Piper and Purses

"The issue is not how much a person makes. Big industry and big salaries are a fact of our time, and they are not necessarily evil. The evil is being deceived into thinking a six-digit salary must be accompanied by a six-digit lifestyle. God has made us to be conduits of His grace. The danger is in thinking the conduit should be lined with gold. It shouldn't. Copper will do."

-John Piper, Desiring God

You know the scariest thing about this bag? I thought it was cute.

When I looked at this photograph by itself, extracted from its original source, I found myself attracted to this purse. It looks like a well-crafted bag that I could get years of use out of, and I really, really enjoy pink. And if I knew nothing else about it, I might volunteer to pay $20-$30 for this purse. Mind you, my most recent purse purchase totaled $3.18 at Goodwill, so this offer is amazingly generous.

But not generous enough.

Apparently a large leather satchel like this from Fendi costs nearly $3,000. Note that I said "costs" and not "is worth." I think that in the case of designer handbags - and similar automobiles, clothing and home furnishings - we can all generally agree that they aren't truly "worth" what people pay for them. Check out this in-season Fendi bag. If I found this particular Fendi at Goodwill, I don't think I would even be impressed enough to drop $3 on it. In all reality, it's a big black purse, and hardly interesting enough to warrant a kid's meal's worth of economic setback - let alone nearly four of my mortgage payments.

I really love the above quote from Desiring God by John Piper because it is such a good illustration of what I think God's desire is for our outlook on money. I am disheartened by the church at large when I see a Mercedes in a church parking lot, because it demonstrates two sad but important truths: that God is tugging at the hearts of people with amazing capacity to pour blessings onto others, and that we are failing to listen. 

A rich man asked Jesus how to enter heaven. Jesus' response? Sell your possessions, give to the poor, and follow Me.

Like I said, the scariest aspect of the handbag above is that I found myself wanting it without the price tag attached. And part of my own current frugality and Goodwill obsession stems out of necessity. But I pray desperately that my outlook will not shift with increased income, and that the body of Christ would stop pretending God is directly blessing us with $3,000 handbags and $1,000,000 homes. He blesses us with means, but He has wildly radical instructions on what to do with them. 

As much as anyone else, I understand the struggle of adhering to such a radical philosophy perfectly. But I think we should die trying.