What has its hooks in you?
Here is one thing that might have its hooks in you.
Clothes.
Call it fashion, or style, or being trendy, or not being trendy.
But the question is, does clothing have its hooks in you?
Do you shop for clothes when you don’t need new clothes? Why?
Could it be because it has its hooks in you?
Do you ever get a little restless feeling that you “need” new clothes?
Where does that restlessness come from?
Would you say you are “hooked” on clothes?
Think about what that means. It’s a fishing term, meaning “pierced through and being reeled in.” If you are hooked on something, it means it has pierced you through and is reeling you in. You are no longer in control.
Here’s what I think. Clothes are just the bait. If clothes are the bait, then what is reeling you in? Pride.
You are not hooked by the clothes, but by pride.
“Oh, Doug, that’s ridiculous. Just because I like certain clothes doesn’t mean I’m hooked by pride.”
Let me ask you, would you be willing to wear something you considered humble? It might be something you considered “poor” or out of style.
Or do you have a certain standard to maintain? Is that standard based on pride?
This is a tricky subject, because you can dress nice but not be caught by pride. It’s a matter of the heart, and it’s something I think God will have to reveal to you.
This is something God has worked on in me over the years. I was never big on designer clothes or whatever, but nonetheless, I discovered pride in my heart over how I dress.
For example, when I was about 20, I had an idea for some shirts, but I didn’t see anything like it in the stores. I had a friend who could sew, and she made the shirts for me.
Nothing expensive. No designer labels. But I had shirts no one else had that I really liked, tailored to fit. Yes, there was pride.
Over the years a lot of clothes have gone through my closet. Out with the old and in with the new. I know what it’s like to see something in the store and think, “Ooo, I gotta have it.”
Somewhere along the line somebody talked me into checking out Goodwill stores. It seemed kind of trashy, but I found some top-of-the-line items at dirt cheap prices. I was surprised.
You’d think shopping at Goodwill would kill your pride, but pride is a tricky beast. Now I had more nice clothes than ever. It’s hard to be humble with such a nice wardrobe.
And you know what? I didn’t think anything of it. After all, what’s the problem? I’m not wasting money and I’m not being a “fashionista,” I mean come on, I’m shopping at Goodwill for crying out loud. Could I get any more humble?
I didn’t realize the hooks it had in me until one January when I felt like God gave me a New Year’s resolution. It included buying no clothes.
No big deal, right? But in those first few weeks I finally realized how hooked I was. In every store I saw something I wanted, and always on sale. I saw things I wanted in ads and catalogues.
It slowly dawned on me how deep those hooks went, hooks I hadn’t even noticed before. I had been a slave to impulsive thinking when it came to clothes. I constantly bought new clothes when I didn’t need them.
So why did I buy them? I think at the very core it was pride. I probably never would have realized it had it not been for that New Year’s resolution.
Believe it or not, I haven’t bought any new clothes since, and I feel like a bunch of little hooks have fallen away from me; hooks that used to guide my behavior, but now have no influence over me.
Like I said, this is something I think God will have to reveal in your heart. Maybe this message is for you, the first step toward a new level in your life.
And I think the process can start with your honest answer to this simple little question:
Are you hooked on clothes?
(As featured on Wave 94.1 FM)
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