Modest Is Thee Hottest

C.O.G.I.C. Dress Code

The dress code for Holy women in the C.O.G.I.C. Woman’s Department Handbook is as follows:

“It is hoped that this dress code will encourage the laywomen to return to the old fashioned standard of dressing as becometh holiness. Often there are those among us who feel uncomfortable because they are not blessed to have as others. We feel that this code amplifies the expression of the writer, St Luke who said in the Book of Acts “and they had all things common” It is hoped that all of our women will refrain from wearing of unnecessary, gaudy attire but will join with our Leading women in reminding the world that there is a “difference”

We close by admonishing our young women and girls to let your manner and your clothing reflect the Jesus that you sing & testify about. The world is looking for an example, a model, why not be that one. Most of all, make certain that your hearts are right with the Lord, for it is the “hidden man of the heart” 1 Peter 3:3

Holy women are asked to refrain from make-up, such as eyeshadow, lipstick, colored fingernail polish, etc.

Holy women should be careful of accepting latest fashions because some of them do not represent modesty in dress.

Pants are not included in the dress code for Holy women.

Traditional

Let’s start with the traditional point of view on dress code.. I believe that our leaders back in 1972 had a good reason to set a dress code for our women like they did. First off they had to be very wise & know what’s best for Holy women of God. 2nd to set ourselves apart from the world & their forever changing trends in dress. We must remember as holy women we are peculiar.. It’s not meant for us to blend in with the world. When you become saved not only do you change on the inside but your outside appearance should change as well to reflect what Christ has done in your heart..

Let’s deal with the facts.. The C.O.G.I.C. has rules of dress for women. We have been taught this way of dress down through the years. In my 30 plus years of being raised in the C.O.G.I.C. church pants were not a part of that dress code. Dressing immodest was not a part of that dress code. Wearing loud finger nail polish & make up was not part of that dress code. I was taught to dress modest & have my skirts at least knee length & my shirts cut high. To have my finger nail polish a suttle color to blend in. I was taught not wear so much makeup that it look like my face was painted.. I was taught to have respect for myself & present myself different from what the worlds standard of dress are.

1 Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;

The bible speaks on apparel:

Deuteronomy 22:5 says
5 The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God.

A lot of times people like to put their own spin on that scripture.. I am going off facts.. Back in the biblical times men had robes they would wear that were far different from the robes women wore… Also men would wear garments called: Breeches. Breeches" were an article of clothing designed by God for the priests who were all men. The word does not occur very often in scripture, but in every case it’s men’s apparel.

Here are a few scripture references:

Exodus 28:42-43
42 And thou shalt make them linen breeches to cover their nakedness; from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach:
43 And they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his sons, when they come in unto the tabernacle of the congregation, or when they come near unto the altar to minister in the holy place; that they bear not iniquity, and die: it shall be a statute for ever unto him and his seed after him.

Leviticus 6:10
And the priest shall put on his linen garment, and his linen breeches shall he put upon his flesh, and take up the ashes which the fire hath consumed with the burnt offering on the altar, and he shall put them beside the altar.

Leviticus 16
He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on.

I looked up the word breeches the definition is:
An item of clothing covering the body from the waist down, with separate coverings for each leg usually stopping just below the knee, though in some cases reaching to the ankles.

Now let’s look at the definition of pants:
An item of clothing worn on the lower part of the body from the waist to the ankles, covering both legs separately (rather than with cloth stretching across both as in skirts and dresses)

That sounds like the same type of garment to me!

So when Bishop G.E. Patterson spoke to the people concerning this scripture & he said nowhere did it mention pants & the content of this scripture didn’t pertain to modern times.. I beg to differ.. The name of the garment may have changed but the descriptions did not. The bible whether Old or New Testament is speaking to us now & a lot of things relate to what we’re going through in today’s time.

It’s amazing that for years & years women would wear long dresses but only since the last 40 years a dress has become suddenly impractical to wear.

If you saw a man wearing a dress, what would you call him? Uh-huh, you would have no trouble knowing that it was wrong, and an abomination to God. But we have been conditioned by the world & to look like them.

One example we see everyday is the universal symbol for men’s bathrooms. The symbol on the door is a stick figure wearing a pair of pants. The universal symbol for woman’s bathrooms. The symbol on the door is a stick figure wearing a dress. Coincidence? Hardly. Even our sinful society recognizes that there is a difference in a man’s and woman’s clothing.




New Age Dress Code

Dress in the world has changed drastically since the 1900 when the C.O.G.I.C. was founded in 1907. Nowadays dress is being used to express one’s self. Dress is so powerful in the world.. To look a certain way. Our young people are pressured every day to have the latest fashions and look like their peers or they’ll get talked about & laughed at. The world’s way of dress sets trends, & a lot of these trends aren’t modest. A lot of the new generation of saved young saints have adapted to certain trends and don’t want to separate themselves from the worlds way of dressing. Some of them have totally disregarded the C.O.G.I.C. church standard of dress & modesty. The worlds way of dressing has become acceptable to the world & it’s also become acceptable to our new generation of Christians.

