A Gadget for My Budget

SOME PEOPLE WILL ALWAYS WONDER how a Christian can enjoy genuine contentment while having little in this life. That is, little in terms of money, material possessions and many other pleasures that money can buy.

And this is my personal motivation: I am contented because whatever little I have is free of cost; I don’t have to pay for it.

But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. (1 Timothy 6:6-8)

Take my latest phone for example. In February 2012, I signed up for a 2-year contract with Globe by subscribing to their P500 monthly load tipid plan. I was able to finish my contract because I paid a fixed amount every month – no hidden charges, no stress. Whenever I would reach my monthly limit, all I had to do was buy additional load from a store. I could also register to their prepaid promos frequently to stretch my budget. They gave me a free Samsung Galaxy Young Android phone to get it started. Some of the key features of this tiny, basic smartphone are a 2MP fixed-focus camera with geotagging, a stereo FM radio, an MP3 player and social network integration. It has no secondary camera, no fancy flash and its low screen resolution limits choice of apps which was fine because I only need the following five apps to live a normal life anyway.

• NIV Bible app for easy access to the word of God
• Merriam-Webster dictionary app for its apparent purpose
• Facebook for getting in touch with my friends and family
• Instagram for my photo-editing preoccupation
• Twitter for instant #walangpasok (no classes) weather updates

My Samsung Galaxy Y is now being used by my 7-year old son.

In November 2012, my husband also signed up with Globe for a P300 monthly load tipid plan. So when his contract expired last month, they offered to give us a new gadget for free if we were willing to renew our subscription. After two years and nine months, my Samsung phone as shown above still looked pretty decent, but whenever my apps would ask for an update, I started getting an insufficient memory error message. My husband bought me a new 8gb memory card to replace the original 2gb card that came with the phone, but it didn’t work. That’s when I realized it was time to get a new phone.

On December 8, while typhoon Ruby was on its way to Southern Luzon, I received my brand new Cloudfone Geo 402q from Globe. It is sold for a standard retail price of roughly P2,999 and one could easily mistake it for an iPhone because of its size and color. So far, I am satisfied with the quality of its 5MP rear camera and a front camera that will be useful for selfies. I can even download more apps now without worrying about efficiency or internal storage space. It also included one free case and an earphone.

This is my new Cloudfone Geo 402q with a neat gold back cover.

Unlike other people, I cannot afford to buy a brand new phone or switch to a new gadget every time I want to. My Christian life is characterized by frugality, simplicity and total dependence on God for my every need. It took me several years of sacrifice, discipline, prayer and Bible study to renounce my covetousness and materialism. For some people, it might be humiliating, even devastating, not to be able to spend their hard-earned money to wear the symbols of wealth according to the standards of the world. As for me, my real wealth is the love and mercy of God who provides for all my needs, absolutely free of charge. Every good thing I enjoy, I enjoy it in God’s love and I find it very sweet.

Is it not better to have a little, free of cost, than to have to pay for everything?