There are a few things that you should know about me: I have an unearthly love for apple juice, pink is my favorite color, my cowboy boots are my favorite shoes, I have never had chicken nuggets before, and modesty is so important in my life and something that I believe that our culture is greatly devaluing.

Your body is so incredibly beautiful. Thick, thin, skinny, muscular, curvy, flat, short, tall, these are all glamorous in my eyes. Your body is something to be proud of, to be confident in. Your body is attractive, gorgeous, and wonderfully made. I urge you to have pride and confidence in your appearance, but I want you to realize that your looks aren’t what make you “you.”

Speaking from my own personal experience, the only reason why I would ever dress in super short shorts, severely plunging necklines, and basically no clothing at all was because I was looking for validation. I wanted others to tell me that I looked good, that I looked attractive because deep down I did not think that I was. The compliments and attention that I would receive for dressing indecently were empty, devoid of any truth. Yes it pleased me to have people stare and tell me I looked great, but they were just noticing my body, not who I actually was.

I found that when my self-confidence was at its lowest was when I was my most immodest.

In our day and age it is encouraged to flaunt whatever you’ve got and to leave nothing to the imagination. While I understand that these tactics are used to build up a person’s confidence and self-worth, doesn’t it seem strange that we need to rely on other people’s opinions of our own personal bodies in order to feel good about ourselves?

I am all for confidence. But is confidence earned through flaunting yourself just to seek the approval of other people? I don’t know about you, but I always believed that confidence came from within yourself, not from catcalls and the approving eyes of other people.

The term modesty has developed such a bad reputation in the past few decades. Modesty is associated with being uptight, rigid, boring, reclusive, etc. The fact of the matter is that modesty is such a beautiful thing. It isn’t hiding behind clothes. It isn’t covering yourself up solely to avoid the eyes of others. And it isn’t only for women, either--men need this in their lives as well. Modesty is self-respect. It is understanding that your body is so beautiful that you don’t need other’s approval for it. It is realizing that those catcalls and whistles aren’t saying anything about who you are as a person, but rather who you are as a mere object. It is acknowledging your own personal beauty without having to prove to yourself that you are worth more than those ridiculously short shorts, that hardly-there muscle “tank top,” or that tiny little dress.

You have a personality. You have a character. You are so valuable as a person and you are worth getting to know. I want others to see you for who you really are, not how you dress. I am not asking you to wear floor length skirts and suits all of the time. I am merely asking you to take a look at the ways in your life you could be more modest and confident in yourself. I want you to remember how valuable you are, how important your very being is. You are worth so much more than you think you are.

#ModestIsHottest