How did you get in debt?
1. Why You Shop: Compulsive Behavior
Philippians 4:11-13
For I have learned to be content, whatever the circumstances may be. I know now how to live when things are difficult and I know how to live when things are prosperous. In general and in particular I have learned the secret of eating well or going hungry of facing either plenty of poverty. I am ready for anything through the strength of the One who lives within me.
The difference between impulse shopping and compulsive shopping is frequency. Impulse shopping happens when you find yourself, occasionally, faced with a purchase that's too tough to resist. Compulsive shopping is when you shop more often then you'd like, feeling unable to stop.
It turns out, there are four basic types of compulsive shoppers.
- "Revenge addicts" shop as a way of getting back at another person, typically a spouse, with whom they're unable to communicate in any other way.
- "Existential addicts" shop because the act of finding the right thing at the right price makes them feel important and gives their life meaning.
- "Serial addicts" are people for whom compulsive shopping is just one in a series of compulsive behaviors like eating, drinking or drug abuse.
- The fourth group shops to boost their mood—although in a much larger way than the people in our first group. When a compulsive shopper prepares to buy, her mood rises steadily—her heart quickens, her palms sweat. When she makes her purchase, her mood plateaus, then it quickly falls off. Her good feelings quickly evaporate and remorse or guilt sets in.
Proverbs 25:28
He who has no rule over his own spirit is like a broken down city without a wall.
Every time you approach the register ask yourself:
- Why am I here?
- How do I feel?
- Do I need this?
- What if I wait?
- How will I pay for it?
- Where will I put it?
You may just find you no longer want to buy.
The key to resisting is recognizing your behavior patterns in detail so that you can change them.
Taken from Christian Personal Finance.
