what does a Christian look like?

Donan recently told me about a Bible study that she had where a woman in the study lamented that she didn't "look like a Christian".

Look like a Christian?

This has got me asking myself, what exactly does a Christian look like?

Well, if you watch a lot of TV, I suppose a Christian wears a lot of sweaters. You know, really tasteful ones. Oh, and khakis! I almost forgot the very well ironed khakis.

If you read Relevant magazine Christians dress really, really well. Tight shirts, emo pants, sports coats and trendy plastic rim glasses.

If you went the missions conference that I went to over Christmas break, you could buy all of the clothes that we were selling and look like a mission minded Christian!

If you hang out with me, mostly we wear t-shirts and jeans.

I am not making light of the question... in fact I think that it is a very important question. Is it wrong for Christian to look trendy? Sexy? Grungy? Should Christians spend a lot of money on good haircuts, or should that be spent on more important things?

What about at church?! In God's house should we dress up? Is it more authentic if we are more dingy in the presence of the Lord? Yesterday I wore orange and blue to church, a nod to the Chicago Bears, is this a sign of my idolatry, or a fun little riff that I was planning on wearing for the rest of the day?

This seems like a silly question I realize, but I am not sure that it actually is. I have seen this scene too many times, someone walks into a church and soon realizes they have violated some unspoken dress code. A college girl who is showing a little cleavage is all but ignored by the church, until a timid middle aged woman with a sweater buttoned up to her neck finally greats her. Awkwardness hangs over the conversation like a carport. Or a twenty something couple comes to church with their small child. All of them are dressed in their finest formal garb, unaware that this is a "cool church" where the congregation looks like they are following the Fray on tour.

Maybe Andre was right, "image is everything".

Or maybe not.

Jesus had quite a crew of groupies and I am sure they all dressed according to their roles, just like today. Think that the rich tax collector and the fishermen dressed alike? What about the prostitute and the religious zealot? Paul was one of the most respected religious teachers of his time and in those days the religious leaders tended to wear some pretty nice threads (sound familiar?), but after he gave his life over this subversive movement, he encountered a new church headed up by a fisherman! Quick, picture Billy Graham and you favorite fishing buddy. What do you think their closets look like?

Ultimately, I don't think that our church's are ever supposed to be full of similar looking people. The Kingdom of God is for everyone; cleavage, green hair, flannel, ties, holey jeans and bad perms be damned! When the unspoken rules of our culture start to dictate norms more than the word of God we have a problem. We need Jesus. His group of misfits worked, because He made it work.

What are we willing to lose to make it work?