Miley Cyrus (see picture via the link that really are not appropriate) and her salacious presentation at the VMAs and the viral posting of pictures of a father using short shorts to help his daughter understand what her clothing choices really look like to other people.
These demonstrate the issues surrounding modesty in the world today.
People of influence are not always setting a good example to our youth especially when it comes to modesty. Even the highly glamorous red carpet events have a load of people in super fancy outfits that unfortunately are not modest. You can view a few pictures to see what I mean HERE.
So what do you do when our children are being taught that it seems OK to use clothing that might show off the bottom side of your butt cheeks, or that provocative movements of the body are fun and acceptable? Well the father that decide to wear the same super short shorts like his daughter was using was heading up the right path. What he basically did was simple. He demonstrated how out of place that kind of attire is. By walking around all evening he finally got the point across to his daughter that you certainly are viewed differently by the type of attire you wear. That by the choice of your clothing you are giving off a message good or bad about "YOU" and what you think, feel and believe. Read more about this HERE.
Just the other night I saw another example of extreme modesty. Actually it was bordering on the extreme lack there of. A woman at the store had on a shirt that was cut across the chest in multiple lines that ran the width of the shirt. The cuts were such that if there had not been some type of undershirt you would have seen a little more then should be viewed in public. Now you might think ...'oh that must be some rebellious youth!'. In reality it was a middle aged woman. So you have to think what type of clothing are the rest of the family wearing on a daily basis. Are they show off their midriffs? Are they presenting themselves in a light they really don't want to?
The point is we have to do all we can to promote modesty in our youth, in the future leaders of our nation. And the display of sensual, salaciousness that occurred at the VMAs is not helping.
I totally agree that what was pulled off there was not in good taste. I know the overall program producers can not control what the performers, celebrities or musicians do while on stage. They can preview the expected content and make sure to provide a quality show. Not one that has people using over sized foam fingers to make rude sexual gestures or skin color "swim wear" to make it look like they have no cloths on. And in some reports I saw they appeared to have broadcast some commercials that were not at all appropriate for the audience they knew would be watching. What do condom commercials have to do with 14 year olds or the other teenagers they knew would be watching?
So as the father of a 9 year girl I'm finding it increasingly hard to find clothing that we feel are acceptable. Shirts with sleeves, shorts that do more then barely cover the crotch and buttock. And then when you do find one, that matches the length standard you hope it has some appropriate message or image on the front.
I'm surprised that all the clothing companies seem to be pushing the tween (8-11 yr olds) to dress like teenagers and the older ones to dress well some what slutty. Who in their right mind would or should be wearing shorts that are so short the pockets are longer then the leg of the shorts?
Why has not some company come into being that promotes good clothing for our tweens so that our children can stay children when they should and not try to be 7 years older then they really are?
I even have a wonderful name - GREAT TO BE 8.
And why oh why do we need to put them in a shirt that has no sleeves and ties up to show off their midriff? That in reality is not even appropriate for an adult.
So how do we promote modesty not just in our home but, community and work. How do we promote modesty in general while still letting people have their agency. We don't need to go down the path of Sharia law and publicly humiliate people that are not dress appropriately or stone those that have been offensive. For that matter who is to blame when a young adult wears immodest clothing? Unlike the child that is born with sickness or lame (who did not have the sin on his head) this one falls back to the parents.
“As Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.
“And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?
“Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.” (John 9:1–3.)
As parents we need to stand up and say enough is enough. To not buy the cloths that are not up to our standard. I know you may say 'but nothing looks any good that is modest'. Well then maybe we need to go back to the days of yester year and teach our children to sew. To make our own cloths when nothing appropriate can be found. They keep making crappy cloths since people keep buying them. When we stop buying the sleeveless shirt they will stop making them.
Now it will take time for things to change. It will not be an overnight sea change when we stop promoting or buying inappropriate clothing. It will happen, just not as quick as it should. Just like it did not happen overnight that most if not all stores are open on Sunday. It happened gradually.
The bottom line is that as people are not modest they really don't feel confident in themselves.
Why would Miley do what she did at the VMAs? She was not feeling confident, did not understand her self worth and was looking for something to get attention and acceptance in the wider world.
But, did it work? I don't think so since her engagement was finally broken off. She lost respect in the eyes of many..... she once was a beacon of light, something to look up to ..... and then this.
We don't have to go down that path. We can make the decision to be more modest. To be an example and set the standard. People will follow you as you show your true nature and true confidence.
If you know of good places to buy modest appropriate clothing list them in the comments section. By promoting those that hold our standards we can get things to change..... it will also help those that are having trouble finding appropriate attire.
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