Sunday, December 10, 2006

CHRISTMAS VS. MATERIALISM
BY FLIP FLOP FLOOZIE


Yeap, here I am again back upon my "soap box" about Christmas and its materialism!! If you disagree now is the time to go to another blog because I just need to get this out of me today. If I get this written maybe it will help get it out of my brain!! I am for some reason really struggling with this issue this Christmas!! WHY!! ?? I have absolutely NO GOOD HONEST IDEA !! It is just getting to me like a bad sore!! I am just almost to the point of hating to go to the malls and seeing all of the people buying and buying gifts that seem so worthless to me.


Last night at church our pastor, Cam made it perfectly clear to me that we need to be careful about gift buying...planning, figuring out exactly who is in my family, who has blessed me this year and also to include those who are neglected. I do agree with him but I also think that we need to do this within the boundries of our finances also.

I want to make it perfectly clear here to those who think we are not able to purchase gifts here at our home. We can but it seems foolish to me!! People that we know have so much!! Just something small is all people really need. We have bills that keep coming in just like I am sure you do at your home. We have never used CREDIT CARDS and we are never going to START using them for Christmas!! That is just plain foolish!! Like Cam said last night if your gift giving gets in the way of your giving to God then you will be violating God's will. I promise never to do that. His will always comes first. Giving someone the gift that they think they just "cannot do without" and it may end up on the bottom of the closet floor by February seems foolish to me.

Do you get where I am coming from?

Our country has become the country of "AF-FLU-END-ZA".... We are so affluent that we think we need so much to just live one day to the next. We NEED TV's to survive....WE NEED the latest of technology to survive..WE NEED the latest cell phone at 10 years old...WE NEED the latest way to listen to our music...WE NEED the latest of the latest...we really don't you know.

Why do we need this at Christmas? Christmas is the time when Jesus was born. It is HIS BIRTHDAY!! He is the one we should be giving Christmas presents too. He died on the cross for our sins....but He would not have been able to have done that without FIRST being BORN...We celebrate HIS birth!! WHEN do we celebrate it...ON CHRISTMAS!!!

How many times have you been to a birthday party and NOT taken a gift? Hmmm??? Sure we have made Christmas a time to give gifts to others. I am not by any stretch of the imagination a scrooge. Giving has always been a highlight in my life...but OVER GIVING is my point!! PULL BACK and examine your life... As our pastor says...Make the "MAIN THING THE MAIN THING" and then see where everything comes into play!!

I don't forsee this "materialistic madness" coming to an end ever. I forsee it getting worse and worse. I hate this idea!! Maybe this is just because I am getting older....Okay go ahead and chalk it up to that...that is fine. I just think we all have missed out on the whole idea of Christmas. The fun time of giving...the fun time of Christmas carols...of lights...of beautiful trees..slow down and enjoy these times...love your children...give them fun gifts...but not so many...let them have fun and play with just a few and not tons...teach them remember WHO gave them whattheir special gifts instead of having so many that they cannot remember what came from whom!! Memories can be made when things get back to simplier times.

Take care my friends. Christmas is a Happy time. Keep it that way!!!

FLIP FLOP WANTING CHRISTMAS SIMPLE AGAIN!!




13 comments:

Melli said...

I am feeling appropriately chastized this morning... I am guilty, guilty, GUILTY of over spending and over giving! And my daughter just told me last night that she believes I have an "illness"... and she may be right! Today I have to talk to Hubby and see how much of TOO MUCH he wants me to take back! I have gone waaaaaaaaaaay overboard this year! But through it all, I DO remember WHY I'm celebrating! I just love giving too much! *sigh*

Anonymous said...

I'm with you on this one.

I don't think buying presents is the point of xmas, though it's certainly fun.

I have noticed over and over that people spend hours deliberating which present to buy, then the recepient takes one look at it and then frown and set it aside.

What's the point? I think that we should just get together with our family, eat and be merry.

The kids might get something to open, but nothing elaborate.

There's no need to spoil the kids with presents. What kind of children would we be raising if we have to always appease these need for the latest and the bestest and brand-name only please.

One can celebrate without having to buy presents that's out of this world.

Anonymous said...

