"The mother has no time to study the principles of physical development, that she may know how to care for the health of her children. She has no time for ministering to their mental or spiritual needs, no time to sympathize with them in their little disappointments and trials, or to share in their interests and pursuits. MH 291.1 Almost as soon as they come into the world the children are subjected to fashion's influence. They hear more of dress than of their Saviour. They see their mothers consulting the fashion plates more earnestly than the Bible. The display of dress is treated as of greater importance than the development of character. Parents and children are robbed of that which is best and sweetest and truest in life. For fashion's sake they are cheated out of a preparation for the life to come. MH 291.2"
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."
The EGW passage emphasizes prioritizing worldly concerns (fashion) over spiritual development, which directly contrasts with Matthew 6:33's call to prioritize the kingdom of God. The connection is strong and relevant.
"It was the adversary of all good who instigated the invention of the ever-changing fashions. He desires nothing so much as to bring grief and dishonor to God by working the misery and ruin of human beings. One of the means by which he most effectually accomplishes this is the devices of fashion that weaken the body as well as enfeeble the mind and belittle the soul. MH 291.3"
"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."
The EGW passage directly attributes the negative influence of fashion to the 'adversary of all good,' aligning with John 10:10's description of the thief's destructive intentions. The contrast between the adversary's aim and God's provision of abundant life is clear.
"Women are subject to serious maladies, and their sufferings are greatly increased by their manner of dress. Instead of preserving their health for the trying emergencies that are sure to come, they by their wrong habits too often sacrifice not only health but life, and leave to their children a legacy of woe in a ruined constitution, perverted habits, and false ideas of life. MH 291.4"
"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s."
The EGW passage discusses the importance of caring for one's health and body, which aligns with the principle in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and should be used to glorify God. The connection is direct and meaningful.
"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."
The EGW passage describes the negative consequences of unhealthy habits and wrong ideas, which echoes the principle of sowing and reaping in Galatians 6:7. The connection is a clear parallel between actions and their resulting outcomes.
"One of fashion's wasteful and mischievous devices is the skirt that sweeps the ground. Uncleanly, uncomfortable, inconvenient, unhealthful—all this and more is true of the trailing skirt. It is extravagant, both because of the superfluous material required and because of the needless wear on account of its length. And whoever has seen a woman in a trailing skirt, with hands filled with parcels, attempt to go up or down stairs, to enter a streetcar, to walk through a crowd, to walk in the rain or on a muddy road, needs no other proof of its inconvenience and discomfort. MH 291.5"
"All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any."
The EGW passage illustrates the principle of expediency found in 1 Corinthians 6:12. While wearing a trailing skirt might be 'lawful' in a general sense, it is not 'expedient' because it is uncleanly, inconvenient, and unhealthful.
"In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;"
The passage discusses the extravagance and impracticality of certain fashions, which aligns with the biblical principle of modest apparel and avoiding excessive adornment.