Clothes. Wardrobes. Closets. We all have them. Some are larger than others. In our closets, we have clothes we love and clothes we need. We have clothes we keep from year to year and clothes we buy and never wear. I have a love-hate relationship with clothes – both buying and wearing.

Last week, I shared a scripture from Paul’s letter to the church in Colosse. In our sermon yesterday, the same scripture was used except from The Message version. It spoke to me in a fresh way as I imagined my wardrobe and the items I choose to keep year after year because they are so ME! If they wear out or stain, I replace them with exact replicas. The piece is just that essential. Read through this scripture again with fresh eyes. Imagine stocking your wardrobe with these items. What is missing from your closet? What needs to go to the trash? It’s Monday! Let’s do a little housecleaning!

Don’t lie to one another. You’re done with that old life. It’s like a filthy set of ill-fitting clothes you’ve stripped off and put in the fire. Now you’re dressed in a new wardrobe. Every item of your new way of life is custom-made by the Creator, with his label on it. All the old fashions are now obsolete. Words like Jewish and non-Jewish, religious and irreligious, insider and outsider, uncivilized and uncouth, slave and free, mean nothing. From now on everyone is defined by Christ, everyone is included in Christ. So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.

Colossians 3:9-14

I would love to hear what stands out to you in this passage. I love the imagery of cleaning out my closet. I don’t need some of the things I hang on to. They are out of style and don’t fit. But there is one essential garment I need to put on every day — love!