“The Selling of Cool (Consumerism)”
I’m starting a new series of blogs called, Doing Life God’s Way. I want to address a few cultural issues through the lens of God’s wisdom. This series will measure cultural practices through the filter of God’s way of thinking and His wisdom. The bottom line is for you and me to hunger for God more than we hunger for anything else in this life. Today, we’ll explore how our culture sells “cool.”
SELLING THE COOL
I read where Neurologists scanned the brains of people of faith as they recalled and re-experienced times they felt close to God, either in prayer, worship, or solitude. The area of the brain called the caudate nucleus lit up in all of these people when they felt connected to God. Those same neurologists tested another group, but this time exposed them to material possessions. When they showed images of products that were tied to “cool” brands, the exact same area of the brain lit up. The scientists discovered that people who bought certain items experienced the same sensations as those who had deep spiritual experiences. Marketers know this about people!
That’s why the hunt, the purchase and the possessing of material things can be such a spiritual experience. A marketing group called The Cool Hunter posted this on their website: “
In a society obsessed with the shiny and the new, the Cool Hunter has become the reference point of choice for the latest in what’s hot. Everyone wants to know what's hot, because hot products and ideas sell. Sign up for our free weekly newsletter so you're always in the know, because being in the know makes you so much more interesting.”
TIME magazine made this comment:
“Cool may be our country’s most precious natural resource. An invisible, impalpable substance that can make a particular brand of an otherwise interchangeable product—a sneaker, a pair of jeans, an action movie—fantastically valuable.”
This is what you face every day! It’s one of the reasons why so many followers of Jesus have so much trouble keeping a “first love” for God.
FINDING GOD IN A STARBUCKS WORLD
Nothing against Starbucks—I go there all the time. But the truth is, Starbucks is a world-class standard of consumerism. Did you know that you can go into a Starbucks and order 87,000 combinations of coffee drinks? That’s what they advertise. Just consider the milk options, number of shots, various syrups, and the choice of whip or no-whip. I don’t get it because I have one thing, “A tall dark roast, please.” But marketing is all about selling a product that fulfills an individual’s needs.
Filmmaker Paul Schrader estimated that the average 35-year-old media savvy person today has seen around 35,000 hours of “audio-visual narrative,” including everything from movies and soap operas to cartoons and YouTube clips. Schrader says, “We are inundated by pop-culture narrative. We’re swimming in storylines.” That’s one of the most troubling things about living in a consumer culture—we so easily have our thinking shaped by the selling of cool; we find our value in what we possess, what we own, or what we purchase. But there are consequences to that. Proverbs 29:18 says…
18 When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild.
If your heart isn’t shaped and kept by God’s guidance, our culture will gladly fill the void. Those who have set upon self-centered consumption will likely lose key moral, honorable, decent, and spiritual traits. Things like selfless care for others, compassion, compromise, friendship, responsibility, knowledge of right and wrong. If God isn’t guiding your heart, it will run wild; it will run toward a life driven by self-centered possessing, prosperity and restlessness. It will believe that the most important thing in life is to have your needs and personal desires met. Your heart will believe that you are all on your own, that you need to look out for number one, that other people are a means to your own end; that your “needs” can only be satisfied through self-satisfying consumption. What I’ve noticed is that people have a need to need; a desire to desire. And the selling of cool banks on that.
If I’m not constantly desiring something, I'll start feeling empty, and wanting and unfulfilled and that’s where our consumer culture wants us to live. That’s also why Starbucks has 87,000 combinations to choose from. It’s hard to find God when you think the stuff of this world will satisfy your deepest needs.
EXAMINE YOUR IDOLS
The Book of Proverbs, written by King Solomon is God’s gift of practical truth to us. It possesses so much divine guidance. Under the topic of idols, Proverbs 6:6 says…
“Go to the ant, you sluggard, consider its ways and be wise.”
What does that mean? Here are several principles Solomon gives to help neutralize consumerism:
1. Don’t be intellectually lazy; become more reflective.
He’s telling us to slow down, think about it, step back and ask: “What in the world are they trying to sell me?” Or “What is this website or App really promoting?” Or, “What does that ad want me to do and why?” The challenge for us is to step back and reflect on what the world is telling you before you consume it. What is it they’re selling? Are they selling something that fills a real need or selling a cool life? There's a huge difference.
2. Be open to wise instruction. Proverbs 4:1-4 says…
“Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction; pay attention and gain understanding. 2 I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching. 3 For I too was a son to my father, still tender, and cherished by my mother. 4 Then he taught me, and he said to me, “Take hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands, and you will live.”
The point is this, there are godly people who can give you instruction. There are godly friends, Christian authors, parents, family, people living around you who have learned and live as good stewards of what God has given them. Learn from them because not everybody is into the selling of cool; there are people who are wise and thrifty and balanced. Find them; listen to them.
3. Be willing to be Corrected. This is a little harder. But if you’re open to biblical instruction, you’ll need to be open to biblical correction. It’s one thing to let someone teach you; it’s another thing to be willing to listen to correction. Proverbs 12:1 says: “To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction.” Solomon doesn’t mince his words here—It’s stupid not to accept correction. There are people who can correct us; there is Scripture that can correct us, loving and godly people in the church can correct us with love, truth, wisdom and life experience. The bottom line is this: over-consumption produces selfishness; consumerism produces greed; and we need to wrestle with this issue. The most persuasive cultural message can’t make you do what you don’t want to do.
4. Be open to new knowledge. Solomon writes this in Proverbs 29:18, Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction. What Solomon is saying is that God has given divine guidance on most topics. But the challenge for is to read the Scriptures and open yourself to his voice. The challenge is to know and obey his spiritual laws and principles because when there’s a void of divine guidance from God, when you don’t have his voice in your heart listening to his spiritual laws, you’ll just make up your own. And since you’re not God, you’ll end up making foolish choices, decisions and mistakes that damage your spirit and make life far less meaningful.
GOD SPEAKS INTO YOUR WANTING HEART
Please know that God has a great desire to speak into your wanting heart. He’s the only one who can fill that want. God has supplied us a ready stream of divine guidance in the scriptures that speak clearly to your consuming nature. For instance, Philippians 4:11-13...
11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Basically, Paul is modeling what it looks like to Be Content. He’s saying more stuff will not make life better. He’s talking about both having and not having. A Christ-follower learns how to be content; to accept life for what it is, to not always be looking for the greener pasture, the next best thing, or the bigger and better thing. So, that’s great divine guidance: Be content.
God will put into your heart the desire for what you really need, instead of giving into the selling of cool or spending your time, passion and energy on seeking stuff. God can satisfy your heart like nothing else. He loves without limits, and accepts your without restraint.
NEXT STEP
1. Spend more time each day pursuing God to fill your wanting heart. If you’re still parenting kids, you could commit to train your children not to be persuaded by the selling of cool.
