Buy Nothing Month

I had mentioned this briefly before that my family, more specifically, my wife and I are going to practice a month of buying only essential items--food, toiletries, petroleum for our oil addiction, etc. The object is to curb our consumption.

Now, I should say that we are probably well below the average American when it comes to consumer spending. But, even so, we could still squirrel away money. Do I really need that book from Amazon? I have a stack of at least eleven that I need to read, not counting the three listed over on the left there.

The idea is to practice restraint and self-discipline (isn't that redundant?) with regard to the wallet. How successful will we be? When exactly are we starting? Questions that will be answered soon, cricket. I did try a spending fast during a Lent two or three years ago; I found my thoughts frequently fixated on things to buy during those 40 days. Maybe it'll be easier with a spouse. Or maybe it'll turn me into a liar--will I be hiding purchases, denying that I made any? I hope I'm made of sterner mettle than that.

Have you tried Buy Nothing Month? Just Google it. (I can't believe I'm using a noun as a verb.) When is "What Would Jesus Buy?" coming to Detroit?

Comments

Anonymous said…

I really like this idea. Jen and I heard a story on NPR a few months back about this family who made a pact with other families to not buy anything new for a whole year.

I tell you, it was very inspriring. It encouraged us to make some significant changes in how we operate, and even challenged Jen and I with our spending.

Our first [baby] step in this direction is to initially only buy things made in the USA - - not as easy as you might think... but my hope is that it will mold us into the direction that your family is now taking.

God's blessing on your family for doing this~

January 8, 2008 at 10:09 PM

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