My wife Priscilla grew up in a very religious family. Her father was the pastor of an very conservative independent Baptist church. When she was three years old she fell into a campfire and her legs were badly burned. Even today her legs are covered with large purple scars and are badly misshapen with many large indentations where muscle once was.
Her father's church was one of those where everyone wears the best of the best. She says that it looked like an Easter parade every Sunday. So even though she was terribly embarrassed by her unsightly legs, her parents insisted that she always wear a dress to church. Even wearing hose did not help hide the scars. And she was teased and humiliated unmercifully. This continued all the way up until she left home and she stopped going to church.
I was not church people so when we married she was kinda glad that she would not have to go. When our youngest daughter was about 13 years old she started going to church. She loved church and convinced her mother to go with her. Priscilla went with my daughter every Sunday and Wednesday to church and she was always dressed very nice in her best dress slacks.
After about three months, some women from the church that had befriended Priscilla told her that it was not appropriate to wear slacks to church and that she should start wearing dresses. This brought all of her old memories of humiliation back. She stopped going rather than face all of that again. For weeks on end she would cry every Sunday morning and Wednesday night.
Five years ago my granddaughter brought me to Christ. (That is a whole other story) I knew Priscilla's viewpoint on churches and so knew exactly what she would say when I asked her to go to church together for the first time. She said, "find a church that will let me wear my jeans and I will go." I had already found a Bible based church that had casual dress so I told her come on let's go. We put on our best jeans and left for church.
When we arrived at our church, we noticed first thing what the dress code seemed to be. Business casual for men and dresses for the women, some in pantsuits. The only ones wearing jeans were all under 21. But the way we dressed seemed not to concern anyone and they seemed very accepting of us.
Three months later Priscilla and I were to be baptized. The whole church gathered at a park on the lake for the occasion. Before the baptism everyone being baptized was asked to say something about how they came to Christ and how they came to our church. Priscilla told them that she had always been with Christ and related the entire story, scarred legs, blue jeans, how only her family has ever seen her legs since then and that was why we had chose this church. Many were moved by her story.
We moved down by the lake to be baptized. While everyone who was getting dunked that day was wearing a bathing suite and a tee shirt, Priscilla was wearing a swimsuit and blue jeans and I knew she intended to be baptized in those jeans.
When it was her turn, Priscilla started to go into the water but hesitated and took off her jeans. My jaw dropped. For the first time in 23 years she was letting someone, everyone see her legs. That day my wife's purple scarred misshapen legs became the most beautiful things any of us had ever seen. There wasn't a dry eye in the house.
The next Sunday when we walked into the church Priscilla started crying and sobbing so hard she couldn't talk. I finally got her to calm down enough to tell me what was going on. She told me to look at everyone. I did but still did not understand. She said, "look they are wearing jeans." Sure enough I looked around and almost every person there was dressed in jeans. Priscilla had found acceptance among God's people.
Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God.
To this day we are referred to lovingly by other church members as "the blue jean couple."
PRAISE GOD! PRAISE GOD! PRAISE GOD!
The nail pierced hands become jewels.
I think this thread should have required tissues with almost every post. More tears for me on this thread than all the others together for months and months.
PRAISE GOD!
Loved that whole church in jeans. Sounds like a Jesus church, for sure.
PRAISE GOD! [tears].
Hey, Angel-Gal—anyway we can issue virtual tissues on such threads? LOL.
I want to raise a note of caution, though, about another threat to love among brethren ... something you might call reverse Pharisaism.
And please, please understand, I am not accusing you or anyone here of this. It's just that your story brought it to mind.
"Reverse Pharisaism" is the practice of being quick to label others as Pharisees.
For instance, your story points out the dangers of a rigid legalism with regard to dress ... looking down on someone for wearing slacks or jeans.
The opposite danger would be to look at a church group where most or all of the women and girls wear modest dresses, and conclude that they must be legalists ... when in fact, they may be loving, warm-hearted believers who have a conviction that wearing dresses is more modest and helps to preserve the distinction between men and women.
In fact, I have just described the church where I fellowship. I'm not trying to start a discussion on dress ... just pointing out that one form of a judgmental spirit is to lump others too quickly in the "Pharisee" category.
Again, I haven't sensed any of this here ... although there is plenty of it on various FR threads (especially with haughty, judgmental secularists accusing Christians of being self-righteous).
My point is, there is a ditch on both sides of the road ... on one side, legalistic Pharisaism ... on the other, looking down on people who are graciously trying to maintain godly standards.
You said, ‘The next Sunday when we walked into the church Priscilla started crying and sobbing so hard she couldn’t talk. I finally got her to calm down enough to tell me what was going on. She told me to look at everyone. I did but still did not understand. She said, “look they are wearing jeans.” Sure enough I looked around and almost every person there was dressed in jeans. Priscilla had found acceptance among God’s people. Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God. To this day we are referred to lovingly by other church members as “the blue jean couple.”’
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Oh, that makes me cry. Thank you and God bless all of you.
I did dress up more than usual today to honor the Lord and His resurrection. But most Sundays, I wear the same clothes to church that I wear to work during the week. It’s a personal preference of mine.
How excellent to hear of your wife’s choice to be baptized in a way that was so very vulnerable for her. Wow.