Looking the Part . . . how you dress affects your credibility.

Q. "My people complain that I don’t “look” like a pastor. Ok, so I’m not a fashion bug, and I am not into dressing up all that much. I like the casual look. I don’t even want to wear a suit in the pulpit, but they seem to want that. I mean, what’s a pastor look like? What can I tell them to get them to look at my heart. Man looks at the outward appearance, God looks at the heart.” Not only that, I drive an older car, one that a relative gave me. It’s free, it gets good gas mileage, and I am not into material things. But they say it does not look “pastoral.” "

A. Hey, you sound like ME several years ago, as a long haired, sloppy biker type who got criticized constantly for looking more like a thug than like a preacher! I had to learn the hard way!!! 

I can tell you, though, as a pastor, you need to dress like a pastor. You need to look the part. Mowing the grass, look like a pastor mowing the grass. Going to the store, look like a pastor going to the store.  

In church, you need to be obvious as the Pastor, so anyone can come in and spot you as a leader, as the leader. Set the example. Anything you do, you're teaching your people to do the very same thing.  

Never dress as badly as you think will be tolerated. Only a failure does that. Dress as well as you can, and a little more prosperously than your people. Just a little, you don’t want them thinking of you as vain or pimpish! 

How you dress IS important. Why do you think UPS, FedEx, the electric company, the gas company, the oil company, very law enforcement agency and millions of businesses invest in uniforms for their people? So they calm peoples’ fears, so they look competent and professional, like they know what they are doing. 

Also, in our American society what you drive is very important. You say you’re not materialistic, and I believe you. You don’t really care about clothes and cars. But you obviously are called by the Lord to care about people, and peoples’ souls. We want to remove every hindrance and every stumbling block possible when dealing with people. If all it takes is getting a Maaco paint job on the car, or spending a couple of thousand dollars to replace it, with something that they feel is befitting for their pastor, I would encourage you to get off the money and get into the ministry. You can't be a leader and be driving a dirty, dull and dented up junker. No leader does that. Get as nice of a car as you can afford and as new of a car as you can afford, keeping in mind that as a leader, people will be riding with you. So, keep it clean and polished and clean inside as well. No leader drives a dumpster that people who are dressed nice won't ride in because it'll mess up their clothes. Don’t eat in your car, as a rule. If you do, put the trash in its own bag, and dispose of it immediately! Keep the outside clean and shiny. If you lose a wheel cover, by all means do NOT take off the other three and throw them in the trunk!!!! Go buy a replacement ASAP or go to Wal-Mart or a car store and buy a new set of wheel covers to go all the way around. They are roughly $20 for all four. 

People will tell a lot about you by how your car looks. Would you follow a person who has a car with the paint peeling, smeared up windows, old newspapers and food wrappers in it, and mud all over the carpet? Does this person have it together? You say it doesn’t say anything about a person. Criminal profilers will beg to differ! 

Where you live. Keep your house neat and well maintained. Keep your grass trimmed, your animals under control, and your kids under control. What's this about? Respecting other people. You can't respect others if you don't respect yourself. So, you dress and live in a way that shows you respect yourself. Then it is clear that you can respect others. 

You want your church to grow, but it has to be for the right reasons. Not to validate you as a human being. Not to make your wife and kids impressed. You want it to grow because it glorifies God. You want it to grow because people are lost and need to be saved. All people need to be saved. Jesus died for all so we need to reach out to all. You want your church to grow because a large church can help more people than a small one. 

God's examples in the Bible. Were they poor or were they rich? Money and success are not the same thing. Money can't buy success, but success can bring you money. Money can't buy happiness, but happiness can attract money.  

You need to be what you claim to be, and what God tells you to be, so you can believe well about yourself. Other people are going to believe about you what you believe about you. That's how they decide what they believe about you, by observing what you believe about yourself.  

When you believe in yourself, and what has done in you and what He is GOING to do through you, you can begin to believe in other people. People are wanting someone to believe in them. People are waiting for a true friend, someone who cares about them and believes in them. That's what Jesus was. A friend of people who weren't making it. A friend of sinners. But they didn't KEEP not making it. They turned from their not making it and began going the right direction, because Jesus believed in them and they began to believe in Jesus, and made Him Lord of their lives. 

Friends are important and very necessary. You are your peoples' best friend. You care about them, you pray for them, you believe in them and you love them. Who can reject someone like that?

Copyright Steven L. Davis  www.SteveDavis.org