Ear piercings

[faroukfarouk]

I also had my ears pierced (one time) when I was a teenager. I have so rarely ever worn earrings or any jewellery. When I turned to Christ I prayed on the topic and was answered that wearing ear jewellery does not serve Him. That was my personal experience. My advice is just to always seek the Word and prayer.

Thanks for your clarification. I think you highlight two very good things. 1) Seeking God's will prayerfully from what Scripture directly says. 2) Having a personal conviction about what's best for you which is not necessarily a directly applicable stance to take for other ppl.

God bless you richly.

 

[faroukfarouk]

Dress in a way that is representative of your Christian life in relation to the culture around you.
Your intention dictates whether something is a sin or not: when I had long hair I received compliments about it and it was sometimes a source of vanity for me, so I cut it off. For other Christian women cutting their hair off would feel very sinful. I think it is probably the same thing with earrings and jewellery.

Chosen_and_blessed:

These days not a few Christian men and boys wear earrings also. Probably a similar thing like you said, also, right?

 

[Sarah G van G]

Chosen_and_blessed:

These days not a few Christian men and boys wear earrings also. Probably a similar thing like you said, also, right?

I do not know. It is not my business what men and boys wear or do not wear. This thread seems to interest you much more than it interests me. I am going to unwatch it now because, well, it's just earrings and as Jesus could return at any moment we probably have more important things to think about than earrings.

 

[faroukfarouk]

it's just earrings and as Jesus could return at any moment we probably have more important things to think about than earrings.

Precisely! They're not a problem!

 

[Hannah2000]

When I turned to Christ I prayed on the topic and was answered that wearing ear jewellery does not serve Him.

How do I know what Christ wants me to do? I don't think I "hear" him or anything? I pray for guidance and just to share my feelings but I don't think I get anything in response.

 

[Hannah2000]

It's frustrating that there's no black and white answers. It's easy for someone to say to make a decision based on my own conscience or through prayer but I doubt myself, even my own thoughts. I can't make that decision, I usually stop something that I'm unsure of whether or not it's sinful just to be sure. Yes it's just earrings here, but it's also clothes too and many other things you might think ridiculous.

My friend very thoughtfully bought me birthstone earrings for my birthday in June and I love them and I love her but I also love God and I feel so conflicted a lot of the time that I don't know what to do which is why I end up here.

 

[faroukfarouk]

It's frustrating that there's no black and white answers. It's easy for someone to say to make a decision based on my own conscience or through prayer but I doubt myself, even my own thoughts. I can't make that decision, I usually stop something that I'm unsure of whether or not it's sinful just to be sure. Yes it's just earrings here, but it's also clothes too and many other things you might think ridiculous.

My friend very thoughtfully bought me birthstone earrings for my birthday in June and I love them and I love her but I also love God and I feel so conflicted a lot of the time that I don't know what to do which is why I end up here.

Hannah2000:

Is the Lord Jesus the Son of God? is He the beloved Saviour? To such questions there are indeed clear cut answers from Scripture.

To other questions we must be reconciled to the fact that in so many of life's matters there will not necessarily be a clear cut answer from Scripture, even if we so strongly feel that someone claiming to understand everything about the Bible should just come along and tell us what to do. This is not the way, with so many things.

Maybe a bit of common sense can sometimes help us, though. Without getting into earnest arguments one way or another. For example, if you know that some relative of yours would somehow be so offended by your earrings, then you would always have the choice whether to remove them when visiting that person. (I find this hard to think, but I'll allow for the possibility that you move in circles where such people exist.)

Then, on the other hand, if you know you will see your generous friend - even though you might not think of wearing those earrings every day — you might consider at least on some occasions inserting them when you are with the person.

In these ways you might be showing respect - in both directions.

Let's face it; many Christian young women are facing the choice - not for "spiritual" reasons, but out of simple personal preference - of whether to get a second pair of holes put in. If this is not your personal style, then you yourself don't necessarily need to consider it.

In fact, I would be slightly suspicious of any Christian who claimed definitely to want to tell you that you either definitely must not wear them, or that you definitely must wear them.

Romans 14.5 says — applying to so many situations: "Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind." And remember that whatever you do will not be the norm on such a matter for anyone else.

(Hope this makes a bit of sense.)

 

[Alisa Bea Audiobooks]

How do I know what Christ wants me to do? I don't think I "hear" him or anything? I pray for guidance and just to share my feelings but I don't think I get anything in response.

