The Have Mores

It happened very quickly. An email avert caught my eye. "Ooooo, that's nice, the deal of the day is an Italian meal for two for just $19.95.... 50 minutes away..." 


Ok, thats not much of a deal, but it reminded me to check another deal website for their daily deal, then another... suddenly I am very seriously about to buy a coffee machine identical to the one we own and rarely use, and several packets of 1000 thread count sheet sets... 


I don't need those things!  


Thankfully I stopped myself in time - before I laid a round of mysterious charges on the credit card we are trying so hard to get rid of. 


It's the Have Mores. I go to a shop, and everything in that shop, from the colour on the walls, to the sounds and smells, and the placement of products, is designed to make me think I need to Have More. I see something I've never thought of buying and start to think... hmmm... I think I need that. 


Our minister at church on Sunday used the example of catalogues in the mail. You start flipping for deals on your every day items, and end up buying something you never actually wanted in the first place! 


The really is that most of us don't need to Have More. Most of us have More Than Enough as it is. Ever tried to move house? Chances are you will unearth things you really don't know what to do with. 


So what can we do to be people who think about what we buy, and not let what we see become what we 'need'?

• Junk Mail Sticker on the letterbox. Now that I never get catalogues, I never miss them, and I don't find myself planning a list of cheap but actually unsuitable gifts for people who I ordinarily wouldn't buy gifts for anyway.  
• Don't go to the shops unless you need something specific. I do not really enjoy shopping, but I don't go to the shopping centre unless I need something and I know just where to buy it. I park at the end of the shops closest to the shop that sells what I want then make it my personal mission to get in and out as quickly as possible. If I'm meeting friends for a coffee, I try to go to a place that is roadside, not a coffee shop inside a shopping centre. It limits the exposure... 
• Do plan. Plan out what you need, write a list, use an iphone app, whatever makes your day easier. 

Being a good steward of what God has graced you with involves paying attention to what you buy, evaluating its usefulness and making a better decision next time. 


So, we need to remember to ask ourselves; Do we really need to Have More, or do we already have More Than Enough? 


More info: http://www.storyofstuff.com/