there you have the even steeper decline of our society…
See, fashion really benefits all mankind.

Modesty: Fit. Too small or too big. Ignore what the tag says. Every company has a different sizing chart anyways. So what if you like it, we’re the ones that have to look at you.

3. What is the most important accessory you wear?

That is a very hard question…
But, I guess if I HAD to narrow it down, I’d say earrings. For several reasons.

Why do people pierce and then get too lazy to put them on? What a waste of good earlobe space.

It frames your face.

It draws attention to your face.

It adds an extra bit to your aura that says, “I actually care what I look like. I put on my clothes, and chose this jewelry to go with this exact outfit for a reason. I didn’t just jump into this random ensemble.”

Oh, and scarves!

4. Do you follow the white shoe after Labor Day rules?

Yes! Religiously. Not a day after! My black winter shoes can come out until Easter. Then I rotate all my shoes in the closet, so I don’t even see them again until Labor Day. There is nothing about the specific holiday that goes with dark shoes. I don’t care what the fashion stylists are saying these days, you shouldn’t wear white shoes. It’s tradition. It just makes sense, since “summer” is officially over, to put your white shoes away. You look weird wearing inappropriate clothes at the wrong time of year. It’s not just about the item of clothing either, but about the item’s style, color, and texture, too.



5. Who has been your biggest fashion influence?

I have several. First I have to say my mommy. She taught me my foundation of propriety. And now I help dress her. :-)

But, I also am a total What Not To Wear junkie. (books and all! I highly recommend Dress Your Best.) My three-year old son once told me when I wore something “Clinton and Stacy would not like that.” And he knows how Carmindy applies makeup and wants to know why Nick paints people hair… :-)

And I get a lot of my wardrobe and seasonal inspiration from my beloved Harper’s Bazaar magazine and Victoria’s Secret clothes catalogs.

6. What is one part of your getting ready routine you absolutely could not do without?

Using my full-length mirror. How can you NOT own one and still leave the house?


7. Give us a tip for other girls with curly hair.

One tip?! How ‘bout several:
~You have to use product! Try and try to find something that works, be it gel, mousse, serum, etc.

~Why do you even OWN a brush? (A wide-toothed comb and your fingers are all you need. Scrub your scalp in the shower, dude.)

~Conditioner!!!!!!!!

~Don’t wash your hair everyday if you can help it. Second day curls
are some of the best. Use some bobby pins and make it do whatever you want.

8. What's worse VBS or muffin top?

Muffin tops, hands down! Wearing clothes that are obviously a thousand times too small for you vs. at least the chick is WEARING a bra nowadays!

So say the item of clothing fits properly, be it your torso, legs, feet, or even head—great, right? No! It doesn’t mean you should wear it. Not everyone can pull a style off. (I’ve seen many fedoras on the wrong heads.) You have to consider your shape and stature. But, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. Don’t be shy when it comes to new styles. A lot of things have to grow on you. When these booties came back into style, I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. So I bought a real cheap pair, and they actually grew on me.

We’ve all established the concept that someone can be stylish and modest, right? We all know there is nothing wrong with being both, right? (nod your head) So, don’t let people get away with “The style right now is so immodest!”, “I can’t find anything, so we have to make them ourselves.”, etc. (I have nothing against sewing your own clothes!) But those excuses are laaaaame for wearing goofy stuff. In every decade and fashion era there are going to be immodest clothes on the racks. But also in every decade and fashion era there’s going to be modest things filtered down from the extreme runway. (No one escapes that! Eventually it comes down to bargain pile…) Remember in the 60’s they were wearing miniskirts, but also long hippy ones, too. People are just too lazy to look. You have to go to more than one store, and you have to try on a ton! (Daja!) [GT: What's she picking on me for? I try on clothes, sometimes.] And, no, it DOESN’T have to cost a lot. I don’t care what people say, it doesn’t. They must just not know where to go, look, and buy.

And so what if it costs a little more. This is YOU, we’re talking about. Your body! The only vehicle you have for the rest of your life. If the piece is classic, you’ll have it for even a LONGER time. As Leeza Gibbons says, “Know where you’re going, and look good when you get there.”

