Christmas Shopping: Is There Such a Thing as Too Much?

Every Christmas season, American households plan to spend $1,300 shopping for gifts on average. In most cases, spending money, they don’t have to buy roughly $400 worth of presents per child. American culture always seems to find a way to take a nice gesture and grossly blow it out of proportion. Leading me to ask why we feel so pressured to “show” love through materialistic things. Since starting a family three years ago, Abby and I have been charged to ensure our children know about the real reason for the season. Jesus came into this world to save you and me from a debt we could never pay, and He offers a free gift of salvation to all who believe in Him. [Romans 3:23, John 3:16]

Now, that is not to say we can’t have fun family traditions and enjoy this time of year together. Things like sleigh riding, baking cookies, and watching classic Christmas movies (Every year my family binge watches The Santa Clause series). I’m simply trying to convey the point that not everything we do has to have an expensive dollar sign attached to it.

Getting back to the why… Why do we think it’s okay to spend a large amount of money?

How much do you consider is too much?

Do you think it distracts from the true meaning of Christmas?

Growing up, I used to receive A LOT of presents. From family, extended family, etc. The amount where it’s not even possible to truly appreciate them all. As I got older, I started asking the question “Why are we doing what we are doing?”. Abby and I have reduced our overall budget for Christmas presents every year. Not to take the magic out of the season but because we buy what we need/want practically all year long for ourselves. For our children, Abby stumbled upon a really good present buying formula, and I wanted to share what we do. For each of our children, we are buying them something they want, something they need, something to wear, and something to read. That’s it. We’re trying to be intentional about what we’re buying for them. Gifts that they truly have a desire for.

It’s unnecessary to add extra financial stress by buying an excessive amount of gifts. The average American household is in nearly $150,000 worth of total debt. Debt such as a car, credit card, mortgage, student loan, etc. A realistic budget should be attached to all spending, not just around the holidays. It doesn’t take fun out of the season. Rather, it’s the reasonable thing to do. Also, as a side note, ensure you and your spouse are on the same page. If you’re someone who holds out from buying presents throughout the year until Christmas time, things may look different for you. However, at the end of the day, it’s about creating memories with the ones that we love in a responsible manner. Not how many gifts each child receives or how much money was spent.