Crazy Money Day! Luxury Handbag

It’s Crazy Money Day!

We can rationalize the purchase of any luxury, and you won’t believe this one. A Hermès Birkin handbag sold at auction in 2023 for just over $280,000. Coveted by collectors, the Birkin 20 Faubourg Snow was first released in 2021 and is unique in that it has a Matte Alligator Body. The other Birkin 20s only have Matte Alligator flaps. In 2022, Sotheby’s sold a diamond Himalaya Birkin 30 for over $450,000. It had 18-karat white gold hardware and featured more than 200 diamonds for a total of 8.2 carats. That’s crazy!

Now I doubt any of us are disappointed that we missed out on this purchase, but too often our purchases reflect a desire to be identified by what we own. CS Lewis said it this way, “Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man…It’s the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition is gone, then pride is gone.”

Jesus told a parable about a foolish farmer. He wanted to build a bigger barn so he could store up for the future, and “eat, drink and be merry.” God said he was a fool – rich in his own eyes, but not rich towards God. As Christians, it’s foolish to envy the rich, or to covet what they have. We should guard our hearts from falling into the trap of comparison, coveting, and self-indulgence.

And if the purchase of luxury goods has led you into credit card debt, Christian Credit Counselors wants to help. They’ll create a debt management plan just for you. For more information visit online at crown.org/ccc.