Don't buy your own rope

I have a confession to make -- I’m a kitchen gadget junkie. I have a very hip coffee grinder. Not long ago I had baking sheets custom made to my specifications. I have an electronic food scale that calculates percentages and measures in tare weight. (Yes, I know how to use it!) The cool kitchen gear? I want it all. And the best place to buy that kind of stuff in my town is Bed Bath & Beyond. They’ve got all the goodies. But before you go rushing out to check out their toasters, let me tell you that this is not an ad for BB&B.

I haven’t been in their store in over a year and plan to go back sometime a week or two after never. I don’t have a problem with customer service. I think their line of products rocks. They are a little pricey, but the quality justifies it. What isn’t justifiable is that a portion of the sweet cash I’ve parted with in their facilities over the years has landed right in the pockets of people like Barry Obama and Hilary Clinton. It breaks my heart, I tell you, to not shop there any more, but it breaks it more to know that I’ve financed the rope that’s hanging us. Now I get my gadget fix at a local restaurant supply house.

Here’s another heartbreaker: Starbucks contributed enormously to liberal politicians, including a hefty contribution to BHO. I love my occasional latte, but I love my liberty more. Now I get my caffeine fix from a little kiosk store about three blocks from my house. It is independently owned and operated by a solid Christian family. When I plunk down cash for coffee with them, I know a chunk of that money is going onward to support God’s work and, just as important, that none of it is landing in any pocket belonging to an enemy of liberty. Plus, they always say, "have a blessed day," when they give me my change. I really like that.

Have you considered what happens to your money after it leaves your pocket? I doubt that you would hand a $10 bill to a drunk panhandling on a corner. If you’re anything like me, you would be concerned about the misuse of that money after you left the scene. The same responsibilities apply to all your spending. Have you considered that when you buy your kid a Star Wars action figure, a percentage of that purchase goes to Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, who in turn hand it over to the very enemies of America you oppose?

Conversely, have you considered that your money might be of greater service if you kept it in the Christian community? When I buy my coffee from my Christian friends at Hot Shots, I’m plowing my money back into something I truly believe in and can be proud to support.

Before you shop, consider checking out who you’re shopping with. A good place to start is with CampaignMoney.com or OpenSecrets.org. Both sites give fairly comprehensive lists of political donors, contributions and recipients. The darkness that has befallen our country is bad enough. Let’s not help it along by financing the bad guys.

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Gal. 5:1