I'm a Mom with 2 kids, elem. school age, and I am in the middle of my buying presents for Christmas. I pray that I'm wise with the money, and creative with the gift-giving. And what DO my parents need? I hope I'm building memories of a different sort, not materialistic. Like today, my daughter and I are building a gingerbread house, and I hope it's fun enough that we'll do it many times before she leaves the nest.

I happened upon your blog as I was looking for red photo hunt blogs. Check mine out. :-)

lavender said...

FFF would youplease be so kind to comment om my 100th post, if you wish?

Best wishes!

Anonymous said...

Like Melli, I also enjoy giving...but this year, we are trying to focus on those less fortunate than us. I hear you. It's easy to get lost in the holiday hoopla....we watched Jim Carrey's version of The Grinch last night. I love this as it really DOES talk about that spirit of giving and how it is giving of ourselves and not "THINGS" that define the holiday.

May we all be more focused on Jesus this year.

Love,

Susan

Anonymous said...

I couldn't agree with you more!! Great post and i'm so encouraged too! We must remember why we are clebrating and WHO we are celebrating!! Thank you for this post Sandy..Blessings to you

Anonymous said...

Great post! Everything you say is true. And you're right, "Jesus is the reason for the season". Did you see that clip art I had up last week?

Hope you had a great weekend.

Jane said...

You are SO right. Jesus is the reason for the season and somehow that gets lost in all the hub-bub of the holiday.
Thanks for the reminder.

Anonymous said...

Amen Sista! This year we aren't giving much at all. It seems that nowadays people buy what they do NEED and everything else is just stuff. I certainly don't want to be giving stuff.
Make sense?

Anyway, thanks for sharing.

Wystful1 said...

Sandy---AMEN girlfriend!! I swear, I'm with you all the way on this.

If you drop by sometime and read my answers to the meme I did today, you'll see that I totally agree with you.

The simple pleasures of life is a gift in itself. Nothing materialistic at all. And NOT only Christmas, but the whole year!!!!

And the cellphone phenomenon is just out of hand...I see kids in kindergarten around here with cellphones!!!

And as I mentioned in my blog today---why do people overspend!!?!! It just doesn't make sense at all to me. And we have the funds to buy, buy, buy, but it's not the meaning!

Oh, I'm guilty in the idea of having a holiday collection, but it's mainly all gifts 'cause people know I like to collect santas...and it does make the house VERY festive, but again, I would not think of buying something frivilous like a new Santa without donating cash as a token for the things I can have and others can't.

Again, AMEN...I'm right up there on the soap box with you on this!!!!

on the Rock said...

Yes, Jesus is the reason for the season of the gift of salvation!
I can't wait for Christmas to be only about hope, love, peace and joy - and not be bombarded by commercials by companies who don't care about our faith and only care about their profits.
Preach it sister!

Thanks for the visit! I've been struggling with my cold and couldn't think creatively enough for the Saturday photo hunt:( But you can check out my Monday meme!

Blessings!

Unknown said...

Sandy,

I wish I could tell you in person how much I enjoyed your posting today. You are absolutely correct in your evaluation of Christmas gift-giving. I've been saying this exact thing to my family FOR YEARS. I'm not sure, but I think many people have forgotten the meaning of Christmas and moreover, the meaning of GIVING. Over the last ten years I have really cut back on my Christmas spending. Call me Mrs. Scrooge, but I just can't see running out and buying alot of extravagant gifts for people and then worry about how to pay for them in January!

I think we should be good to each other all year long. But I take the simple approach to these things, as I think you do also.

It's so reassuring to know I'm not alone in my resolve to celebrate Christmas in the spirit of what it's really about - serving the Lord and spending quality time with your family and friends.

I agree with Wystful on this one - AMEN, to you!!!

Enjoy your day,
Carol

Anonymous said...

You are getting old and stale!! It happens to all of us.... When it was young, fresh, new... YOU LOVED IT!! Start something new with your christmas giving ideas... Instead of blogging, volunteer at the local Vet hospital, and the wounded from IRAQ... Trust me, you will become christmas giving, material, and loving it quickly... Good luck coming back to us that are old, but think young in California..... Cheers to all.... A vintage man...