Until recently, extra spending money and shopping for fun were foreign concepts to me. I was always raised to see things like clothes and food from a practical standpoint. It didn’t matter if I wasn’t in style. It was what we had and we learned to be content.
Yet as I have gotten older, married, and established myself here, I have been faced with a new dilemma. What do I do with extra spending money? I became a frequent flier at starbucks, weeded out the clothes I didn’t care for and bought new ones. I actually went to real clothing stores, not thrift stores! I began to slip from my WASTE NOTHING mindset and relax a little.
Don’t misunderstand. This is a blessing! And I don’t think there is anything wrong with treating yourself from time to time but there is a deeper joy and contentment that can be found from not spending money. I was starting to lose that, shifting my priorities when it came to money.
God showed me a better reason to spend my extra spending money.
I decided to give it to Freedom424 and join the Run 4 Their Lives race.
I decided to spend the next two weeks, spending 0 of my budgeted spending money and Sunday, I sat in the back of the church, wearing a sweater I knew was a bit out of style, holding a cup of tea I got for free from church and feeling truly and absolutely happy.
Shopping and buying special treats is only a temporary happiness but when you learn to live simply and with contentment, placing your money in God’s hands, it is a lasting happiness.