So maybe you’re one those people that want to know what the big deal is. Why do we have to be fashionable? Well, you don’t have to be. But…

1. Wearing what you did when you were a teen doesn’t make you look young, it just ages you NOW. Stay out of a rut. Keep things fresh. (Wearing too young of clothes, even if it’s modern and new, ages you too.)

2. Some people point out that modesty isn’t just about how much you’re clothed, but by the fact that modesty doesn’t draw attention to oneself. Yes, for the sake of dressing to draw attention. (But, hey, if you look good, you look good!) Listen y’all, we live in a superficial society. Whether you like it or not, people judge you by what you look like and wear. Yes, I believe Jesus Christ is attractive enough all by Himself. But I believe those who don’t know Him are looking at me/you and making up their minds right then and there if what we got is attractive enough-- if they are going to listen to what we have to say. Looking dowdy, but modest, does not make them think, “This lady has it all together, and I want to be just like her!” We are Jesus to the world. Don’t you think living a life full of vitality and style will give them something to be attracted to? If at the least, for a moment you’ll have their attention to share about what He did for you.

3. I like nice things. So sue me. It boosts your confidence when you know you look and feel good. Therefore making you a more effective citizen. (See? Once again, fashion for the good of mankind.)

One last thing, I promise :-) TAKE GOOD CARE OF YOUR STUFF! You’ll look a lot more polished. Being good stewards of what God has given you means a lot. Air out your shoes before putting them away, don’t hang up your knits, wipe off the scuffs, don’t wash your whites with colors, don’t wear your good shoes to work outside, wear an apron over your clothes while doing housework, keep track of BOTH earrings, clean out (and the outside of) your purse, iron, etc. God said if you were faithful in the little things, He’d give you authority over lots more. Maybe that is why my closet is so huge…….

Any questions?

Modest Fashion Week!

It's Modest Fashion Week over at the Stay-At-Home-Missionary blog! She's having giveaways and guest bloggers and all sorts of fun! You'll definitely want to enter her giveaways, because they are super-duper!

I think I'm fairly fashionable and modest. Although my road to this point has been interesting. I credit my mother with keeping me on the right path and not down a rabbit trail to frumpville.

In my early school years I was a fashionista or fashion-victim, depending on your point of view. I was all about the tight-rolled pants and layered tanks. My fashion guru was Punky Brewster. I always wished I could find those little belts that Cherry wore around her head.

Then we started our journey into the homeschooling world.

I grew up in a conservative area where a lot of our friends and acquaintances were of the plain-clothes variety. Nothing wrong with that--they are still my friends! But there was an abundance of navy blue skirts and white long-sleeved blouses in my childhood. There were also a startling number of denim jumpers. No offense if you like the denim jumper, it's classic; but it's just not my thing anymore.

Anyway, somewhere along the line I got the misguided idea that holy = dowdy. My mother who is as pure as the wind-driven snow, is also very classy. She looks put together when she goes out with jewelry on and make-up applied. She knows and adheres to traditional fashion rules such as not wearing black shoes between Easter and Labor Day. She wears her broaches on the proper side and name tags on the other. She never wears dress shoes without stockings.

So, when I would head out the door with little care for my appearance aside from being properly covered she would say, "Daja, you look pale. Go put on some lipstick." or "How long does it take to put in your earrings? Not long. Go do it." It must have been difficult on her classy nature to have a daughter who looked like something coming in from a hurricane.

With her loving and consistent guidance, I learned that you can be fashionable and modest. Now, when I'm running out the door looking disheveled, it's her voice in my head that makes me turn around and check to see if I'm color coordinated and to grab some lip gloss.

So, here is where I bare all (or nothing, depending on how you look at it)......

Daja's Fashion Hall of Shame:

About 7 or 8 years old. I was da-bomb!

Here I am about 14 years old in 4-H. The uniform is what it is. But the hair, could have seriously used some de-frizzing!

I am thirteen in this picture. Yes, I am wearing a Zulu pill box. And yes, my bangs are completely out of control.

March for Jesus 1998. I'm that girl in the front in the floral dress with minty green overskirt, straw hat, blue socks and brown lace-ups. There's no excuse.

Here's my Swee and I going to a party. *sigh* Yes, I have on white pantyhose. No, I was never a nurse.

Now that you've had a good laugh at my expense, please leave me a comment telling me how funny I am and about your worst past fashion faux-paux.

I'll be waiting.....