Although the end of the semester is in sight, my life is still a tornado of writing papers, which has unfortunately left me little time for personal/fun writing on here. That said, I thought I would re-post a piece I wrote this time last year. Since I posted this last December, God has continued to teach me about shopping in ways that are both honoring to Him and loving to my neighbor. As you face the crowded malls this season, I hope this will give you the same Jesus-centered perspective that it gave me!

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Over the years I’ve written a lot about the temptation to find comfort and release from shopping. When you’re having a bad day or feeling down on yourself, shopping can be an easy pick-me-up. In fact, it can be just as addictive as a drug. Shopping, clothes and outward appearance can all become idols upon which we depend for security and confidence. These indulgences can also prevent us from being generous with our money–you might want to give some money to that family at church whose house just burned down, unfortunately you just blew a ton of cash at the mall and now you don’t have any to spare.

What makes this idol so difficult for me to fight is that I don’t think about God when I’m at the mall. When I walk into Target my brain immediately becomes absorbed in the plethora of goods before me, and the last thing on my mind is the state of my heart in relation to them. God gets pushed out of the thought process pretty quickly.

In light of this problem, I’ve continued to think about how to submit my spending habits to Christ. Of course one way to do this is to go cold-turkey. Just cut out going to stores altogether. But for me, the problem is not that I spend too much, or even all that often–the problem is my heart behind the spending. While there will be times when I have to buy things, how can I change my perspective on the whole process? How do I shop in a way that is Christian?

There are a number of possibilities, but one solution is to thoughtfully and prayerfully consider where your money is going when you spend it. What sorts of practices are you supporting? Is your money going to organizations that oppress their workers and the environment? If these questions matter at all to you, then it’s going to affect the way you shop.

As Ike and I have wrestled with these questions and the degree of our responsibility toward them, we’ve been considering buying more products that come from Fair Trade. You might have heard this term before but in case you’re unclear about what exactly it means, it is a system of trade that ensures the makers of a product are treated fairly, that they are paid adequately for their labor (rather than being exploited), that their working conditions are humane, that the rights of children are protected, and that the environment is well-stewarded. Put in Christian terms, Fair Trade is an extension of our call to respect the image of God in every human being and treat each person with dignity, protecting the weak from forces that might abuse and marginalize them. It is also an extension of our call to exercise good dominion over the earth.

Now before you accuse me of being a bleeding-heart tree hugger and immediately tune out, it’s important to remember that we live in a time unlike any other in history. Within the last century we have been completely disconnected from the makers of the products we buy. We don’t know who made our shirts or who grew our corn. Because of this disconnect, it’s easy to turn a blind eye to any injustices in the workplace, assuming that if we don’t know about it, our hands are clean.

I don’t think God will be so nonchalant. Consider these verses in Scripture about God’s views on trading fairly:

Proverbs 11:1–The LORD abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are his delight.

Proverbs 16:11–Honest scales and balances are from the LORD; all the weights in the bag are of his making.

Proverbs 20:10–Differing weights and differing measures— the LORD detests them both.

Proverbs 20:23–The LORD detests differing weights, and dishonest scales do not please him.

In case you’re wondering why God is so preoccupied with weights and scales, they were an ancient means for determining the value of a product. The scales were meant to provide a uniform standard of value so that sellers would be paid fairly for their products, and buyers could trust they weren’t paying too much. However, a dishonest trader might fix the scale to his advantage, which is essentially stealing.

Notice how strong the language is in those verses. God isn’t simply displeased by economic injustice; He abhors it. From these verses we are reminded that God cares deeply about the way we shop. He cares about both the sellers and the buyers. He wants us to buy and sell in ways that reflect his character and treat others fairly. And that is the heart of Fair Trade. In a world that will pay Indian factory workers pennies for their labor, simply because we can, God has an opinion. And it is not a favorable one.

As Christians we need to consider where our money is going and whether it reflects the character of God. This reality adds a new dimension to how I think about shopping, and it challenges me to step outside that temptation and examine its larger implications. It’s not just about personal idolatry–it’s also about my responsibility toward other human beings and the world.

One family at our church tries to buy all their Christmas presents from Fair Trade sellers, and we’re thinking about trying that out ourselves this year! As I try to submit this area of my life to God, the values behind Fair Trade certainly give me some positive ways to fight the idol of shopping and conform my heart to Christ’s. I still have a lot to learn about Fair Trade (and I’m sure some of you reading this know a lot more than I do!) but Fair Trade certainly gives me some food for thought. It challenges me to be a good steward of my money, not only in what I buy and how much I spend, but where my money is going.

*In case you’re interested in your Fair Trade shopping options, just Google it. You’ll find lots of local retail stores, as well as on-line makers of clothing, accessories, home decor, etc.