The new school way of thinking in the church is:

1. It doesn’t take all that.. If I have Christ on the inside it shouldn’t matter what I look like on the outside.
2. Why are you so concerned about how I look.. Isn’t my soul more important.. God loves me no matter what I wear.
3. I haven’t been convicted to not wear pants so therefore I don’t have to obey your rule in the C.O.G.I.C. church. Until I hear from God himself, I’m not changing.
4. The bible doesn’t say pants are a sin so therefore I’ll wear what I want. They make them for women now times have changed.
5. That dress code was done way back in the day.. Times have changed now so get with the program. I’m not trying to look like no holy roller. I’m not tryna look like my Granny.
6. I’m afraid my friends & peers will make fun of me if I stand out.
7. Other Pentecostal churches don’t trip on pants why do I have to obey your rule.. Even some C.O.G.I.C. churches don’t adhere to the rule..
8. Why are you judging the way I dress?
9. This dress code isn’t fair I will find another church to go to that doesn’t care what I wear!!!!
10. I know I’m saved & I love the Lord and he knows my heart & He ain’t trippin on what I wear.. So what if I’m being disobedient to my leader he’s stuck on the old school & he doesn’t understand times have changed..
11. I feel if I look like the people I minister to outside the church they’ll feel more comfortable around me & listen to what I have to say.
12. This is why people don’t want to join the C.O.G.I.C. church because ya’ll are too strict.

Conclusion

So which way is the right way?

For me the right way is tradition..

Let me make it very clear I always didn’t feel this way. I was with the New age. I felt like the way I dressed had nothing to do with the fact that I was saved. I always respected the COGIC & would never step foot in a COGIC church or event in pants. I had too much respect for the rules of the church even when I wasn’t saved.

When I first got saved I knew the rules of the COGIC church & what my Pastor expected of my attire outside of the church but I felt that didn’t apply to me as long as I didn’t come to church in pants or short skirts, or makeup & so on. Boy was I wrong. At first I would come to church and dress like the saints and when I would go to work I would look a different way.. I would wear my pants and I still had my tongue ring in my mouth & listened to some secular music as long as it didn’t have cursing in it I felt it was ok.. But it wasn’t.. I was still holding on to a piece of the world & didn’t want to let go. God wasn’t pleased.

When I was seeking for the Holy Ghost I was wondering why I couldn’t get it… I felt like my heart was right & I was doing all the right things to a certain extent.. During a revival at our church the evangelist said in order to receive the Holy Ghost you have to let go of the “STUFF” Stuff meaning all your ties to the world.. For me that meant the music & the tongue ring & yes my way of dressing as I did in the world.

Once I had it in my mind to change & did change is when I received the Holy Ghost.. For me the dress was so hard because all I would wear in the world was pants.. Once I decided to be obedient to my leadership the Holy Ghost was able to dwell in my temple.

The day I got rid of my pants I had a huge garbage bag full of pants I donated. That day was hard for me but it also felt so good, because I was taking a stand & most importantly being obedient to what was expected of me in my church. As I talk to young people all the time about COGIC dress; I simply put it this way it’s not about the pants one bit. It’s about presenting yourself to the world differently than when you did when you were in the world.

2 Corinthians 5:17
17Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

This scripture is right on it we must let go of all things of this world not just the things we want to let go of! Obedience is better than sacrifice.

I felt that I couldn’t workout or go swimming without looking like an old lady. Holy dress is so outdated so I thought until I found that I could find stylish cute modest clothing that was in line with the COGIC dress & modest apparel without looking like a Granny. I was able to find a lot of clothing at Stores like Ross, Layne Bryant, Avenue & online… Although modest is sometimes hard to find in these stores they do have them, you just have to take the time and look.

I refuse to conform to this world.. Once I changed my way of thinking the Lord lead me to other Christian young people that felt the same way about Holy dress & He helped me to realize I wasn’t alone.

One website I came across was created by a young Christian girl because she was tired of layering herself in heavy ugly looking coverings just to go swimming so she started making her own swimming suits that covered herself, then people started asking her where they could get them and the Lord made a way for her to start her own business selling modest swimming suits:

Here’s what they look like.. They’re beautiful. (www.modestswimwearsolutions.com)



Also I had issues with working out & felt I would have to wear pants to do so.. I was wrong again.. The Lord led me to another website of another young lady that created a workout skirt called an Exerskirt (www.miraclothes.com)

Here’s what it looks like..




Here she is doing a lunge




Here she is on a workout machine with no problem.



Also another Christian woman makes ski suits with skirts instead of pants.. Her website is: www.modestactivewear.blogspot.com
Here’s a picture..



This is pretty much how I go to the gym & swim.. I wouldn’t have it any other way..

See we don’t have to conform to this world’s way of dress we can do anything in a dress that we do in pants.. I thank God for these women that feel the same way I do & have created fashionable clothes I can wear to make a stand to the world & stay Holy…

To those that are struggling with the COGIC dress I hope you are encouraged by my testimony & I hope you can appreciate the extensive research I’ve done with the help of the Lord. If you would like more information on where you can buy these items please let me know. I’ve created a “Modest is the Hottest” cards with all the websites on it” You can pick them up from me at the end of the seminar.

The only question is do you really want to stand out??
Do you really want to look different than the world.?
Are you truly a peculiar person??
Which way is the right way?