Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Uh Oh

I think I might be having a moment.  You know, the kind where God lays something on your heart, but not in a huge, lightbulb type way.  Instead, you see little hints and feel little nudges, spread out over the course of several weeks or months.  Earlier in the year, I had a conversation with women who felt convicted to cover their hair.  Their choices of coverings varied (rather dramatically, I would say) and the occasions on which they covered were also very individual (some covered at church only, some covered in all public places, and some covered in public and private).  I found it all quite interesting.  The biblical backup for it found in 1 Corinthians was a revelation as well.  Despite a pretty decent religious upbringing and education, I didn't realize that hair-covering was a New Testament issue.  I know the reasons why most American Christians don't do it (mainly, that it was dealing with cultural issues specific to the Corinthian church), and they might very well be correct.  But the tiny kernel of "well, aren't we supposed to take God's Word on its face whenever possible and go with the simplest explantion" popped into my head then, and it's layed there dormant ever since.  Then, just tonight, out of the blue, the subject came up again.  I just have the feeling that God is drawing me towards trying it out.  I'm a little nervous, truth be told.  It seems so revolutionary!  I don't like to stand out at all.  I very much like to be a "background" type of person.  And this would be such a departure - would force me out of my comfort zone, for sure.  I suppose the answer, for now, is for me to pray on it and keep you posted.  In the meantime, I think I have fallen in love with this website.  Such beautiful, beautiful things.

http://www.garlandsofgrace.com/

Here's my favorite, I think, although it's hard to chose. 

Queen’s Lace

5 comments:

Serena said...

Hmmmm... been thinking on this for several days now. I have opinions, but not convictions. It certainly would not be wrong to cover our heads for worship - if done for pure, Biblical reasons (respect for our husbands, honor to God, obedience to His Word). Unfortunately, I think that many women would benefit more by putting the extra fabric at their neckline or around the hem of their skirts. MODESTY is a much larger issue in my mind. The thought of raising three girls to be pure women of God in our culture is very sobering to me. For myself, the fabric would perhaps be more useful as a gag around my mouth. (In the sense that I often don't use enough discretion in my speech.) I am curious now to do a little more study on the subject of head coverings. Thank you!

The Merry Band of Fife said...

Thanks for your input Serena! You know, I've spent the last two days or so thinking about WHY God might be speaking to me about the issue of headcovering, and two reasons have kind of bubbled to the surface. First of all - because I feel such a special calling towards secularized Americans who already know Jesus' story but have rejected it, I think it could actually be used as a help. Often they accuse Christians of picking and choosing what to follow from the Bible and I think it might help me in my special personal mission to make an effort to follow some of the lesser known New Testament guidelines/rules/suggestions as a model of consistency (with the caveat that I'm far from acheiving true literal consistency) to give my beliefs on the "bigger" and deeper issues more weight with the non-Christian. And also, for me, it would be symbolic. When I was a little girl, they would always lay a hand on the head of all the children during communion and "bless" them. I loved that feeling of a blessing hand laid on me - and perhaps that little physical reminder can serve as a symbol of the same idea (and that would be very personal, not something, obviously, that all women would or should feel).

Serena said...

I like your reasons. (Are you leaning toward an all the time head covering, then?) You are absolutely right about the accusations that unbelievers have against us when we pick and choose which part of the Bible we like to obey. I hit a wall during a conversation with a friend recently on this very matter. Sadly, her accusations were all too true.

Back to the issue of head coverings being a cultural issue or Biblical command - I had to laugh during Dad's sermon tonight when He mentioned the cultural appropriateness of greeting believers with a "holy kiss" (or big fat smooch, as he put it). That's one imperative that I would rather pass on myself.

You know...we really should have these conversations in person sometime. I believe you are a kindred spirit. :)

The Merry Band of Fife said...

It is ironic that we are having this conversation online, when we live in the same city and go to the same church LOL. But, church can actually be a bit hectic with all the lovely people who want a word with you and corralling the children and whatnot. I think at this point, I only feel called to wear it during church/formal prayer. For me, it's an issue of symbolism more than an issue of modesty so I don't feel like it's something I need to do all the time. I bought two as an early birthday gift to myself yesterday. I'm both excited and nervous to get them, because it's going to be wonderful yet strange (and I was telling James just yesterday that I seem to have an egg-shaped head that defies every headband and scarf no matter its design LOL - but here's hoping).

http://www.garlandsofgrace.com/products-page/classic-coverings/cecilys-classic-lace/

http://www.garlandsofgrace.com/products-page/one-of-a-kind/mocha-stretch-lace/

Serena said...

How cool is it that you bought "Cecily's lace"? That website is BEAUTIFUL! I can't wait to see the coverings on. I have the same problem with head shape...headbands drive me nuts. I only wear a bandana when I absolutely have to when we're camping. Dirty hair is worse than discomfort in my opinion.

I listened to an interesting sermon on 1 Cor. 11 by John MacArthur this morning and have a couple more by different teachers all cued up and ready. Good stuff!