The Hidden Price Tag

Imagine for a second that you have a lasso--you know, the kind that ranchers use with cattle. But instead of roping cattle, you use your lasso to claim your possessions. Anytime you make a purchase, you wrap the noose-like end of your lasso around the product that you are purchasing. This action signifies your claim on that product. Successfully roping--or purchasing--a product allows you to call it yours. It now belongs to you. And this applies to every purchase you've made and everything you own--the car you drive, the clothes you wear, the gadgets you use, the house you live in, and all the stuff that fills that house. You often feel good when you rope something new. And you can almost always point to the benefits associated with whatever you recently roped. But over time you realize you are holding onto a lot of lassos. You've roped a lot stuff. And in some strange way, it is not just that you have roped it, but that it has roped you. The fact that you are holding onto the rope means that you can be pulled.

This pull is the hidden price tag. Anytime something you own demands your attention, you experience the hidden price tag. So, for example, you buy a new car for a great deal. And it was a total steal. You undeniably got it for a great price. That's great. But see, the hidden price tag is the time and money and energy you will inevitably invest getting it serviced and keeping it clean (not to mention any repairs that come your way). That car has a hidden price tag. And so does everything else you own. Everything you own can pull on you by demanding your time and attention.

All of this goes to show that how we relate to our stuff is vitally important as followers of Jesus. Jesus once said that you cannot serve both God and Money (Luke 16:13). Many people tend to interpret this verse as a command--that is, you are not allowed to serve both God and Money. But the word "cannot" that is used here (dunami) has to do with ability--that is, you will not be able to serve both God and Money. What Jesus is saying is that if possessions are constantly pulling on you--demanding your time and attention and energy--you won't be able to focus on God. Energy that should be going to God will instead go toward the pull of things. So, it is not that you can't own things or rope new things as a follower of Jesus. It is how you hold the rope in your hands that truly matters. If you hold onto the rope tightly, things will inevitably have a strong pull on you. Your time and attention will go toward managing the pull of your stuff. But if you don't grip the rope much at all, you won't experience much pull. You will only feel a little friction as the rope leaves your hand and you recognize that whatever you had claimed never really belonged to you in the first place.

I think we need to be aware of hidden price tags.

It is worth taking inventory of our lives to see what has a pull on us.