Keep it to Yourself

Something God has been teaching me lately is to keep my preferences to myself.

I think that sometimes we can feel inadequate or just bad because someone else does something a certain way but we don't feel the need to.

Here is a small example:

99% of the clothes I buy are from a thrift store. If someone comes along and shows me their new Current Elliot jeans they bought brand new for $300, I should not feel bad that I don't buy new jeans no matter how much they cost, and I should not feel better than them for trying to be 'frugal'. The person who bought the jeans should not feel bad that they can spend $300 on jeans and they should not feel better than me for having such nice new clothes.

I was recently told by someone that she could not buy a bag because it cost less than a certain amount of money.

That's fine for her but I can't look at that and think badly of myself just because that's how she runs her life.

Maybe everyone knows this and I'm just coming around.

I'd always felt a need to make bread for my home. Finally I was able to get sourdough starter and I'm satisfied that I'm doing right by my family.

I can't look at someone who does not make their own bread and think poorly of them for it; neither should they look at me and feel bad that they are not inclined to make their own bread.

This goes for everything- new/used clothes, wearing dresses/skirts exclusively or not, making everything from scratch or buying frozen food, eating healthy or unhealthy, buying organic or not caring, exercising or not, home school or public, Starbucks or other coffee shops, the list is endless.

So just a small word of advice here: keep your rules to yourself.

The things you require of yourself and your family, keep them to yourself and your family.

There would be a lot less division, hurt feelings, and disputes in churches if we all learned that we can't apply our personal convictions to everyone else.