Sexiness vs. Holiness Part I

Lately I've been very skiddish about what I watch and what I allow my children to watch on television. I am a child of the '70's so I grew up watching Little House on the Prairie every Monday night. When I watch reruns of that show now and get a glimpse of what women were like from that time period and read my Bible and get a glimpse of what women were like during biblical times, I see that women were able to define what a godly and virtuous woman was from a carnal or more (ummm hmmm...) shall I say, worldly woman. These days with the onslaught of lingerie commercials, fragrance commercials with scantily clad celebrities in enticing and suggestive positions, to television shows and motion pictures that show parts of a woman's body that only her husband should see, not to mention the epidemic of porn addiction (print, video, and internet), some female Believers have been deceived into thinking that they have to compete somehow or join in with these images while male Believers are having their masculinity and sexuality challenged if they are not attracted to these unrealistic and fallacious standards of beauty. So the question is, what is more important for Believers? Being sexy or being holy?

Loose women have always been apart of every culture and every society and every socio-economic level. Prostitution has not been deemed "the world's oldest profession" for nothing! But with the current climate of pseudo-Christian, "carnal" Christian, celebrity worship, etc. Christian women are defining themselves by the sexual standards, both in terms of image and conduct, of movie starlets, songstresses (particularly secular), supermodels and even porn stars. Women who identify themselves as Believers, especially single female Believers, are allowing the carnal influence of celebrities, etc. to define who they are, how they should look and how they behave. What exactly are you saying when you sing, "If you like it then you shoulda put a ring on it..." A ring on what? Are we perpetuating the fallacy of fornication to get a husband? This entire climate of people thinking that to be virtuous, holy and practical is to be "so heavenly minded that you are no earthly good" has created a fallacious environment based on worldly illusions that will ultimately end with a lot of female Believers going to hell because they feel the need to compete with or emulate and even imitate the likes of Beyonce, Angelina Jolie, or some random Victoria's Secret model or random porn star! Would you believe women, supposedly, Believers are busting up in the church revealing just a little too much leg and thigh, too much cleavage, made-up in the image of Nicki Minaj or some porn starlet, wearing thongs and then wearing clothes that tell the world that they are wearing a thong! It's chuckle-worthy on one hand but on the other it's ever so sad! Funny and yet so sad, because it's obvious that these women are trying too hard, so hard in fact that they have allowed society or the warped perception of pseudo-Christian men who seem attracted to such garbage, to influence them away from modesty, holiness (that's right, I said it!) and humility. Don't get me wrong, I, too like to get glammed up from time to time but (please understand that this is what makes the difference between a true Christian and a pseudo-Christian is that...) the Holy Spirit convicts me and shows me when my dress and skirt are too short, pants are too tight or when my top is just a little too low or when my make up and hair has the potential to give an incorrect general representation of who I am and who God has called me to be. Please trust me when I tell you that I dare not defy the conviction of the Holy Spirit as I have been there and done that with regard to other matters and it did not bode well for me to say the least! Women who pander and who clamor to emulate these contrived and artificial, Hollywood-produced images are attracting the wrong kind of man and they are doing so at the expense of their own souls. And silly men, who call themselves Believers put themselves in the precarious and horrible position of being ensnared by the wrong woman just because she had a certain look. (More on this in the another entry.)

I attended and was the member of a very large, mega-church and there were quite a few women there who were humble and modest in their dress and then there were others who looked as if they were leaving the church to shoot porn! Bloated lips, tight clothes, too much make-up, talon nails, "the works"! I attended another church and saw young females revealing thongs under low cut jeans. I've attended many church functions where women's bosoms were "spilling" out of their blouses and they couldn't cross their legs or bend over without flashing the person standing behind them in the offering line or sitting beside them in the pew. Now, in defense of some of these women, especially those whose weight fluctuates or who were just recently saved, perhaps they didn't have anything more modest to wear when they attended the services where I saw them dressed provocatively but some of these faux pas' are easily remedied with a safety pin or sweater.  

Before you allow yourself to be taken in by the diabolical influence of Hollywood, please do your research and understand that the far reaching influence of celebrities and society's climate of celebrity worship are subversive to our identity and reality in Christ. Women who aren't Believers shouldn't allow themselves to be influenced by such nonsense, how much more should Believers refrain from allowing the film, television, fashion and music industries to influence and control how we perceive ourselves and how we live and behave and what the standard of beauty should be. Christ is to be the filter for every true Believer's perception and perspective. As believers we are called to be holy not sexy! If in your private moments with your spouse, he finds you sexy then that's fine but the goal of a godly woman is holiness, as she is most beautiful in holiness and when she reflects the image of God.


To be continued...


Mocha Brown aka Koretta L. Allen is available for public speaking engagements especially pertaining to subjects of single parenthood, being single, women's empowerment through the word of God and much more. Mochababybrown@gmail.com