Enough Is Enough!

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. (Philippians 2:1-4 ESV). First I want to say this devotional is not a condemnation of shopping, not on Black Friday or any other day. It is a thought about the importance of celebrating God’s great love for us. So, let’s dive in. As I mentioned earlier, Mary and I had a wonderful Thanksgiving, though it did not go exactly as planned. We intended to go to Cracker Barrel for a “traditional” meal. I had no idea the crowds would be so great at 1:30 pm for lunch. We waited for an hour to be seated, no problem; I inquired how much longer it might be and was told another hour; now I have a problem. Our movie reservations were for 3:15 pm. We canceled the request for a table and went to the theater to have a “traditional” hamburger with a movie! I hope you are reading this with a chuckle. It is meant to be humorous, not a complaint. It was a wonderful day. Mary and I enjoyed the time to spend in an unusual way (at least unusual for us).

After the movie we needed to pick up a box of crackers for the cheese tray I was making for the evening of games and family time with Kyle and his family. Target was on our way home. Surely we can just buzz in and get a box of crackers quickly. It is just Thursday. Well, that turned out to be a 45 minute excursion with people everywhere. Evidently Target started their sales early. You know we now have Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday, and I don’t know what else has been dedicated as a day of spending. Just hope we don’t have a “Bankrupt Day” coming up. I hope you had a wonderful week. We certainly did. I do hope that it was a week of family, friends, and rest, wherever you found yourself that day. However, let me deal with a principle for your consideration. Do you know that some claim the name “Black Friday” came when the Philadelphia police labeled it in 1966 as it brought "massive traffic jams and over-crowded sidewalks as the downtown stores are mobbed from opening to closing." The statistics are daunting. Since 2010, in the United States alone Black Friday violence has resulted in 10 deaths and 111 injuries. The worst Black Friday occurred in 2008 when a man was trampled to death. Despite being 6'5" and 270 pounds, an employee died of asphyxiation when crowds stampeded into the store. At least 2,000 people broke down the doors, trapping the worker in a vestibule where he suffocated. Eleven other shoppers were also injured, including a pregnant woman. A riot on Friday after giving thanks to God on Thursday? A frantic day of buying stuff because it's a bargain, and elbowing everybody else out of the way? People pushing people to gain a advantage to buy a gift for someone who might not need it, and which will perhaps be obsolete, or lost, or stolen within a few short years? Haven’t we reached a place of enough is enough? Do give, and give cheerfully. But, buy your gifts thoughtfully in order to express your love for others. Buy your gifts with an understanding of the greatest of gifts. God gave us His Son. Give out of that foundation.