Hi Hannah,
I can only share my own experience. I feel or know prayers are answered when I ask, and I feel a deep sense of humility overcome me. Or I may feel a deep sense of conviction. Or pain or anger may dissipate, again neutralised by a powerful feeling of humility. I don't hear an audible voice (sometimes I do have words or answers ring through my mind), but I use my own discernment and my knowledge of God's will through scripture to align my feelings during prayer with what God has answered.

For a hypothetical example, let's say I disagree with someone on something, and I feel angered or upset by it, and so I pray. If during or after my prayer I am overcome with a feeling of conviction to forgive them and pray for our future understanding of each other, I know that is an answer from God, and so that is what I do, I also repent for my quick temper, impatience, and iniquity and ask for guidance and wisdom from the LORD. This conviction is aligned with God's will. If during the prayer I still felt angered and convicted to send them an argumentative text, I know that is not aligned with God's will. So I rebuke those feelings and pray for the LORD to hear my prayers of repentance and seeking guidance.

That's just an example but I hope that helped. If direct answers are not in the Word, then ways to find them are.

When I prayed about whether or not wearing earrings was sinful or disobedient, I felt a definite feeling of humility and that they were completely unnecessary, and they do not serve Him. I prayed on this a few times over a week or so to be sure, and I knew that was my answer. That is my personal experience, that is God's will for me. You may receive a different answer.

PM me if you ever want to talk more. Many blessings Hannah.

 

[faroukfarouk]

When I was a teeny bopper my mom of all people took me to a local mall where I had my left ear pierced.

I guess my 2c is that it's basically harmless for a boy/young man, let alone for a girl/young woman also.

 

[faroukfarouk]

so concerned about such a minor thing

Noxot: Yes, you yourself would probably acknowledge that your own prayer and Bible study would hardly be affected by whether you wear earring(s) or not.

I haven't worn earrings for years, actually, but they are rather tenuous to matters of Scripture reading and prayer, I would have thought.

 

[faroukfarouk]

if you can be a good person with them on then where is the sin in wearing earrings?

Noxot: There is even a little of the bondservant imagery in Psalm 40: 'Mine ears hast Thou opened' (Hebrew: digged = 'opened'; i.e., pierced).

It would be hard to dismiss the verbal imagery here.

 

[durangodawood]

...our bodies are temples of the Holy spirit....

Every temple I've ever seen, from any religion, is decorated.

 

[faroukfarouk]

Every temple I've ever seen, from any religion, is decorated.

Earrings are a bit like tattoos; just as years ago ink was very much a male thing (sailors, bikers) but now both genders receive it confidently, so also earrings used to be a lady thing and while men and boys used to do one ear, they generally do both ears now, right?

 

[durangodawood]

Earrings are a bit like tattoos; just as years ago ink was very much a male thing (sailors, bikers) but now both genders receive it confidently, so also earrings used to be a lady thing and while men and boys used to do one ear, they generally do both ears now, right?

These things are always changing.

Used to be long hair was for females only. Looong before that it was for males too. Then it became just for male barbarians and Jesus, if you believe the movies and renaissance artists.

 

[faroukfarouk]

These things are always changing.

Used to be long hair was for females only. Looong before that it was for males too. Then it became just for male barbarians and Jesus, if you believe the movies and renaissance artists.

I'm not enamored of the traditional pictures of the Lord Jesus that you mention, actually.

As far as the custom of studding one's earlobes is concerned, I think it's frankly fine for anyone.

I don't wear earrings any more myself; do you / have you ever?

 

[durangodawood]

I'm not enamored of the traditional pictures of the Lord Jesus that you mention, actually.

As far as the custom of studding one's earlobes is concerned, I think it's frankly fine for anyone.

I don't wear earrings any more myself; do you / have you ever?

No. No piercing nor tatoos on me. I've nothing against them tho.

 

[faroukfarouk]

No. No piercing nor tatoos on me. I've nothing against them tho.

As it happens I randomly came across this description of a character in a novel by Gayle Lynds, 'The Last Spymaster', NY: St Martin's Press, p. 132: "Billy was a nice-looking guy, neat in his sports jacket and pants. Billy had short brown hair trimmed just a little longer than a military cut, like Angelides's gray hair. He also wore a black pearl earring in each ear, but then, he was young, like twenty-two."

This kind of sums it up, really. It's what - so often - young men do.

In the Bible, for both genders, bondservants offered their freedom and who wanted to serve willingly and permanently, got ear piercings; and this is partly seen in the bondservant imagery of Psalm 40, referring forward to the obedience unto death, of the Lord Jesus (Philippians 2, etc.).

 

[faroukfarouk]

Probably more so just being spoiled I'd say.

@CoolDude68:
Your mom probably just assumed you would want to have it done. A widespread assumption for what young men would want, anyway.