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Written by Jay Cookingham
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There
is a conspiracy of epic proportions in my house. Disguised as
cute kids, an underground organization dedicated to rendering my
wardrobe useless has infiltrated my closet and plundered my clothes
drawers. Now daily I find myself outfit impaired and "garmently"
challenged. I would sue for emotional damages, but they are my kids
after all. Take my socks for instance, (whoops, poor choice of words);
with five boys active in this underground, all who have socks of their
own by the way, my socks never seem to remain in my drawer. Even
Daniel, my four year old wears my socks. Although on him they are so
big that they look like a poorly made turtleneck.
Unfortunately, the pillaging has not been contained to just my socks.
My daughter thinks that all my large t-shirts belong to her. They are
quickly becoming her sleepwear of choice. My white dress shirts have
been in many "pirate battles" and have returned button less. Various
unknown substances have appeared on my shirts while in the service of
dubious pintsized "scientists". A few shirts have even returned with
their sleeves tied in knots! Like some great Houdini event gone awry,
the true explanation remains locked away in secrecy.
Through all this I have learned to identify with John the Baptist. Now
here's a man with a limited wardrobe. The whole camel hair suit thing
really intrigues me. I took a ride on a camel once, believe me, it
doesn't clear up why would he choose that particular form of attire.
Maybe the camel water hording properties helped with baptisms in some
strange way. My explanation is simple; he must have had some kids in
his life and therefore an empty closet. The locust and honey thing I
can't explain, although you can be sure no kids were involved in that
menu choice, but I digress.
My shoes, my hats, even my glasses become objects of fantasy, comfort
and connection. Why do my kids insist on wearing my stuff? Simply put,
they want to put on the things of their father. It's an identification
thing, a familiar thing and an "I wanna be like" thing. Daddy's clothes
represent something that goes beyond just wearing them. When I go on a
long business trip my daughter will sometimes wear one of my shirts to
bed because "it smells like daddy". Sleeping with my shirt brings a
level of comfort to her.
It just like that with the Kingdom, putting on the things of the
Heavenly Father evokes change. His clothes really do make the man,
permanently pressing into us the character of His son. With garments of
salvation, the robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10), the full armor of
God (Eph 6:10-17) and the armor of light(Rom 13:12).
After you are fitted for a robe of righteousness, God has accessories
as well! "Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash
round his waist." (Isaiah 11:5). These clothes are worn inside out,
that is to say that they really change us from the inside. They
establish identity, foster an attitude of service and sanction a
fundamental change in our lives. This Godly garb encourages us with the
endowment of hope and the blessings of being King's kids. This is the
ultimate designer label; it has the best guarantee without the high
price tag.
With clothes of humbleness, He helps us deal with our pride. "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." (1 Peter 5:5).
When we are depressed the Father provides a garment to lift our
spirits. "and provide for those who grieve in Zion-- to bestow on them
a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of
mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They
will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the
display of his splendor." (Isaiah 61:3).
The Father's divinely provided righteous wardrobe comes in to cover us,
the unrighteous, to make possible our salvation and our right standing
with Him. With His covering we are adorned with beauty. "Thy beauty was
perfect through MY COMELINESS which I had put upon thee" (Ezekiel
16:14). Comeliness in Hebrew is the word hadar, which can be translated
as ornament, splendor, and honor. The Father has put His best clothes
on us and takes great delight in what He sees. In all this, His
covering completes us. Now, who wouldn't want to dress like
Daddy?
Blessings, Jay
A father of seven,
Jay Cookingham has been happily married to his wife Christine for 22
years. Although trained as a graphic designer, Jay has been writing
poetry, short stories and articles for as long as he can remember. A
featured columnist at Fatherville.com
, Christianwriters.com
,ibelieve.com
,and
Crossmap.com ,
he also writes a weekly e-mail newsletter for fathers. His "Seven
Promises from Your Husband" was featured on the Ken Canfield's radio
program Today's Father
. Recently published in the God's Way series for Fathers, the
series for Teachers and Christmas.godswaybooks.com , He
is currently writing his first book on the subject of fathering.null
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