How to Keep Your Christmas Spending In Check

Jessi Fearon

7 years ago

Are you keeping your Christmas spending in check?

Did you know that the average American family spends over $900 for Christmas? Now, I don’t know if that freaks you out or makes you mad or upset, but either way that’s a lot of money for the average American family.

Don’t get me wrong, some folks might need a larger budget due to a larger family or large amounts of giving and to be honest, I feel that any amount that a family spends on Christmas is totally okay so long as they planned for it.

But the reality is that most American families DON’T plan for Christmas. They just spend and spend and spend then come January, they find themselves broke and scrambling to pay back all the money they spent for Christmas.

So let me ask you a question – do you have a Christmas budget?

Do you know how much cash you can afford to spend for Christmas this year? Do you know how much money you spent for Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, or Cyber Monday or even how much you gave on Giving Tuesday?

I’m not judging because goodness I can spend some money on Christmas. Seriously, there was one Christmas where I had racked up over $800 on a credit card and I couldn’t even tell you what I bought. And the thing is, I don’t want this for you. I don’t want where you find yourself in January crying over a stack of bills wondering how you’ll pay it all back.

That’s no way to start a New Year and that’s certainly no way to celebrate Christmas by borrowing a ton of money you don’t have.

Because here’s the thing, Christmas is more than just gifts. I know you know that. I know that I don’t have to preach the Gospel and tell you that Christ is the reason for Christmas (it means Christ Mass), but if you aren’t actively seeking Him this season, then what are you seeking?

That Christmas where I spent over $800 buying gifts and whatever the heck else I bought, I wasn’t seeking Jesus. I was seeking the thrill of finding the best deals and giving gifts that would make the recipients go “wow!” or “this is the best gift ever” or even “how did you know”. And this is not the reason for the season.

Yes, giving is definitely a big part of Christmas, but it is not the only thing.

I firmly believe that when we are intentional about life – especially how we’ll celebrate big things like Christmas, I believe life is better lived. So how can we make this Christmas season special on a limited budget?

Click here to read the full post and to join the Debt-Free Christmas Challenge!