Consumerism and Compassion: Can they both exist?

After a recent conversation with a Faith Feeds volunteer about consumerism, compassion and what would really make our economy and life better, it surprised me to read this statistic in an article last month called Starting the ‘Christmas Tithe’.

A recent Harris International and World Vision poll showed that Americans plan to spend more this Christmas season on consumer gifts than they did last year, but give less to charities and ministries that help the poor. Many say they are less likely to give a charitable gift as a holiday present — a drop from 51 percent to 45 percent.

For most, money might not flow as freely as it once did, but what about compassion? How is it doing? Now that I am only doing charitable work, my compassion is well nurtured, but I am much more concerned about the money flow. I often look at it from the perspective of what I do spend money on and is it more important than supporting charitable organizations and helping others in need. Is my doing without really hurting me?

So I like the Christmas Tithe approach. I often find myself saying, if I can spend this much on entertainment, I can give this much to help my church, a non-profit, or an individual in need. Since there is only so much money to go around, I find this keep my frivolous spending under control – do I really need to buy more wine, eat out again, upgrade my smartphone?

The GoodGiving Guide Challenge ends December 31 – how about taking the Christmas Tithe Challenge between Dec 25 and years end? Keep track of all our holiday spending for gifts this year, and then tithe a percentage of that amount to an organization that directly serves the poor. The article states we have the highest number of Americans in poverty since the Great Depression, let’s show what we can do to help our neighbors in need.

Learn about Faith Feeds and consider an end-of-year gift to help feed hungry families with nutritious and healthful fruits and vegetables. Learn more about hunger in KY. Online giving is quick and easy at https://www.goodgivingguide.net/npo/faith-feedsgleanky/

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