What is your status symbol?

According to Wikipedia,

a status symbol will differ between countries, based on the states of their economic and technological development, and common status symbols will change over time.

For example, before the invention of the printing press, having a  large collection of books would be considered a status symbol. After the advent of the printing press, having books was more common among the average citizen, and the possession of books was less of a status symbol.

The condition of one’s body can be a status symbol. In times past, when workers did physical labor outdoors under the sun and often had little food, being pale and fat was a status symbol, indicating wealth and prosperity…

Imagine that, all the pale and fat guys sitting around with their trophy wives and piles of cash while the buff and tan guys couldn’t get a date!   

The whole idea of a status symbol is fairly juvenile. I remember crying for hours because my parents couldn’t afford to buy me the “cool” shoes (I was in 2nd grade, I don’t blame them for not spending $75 on shoes that would fit me for 6 months). Looking back, it was a clear indication of low self-esteem. I wasn’t comfortable enough with who I was, so I needed something else (like cool shoes) to get my self worth from.

You know everyone grows older, but “growing up” is optional. To me “Growing up” means not doing childish things like throwing a fit when I couldn’t have the shoes I wanted. There are way too many of us with the same self esteem issues and who behave the same way I did when I couldn’t have what I wanted. The key difference is that there is no one to tell us NO anymore. In fact, just about everyone is telling us YES.

Credit card companies are telling you that you deserve it, advertisers are telling you that you need it, and if you have the wrong friends you feel pressured into getting it to “keep up with the Joneses.” And on top of all that, you WANT it.

This is where growing up comes in. If I behave like I did back in 2nd grade (and many other times) and chase after status symbols - I might be older, but have I really GROWN UP financially?

Dave Ramsey always says that his show is, “where the paid off home mortgage has replaced the BMW as the status symbol of choice.” I get his point and agree that if you are chasing after a status symbol, you would be wise to at least make it one that will be financially beneficial.

However, an even better option is to be completely free from the pursuit of status symbols. We could do ourselves good by looking at life with a long term and “big picture” perspective. In the grand scheme of things, does it really matter?

I have noticed that there are not many seventy or eighty year olds still playing this game (occasionally I see some in their 60s still playing the game). Why not? Could it be that they have finally grown up?

For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.  1 Timothy 6:7