Set Me Free: Devotions From Time of Grace MinistrySample

SET ME FREE FROM COMPULSIONS: SPENDING

Are you a skinflint or a spender? Some of you pinch your pennies hard enough to make Lincoln cry. Like Ebenezer Scrooge, you would rather shiver in a cold office than "splurge" on more coal. But others, probably many more, absolutely love spending. They live the phrase: "When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping." What is it about spending money that is so addictive?

Well, it's fun to be waited on, isn't it? It's fun to be pampered, to spoil yourself, to indulge. Having stuff is good. Having more is better. We imagine that we will impress other people with our new clothes or toys. Jesus warned that loving spending would lead to loving money, a deadly form of idolatry. He said, "Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions" (Luke 12:15).

How can you tell if you are a problem spender? (1) Do you get into family fights over spending? (2) Do you charge more purchases than you can pay off each month? (3) Do your impulse purchases mean that you have no money left for more important things like education or your offerings to the Lord? (4) Are you under water in consumer debt?

How can you be set free from addictive spending? Make spending decisions jointly with your family--a fiscal buddy system. Pray to the Spirit to help you grow in the grace of contentment. Remember that your money really belongs to the King and that you are merely a manager in his company.