Have you ever looked back on the past year and noticed a few major themes or lessons that God was teaching you? This year, one of those themes has been stewardship. In particular, I have been challenged with how I spend the “other 90%”–that is, the money that I don’t tithe or give to charity. That money belongs to God too, and I have felt increasingly burdened by how I am spending it.

As we learn more and more about where our products come from–ie. how a company treats its employees, animals, or the environment–the above issue is one I find increasingly difficult to ignore. On the one hand, we are so disconnected from the production process that it’s easy to turn a blind eye, but the reality is that the dollars we spend can perpetuate injustices all over the world. As a Christian, that matters to me.

But there is a theological component in play as well. In particular, there is a striking parallel between buying things cheaply and the Christian response to God’s grace. I know that sounds like a weird comparison, but just hang with me a second!

Consider, for a moment, stores that sell products at bottom rung prices. When I buy those products I think I’m getting a good deal. Why buy organic food or fair trade clothes when I can get cheaper versions at a big chain grocery store or mega-mart?

Here’s the problem: That product is probably cheap for me because somebody already paid the price. The cute blouse I bought at a bargain price may have been produced in a factory in a China where employees work 15 hours a day for about $12 a week. I didn’t have to pay much because a factory worker already did. She worked long hours for low wages so that I could get a good deal.

A price tag is not always indicative of worth. Many times, a good deal is only good for me. And that is where I notice a troubling parallel with the Christian life.

In his book The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously decried the Christian notion of “cheap grace,” the idea that saving grace can be had without a cost. Because grace is free for Christ’s followers, many Christians live as if the price tag is indicative of its worth. Salvation came cheaply to us, so we treat it cheaply. We take advantage of God’s grace by trodding over the cross and making off with the goods. As Bonhoeffer summarized, “Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”

Yet the grace we have in Christ is not cheap at all. It is an immeasurably valuable grace that cost Jesus his life. Even though the gift is free to us, it is perhaps the most costly gift ever to have been bought in all eternity.

So what does all of this have to do with bargain shopping? Several things. First, it is important to note the haunting parallel between Bonhoeffer’s description of cheap grace and our modern shopping practices. In both scenarios, someone else had to make a tremendous sacrifice so that the gift would be “affordable” for us. And in both scenarios, we are prone to assess the value of the gift solely by the price tag, not its actual worth.

Second, this parallel brings a whole new meaning to Jesus’ words, “Whatever you did for one the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” (Matt. 25:40) In a very broken way, many of the people who make our clothes are modeling the grace relationship we have in Christ. These poor and marginalized individuals are bearing the cost that should have been borne by us.

Third, this economic dynamic challenges Christians to question the entire order of our relationship to the poor. Are they to be making sacrifices for us, or are we to be making sacrifices for them? As a student who doesn’t have much money, that is a particularly difficult question. My husband and I don’t have a lot of extra money to buy fair trade goods, which means we have to cut corners elsewhere and make some sacrifices. But isn’t that what it means to be a Christian? Am I not called to model Christ’s sacrifice in this world, and thereby point back to the perfect sacrifice we have in Him? (Heb. 13:16)

Lastly, I want to shop in a way that is theologically consistent with the faith I profess. I shouldn’t cheapen the sacrifice of the poor anymore than I cheapen the sacrifice of Christ. In fact, Bonhoeffer might argue that when we cheapen the sacrifice of the poor we also cheapen the sacrifice of Christ. Cheap grace, after all, manifests itself in a life without change As Bonhoeffer put it:

Cheap grace “amounts to the justification of sin without the justification of the repentant sinner who departs from sin and from whom sin departs…Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession.”

When we take advantage of the poor we take advantage of God’s grace (Proverbs 14:31). So while I don’t pretend to be perfect in this area–it is an issue I am trying to think about more and more, step by step–I cannot ignore this injustice in good conscience. I hope you won’t either. While it is easy to think that stewardship is about bargain shopping, I am learning that it can sometimes be just the opposite. Stewardship is not about saving a buck, but using that buck to honor God and His creation.

A couple months ago Ike and I realized that we’re probably going to be in the Chicago area for awhile, so we began to pray about buying our first house. Since then, we have visited a lot of condos and townhouses, run the numbers and talked through what we can/should buy.

The whole process has been an eye-opening experience for me. Before this journey began, when I looked at houses I would see  them in terms of personal preference; now I just see dollar signs. And in some ways that change of perspective is symbolic of the temptations this process holds. Houses easily become status symbols since other home-buyers have a fairly good idea of what you spent. And while I never thought I would be affected by that dynamic, I have noticed a subtle pressure to stretch our money as far as it can possibly go.

