Keeping Up With The Joneses

Over the passage of time, I have observed a change in the Jones families I have encountered.The Jones family is that stereotypical family in the neighborhood, school, church, social setting, or otherwise known to each of us those who “have it all”.  They may have a larger house, they may have more cars, newer cars, better jobs; their kids may have the latest designer wardrobe, and on and on, the list of “stuff” continues. Many people become trapped in the race to “Keep up with the Joneses”.

Keep Up With the Joneses

Over the passage of time, in retrospect, I can see the various Jones families I had created in my life and my reaction to them.

Early in my life, I lived in an area in which, from my perspective, everyone else was a member of the Jones Clan. This may not have been a direct thought, nor might it have been anywhere near the truth, but, it appeared, or rather felt as if, we were near the bottom rungs of the socio-economic ladder.

My parents worked hard to provide for the family. My father had a full-time day job and had three or four part-time jobs on nights and weekends to be able to pay down the medical bills my mother had accumulated, as well as pay the tuition for the parochial schools my brother (10 years my senior) and I attended.  My mother worked on the third shift in a plastics plant.

In primary school, I may not have been aware of the “Jones” concept, however, it was clear that our family was not like the others at my school or many of the families at our church. By the time I had reached secondary school, the family financial situation had long since become normal.

I was hit by a dose of someone else’s reality one day.  One of the few times I had been able to finish my homework and chores relatively early, I went down the street to a local store where the other kids from the town would congregate. The comment was made by one of the kids that he and his parents wanted to dig in our cellar as we must have piles of money stashed away down there.  He stated that they had come to this realization as my parents did not go to the local watering holes in town, they did not go to town events, and no one ever saw them display any signs of money. As a result, if they were not spending it, they must be  hoarding it.  From the perspective of the kids, people in town, my family were the Joneses.

The Joneses Become Adults

It had long been presumed that I would go to the seminary following secondary school. That was the plan which was in place until my senior year in school.  It was the Fall, and my parents and I were outside raking the leaves and such when a friend stopped by and asked if I could give him a ride home ( he lived almost 2 miles away ). He and I did not get to see much of each other as I went to parochial school and he went to public school, so, I thought it might be a good time to visit.

On the way to his house, we saw two young women walking. He said he knew at least one of them and asked if we could stop and give them a ride. He and his girlfriend, one of the two, had arranged this “chance meeting” to introduce her friend to his friend, and now 52 years later, it looks like this blind-date-chance-meeting may have worked out.

The Joneses, Watching, and Becoming

Early in our marriage, with the rapid arrival of three daughters with all three in diapers at one time, we were in a position of frequently having too much month at the end of the money, and we could only envy the very large Jones Clan in our area.

Through hard work, studying in college night school to complete my degree, and attention to our spending, we were able to keep the ends of the month and the paychecks amicable, if not close friends. Promotions, pay raises and such allowed us to change our standard of living.

It had not even occurred to me that we may be doing well until I noticed as I was heading out the door one morning that we had essentially arrived.  It seems my wife and I had purchased two cars at the same time from the same dealer and we had become the Joneses!  Job changes and moves had brought us to more affluent neighborhoods, larger homes, and better schools.

God or Jones?

Keeping up with the Joneses, even though that may not have been a direct goal, must be tempered with Spiritual growth and development. Mark 8:36 asks us to keep things in their proper perspective. Keeping up with others, or even being in a position where we are ahead of them is far less important than keeping up with God and His plan for us, our future, our family.

We need to seek God’s plan first and this will then allow us to more easily ( and correctly ) balance our material wants and our Spiritual needs. Luke 12:31.