To combat this cycle of overspending, Jen decided that her family would make purchases from 7 vendors/areas that month: Target, the farmer's market, one gas station, an emergency medical fund, etc. They would not eat out at restaurants, go out to the movie theater, or really spend money on anything but the essentials.
To do this for a month could be a good challenge, but to spend money at seven places in one week actually seemed excessive to me. So what would my personal challenge be for Spending Week? I thought about this a lot, even trying to figure out if I could spend only $7 per day ($49 for the week--the answer was no, I couldn't even keep my weekly grocery bill below that amount!)
As our Bible Study reviewed the chapter, however, a plan came into focus. On Day 20 of this chapter, Jen gives three ideas for breaking away from our culture of spending:
1. Nonconsumption. Just say, "I'm not buying that." And even, "Just because I can have it doesn't mean I should." So my first marching orders for the week were to make do with what I have, think very carefully before buying anything, reduce my spending...
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| "No, Benji, we can't buy that stuffed Yoda...we're on a budget here. But you do look really cute together!" |
This one comes fairly naturally to me, as I don't love shopping and spending money. Thriftiness is practically part of my DNA (when I went on road trips as a kid, my parents packed our own bowls, cereal, and milk so we didn't have to eat out for breakfast. This is how we do things.) But Jen's other two ideas were more challenging for me:
2. Redirect that money saved. Don't just stick it all in your own bank account to spend next week; give it away to someone who needs it more. I love saving money so that I can see my net worth growing; this shows thriftiness, but not generosity! And it certainly does not reflect what Jesus would have me do with the money God has given us! Do I think that Christians should never have savings accounts? Absolutely not; God calls us to be good stewards of our money, and part of that is saving for expenses we will need to cover in the future. But I err too much on the side of saving and too little on the side of giving. I like to think that once I've tithed for the month, the rest of the money is "mine"...how foolish! How very much like the camel trying to fit through the eye of a needle...
3. Become wiser consumers. Choose vendors who produce goods without oppressing the poor and destroying the environment. Do some research to find out "if products are made with integrity or on the backs of slaves and children." This is something I've hardly even considered. If I see a shirt on sale for $5 I'm tempted to buy it because, hey, I'm saving money! But there is probably a reason that the shirt is so inexpensive. Could it have something to do with sweat shops? Child labor in southeast Asia? I've never stopped to consider these things...
So, how did the week go? We spent $79.19 between groceries, our produce co-op contribution, and mailing a birthday gift to my nephew. I stayed away from Amazon.com and other potential temptations. On an average week, I would say we spend about $100 on groceries and other purchases (we're not counting rent, utilities, or other spending like that, nor tithing/charitable giving here). So if we spent $80 this week, that's a $20 reduction.
I have not decided yet where to give the money saved, but I plan to! As for becoming a wiser consumer, I've discovered that many of my favorite clothing brands like GAP and Old Navy have been known to produce much of their clothing in sweatshops with dangerous, unethical conditions. I need to learn more about this, but for now, I'm going to try to buy clothing second-hand so at least we are not directly increasing demand or production for this kind of product.
My take-aways from this week are simple, yet convicting:
1. "Just because I can have it doesn't mean I should."
2. Saving money must not just lead to hoarding it for myself, but giving generously to others.
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