As I have examined my heart in all of this, I have noticed some old idols from the past that I thought I’d left behind. In particular, it’s striking to me how similar home-buying is to dating. Inherent in both is the temptation to get carried away by my imagination about the future. And as a result of this day-dreaming and planning, my heart slowly wraps itself around those future plans and begins to depend on them for joy and satisfaction. In the past, I drew confidence and security from my relationship status and the future I thought it would provide me. Today, I am tempted to draw similar confidence and security from owning a beautiful home, especially one that others would envy.

It’s kind of funny to me that these two completely separate pursuits are fraught with the same temptations. But it should not be surprising. That is the nature of any “pursuit” that requires such time and personal investment. When you pour yourself, your future and your schedule into any one person or activity, it’s easy to lose your point of reference. The thing you would “like” morphs into something you “need” and then something you “can’t live without.” And when this happens, your initially well-intentioned pursuit succumbs to blatant idolatry.

So whether you are currently in the process of dating, buying a home, designing the perfect nursery or picking a school for your kids, be aware of the pitfalls inherent in these pursuits. As John Calvin once said, our hearts are like “idol factories” that constantly search after something other than God for security, confidence, peace and joy. So check your heart and be honest about your motives. What is driving you? What is your source of refuge and hope? Is there any part of your pursuit that is driven by a desire to make others jealous? Are you spending your time and money in a way that still enables you to be generous to God and others? And most importantly, if you fail to obtain the object of your pursuit, is Christ still enough for you? I’ve had to continually ask myself those questions throughout this process, and I suspect I will continue to the rest of my life.

Several years ago my dad, who has extensive professional experience working with and researching on the stock market, told me the weirdest thing:

Studies have shown that modesty is cyclical in direct correlation to the economy. When the economy is doing well, the modesty of women’s fashion declines. When the economy is doing poorly, modesty arises.

For the longest time I was completely mystified by this. What on earth would the economy have to do with women’s fashion?

Now that our country is facing harder economic times, I’m beginning to understand the dynamics behind such a phenomenon. As more and more people lose their jobs and our financial outlook becomes more uncertain, people are exercising a lot more self-control than they used to. We’re starting to watch where our money goes, we’re cutting back on expenses, and we’re only spending what we make, not more.

By necessity, we are reacquiring the virtues of discipline and self-control. And when these virtues become a part of your mindset, they affect more than just your money–they affect every part of your life and the way you make decisions, including the clothing you wear.

That said, the story of the recession and its correlation to modesty is less about the economy and more about our character. The way we spend our money and the way we dress are both rooted in the same place: our hearts.

Just think about it–one of the main reasons we are in a recession is due to a loss of self-control. A large percentage of Americans began spending more money than they were making, so we created an economy founded on credit and debt. Everything that we had–our possessions and our lavish lifestyles–it was all an illusion. Much of it had been acquired with money that we didn’t actually have.

To treat money that way is to be careless and reckless, but that recklessness was not limited to our finances. We’ve seen it in women’s modesty, and we’ve seen it in our country’s sexuality. Our nation has become defined by a total lack of discipline or temperance.

That is a spiritual problem, not a financial one.

Fortunately, this state of affairs may begin to change in light of our economy. Americans will be forced to think about self-control for the first time in a long while, and hopefully our country will benefit as a result. But what’s disappointing is that it took a recession to get us there. Rather than leading by example, many Christians bought into the extravagance just like every other American. Many of us have been living outside of our means, racking up our credit card bills and accumulating a lot of debt.

Until now we weren’t held accountable for such recklessness, but God uses times like these as a bullhorn into our hearts and minds: God cares about what you do with your money! Not because He’s some scrooge in the sky who doesn’t want you to have any fun, but because what you do with your money is a great indicator of the spiritual state of your heart.

If you are wise with your money and exercise discernment in its use, then you probably exercise discernment in how you spend your time, what movies you see and what internet sites you visit. If you practice self-control with your spending, then you’re probably exercising self-control in your physical relationship your boyfriend, or with your kids when you get angry. If you are generous with your money, then you’re probably generous in patience with your co-workers or your spouse.

Responsible money management is not itself the end. How we spend our money merely highlights our character. It’s only a symptom of one’s heart toward God and others.

So I encourage you to examine your spending habits over the last few years, and then examine how they have changed since the recession. If there is a significant difference, then you need to ask yourself why. The way we treat money should be the same regardless of the economy because it all belongs to God. Just because the economy is doing well does not make it somehow less God’s and more ours to spend extravagantly. We will learn this lesson in the coming years, but the real test is whether or not we remember it.

A recession will force our hand, but what we really need is a change of heart.