Black Friday
"Black Friday" once again turned into "black and blue Friday" as people pushed, punched, and trampled others as the doors at the stores opened early Friday. It makes me want to puke. When are we going to stop this insanity? When is enough enough? And we do all this to honor our Savior's birth into our world. Hmmm. Strange.
I know I've hammered on this theme too many times. I apologize for sounding like Pastor Scrooge (again), but I really feel sorry for those people who got up at 4 am to go shopping Friday morning. And I feel sorry for the majority of Americans who are totally stressed out trying to think up something to buy people who already have way too much stuff.
Oh well...in less than a month it will all be over.
I know I've hammered on this theme too many times. I apologize for sounding like Pastor Scrooge (again), but I really feel sorry for those people who got up at 4 am to go shopping Friday morning. And I feel sorry for the majority of Americans who are totally stressed out trying to think up something to buy people who already have way too much stuff.
Oh well...in less than a month it will all be over.
posted by Pastor Phil Print at 11:54 AM
5 Comments:
Getting up at 4:00am is nothing compared to some. My brother (sigh) got in line at Best Buy at 5:00PM Thursday night with a couple of his friends and camped out. They were 25th in line by being there that early. They did get everything they wanted though, so they thought it was worth it to save thousands of dollars. They figured they were making $100+ an hour in what they were going to save. My mom's afraid he might make this his annual Thanksgiving tradition
Big Chris
Okay. It is my job to enlighten Pastor Phil that shopping is a sport. Yes - the greed, the pushing, the commercialization, mindless consumption, overspending, etc. is very bad behavior. Bad doggie. Bad, bad.
But would it be ridiculous for someone to get up at 5 am to get the only available tee time at a magnificent golf course on the Pacific Ocean?
That's what shopping is to some people. It's enjoyable, plain and simple. I don't like crowds so I don't participate in Thanksgiving Friday, but I do enjoy shopping. I like trolling the clearance racks -I find it incredibly relaxing, even if I don't buy anything. It requires more muscle than watching TV, and is less fattening than chocolate. Unless the chocolate is on clearance.
I'm currently collecting clearance jewelry for a gift package for the Crossroads silent auction. It's going to be a wonderful collection, sparkling and brand new for pennies on the dollar.
(If you need a gift for your lovely wife, I just bought a $55 watch at Kohl's for $5. I'm happy to part with it!)
So I must ask you, Pastor Phil, because I greatly respect and admire you, to soften your stance on shopping. I think I speak for the congregation when I say that we don't want to make you barf.
Thought I better log in and clarify--what makes me puke is the scene of people trampling over others in their quest to "nab the perfect Christams gift". I also get a little "barfy" (new word) when I see our culture adopting the MORE STUFF...GOTTA' HAVE MORE STUFF TO BE HAPPY lie.
I do applaud what Belle and Maddie are up to with their shopping: buying meaningful gifts at the best possible prices.
I'm not anti-shopping or anti-Christmas...I'm just saddened by what happens at this time of the year. We've gone so far overboard and we pay such an extreme price for our throw-caution-to-the-wind consumerism.
Tim Challies, one of the superstars of evangelical bloggers, wrote on this subject yesterday. It is worth the read in my opinion, as is Challies on most every day. He writes on the story from the Pioneer Press of how some people were willing to give up their kids (literally to strangers) for a day to get a Playstation 3 (the offer was a hoax played by 101.3 KDWB here in the Twin Cities).
Big Chris
Maddie, you understand me! Taking advantage of Christmas sales does not make a person a shallow, deplorable Christian who does not understand the significance of the birth of Jesus.
Generosity (not forced, Christmas-giving guilt) is a good thing. (1Ti 6:18, Ps 112:5, Pr 11:25.)
And thank you for linking shopping to good stewardship. I admire your discipline. My daughter needs a laptop for college, but I couldn't bring myself to tackle the Friday sales lines.
I must go now. Anna Nicole Smith is on T.V. and I'm feeling a little barfy.
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