Do you walk past a homeless person and how would a Good Samaritan act living in this age?
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Earlier this year I had a young guy approach me and asked if I could buy him a beer. I did so because he was honest with me rather than saying he needed money for food.
When I came out of the liquor store and handed him his beer I looked at him strongly in the eyes and told him I needed his prayers because I was involved in something that was too much for me to bear. He was taken back by my words but told me he would indeed pray for me.
Maybe a seed of hope was planted, maybe not. But I pray for him.
When I came out of the liquor store and handed him his beer I looked at him strongly in the eyes and told him I needed his prayers because I was involved in something that was too much for me to bear. He was taken back by my words but told me he would indeed pray for me.
Maybe a seed of hope was planted, maybe not. But I pray for him.
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No I am not talking about the ones that hustle that are obviously doing it for a living as they are way too organised. I am talking about the odd girl in the shop doorway always on her own, the bloke with the guitar who always seems to be on his own, that sort of thing. Those that don't hang in groups. Some of them I have talked to say they are worse off in some shelters as they get robbed themselves even of what they have.
K
I heard a story from a well known pastor once. He said early in his ministry they had an outreach to the community. One day a man walked in wanting help. But the pastor had a feeling the man was a fake. So he handed him money from his own pocket and said " if you honestly need this money I pray you will be blessed and your needs will be met, but if you are taking this money falsely I pray everything you touch will be cursed and everything you do will fall apart." The man turned on his heel and left without taking a dime. Seems like a good litmus test.
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This is actually a great statement because at the end of the year, even though I am a hard worker, if I cannot pay my property tax I will eventually be homeless.... If you are still paying a mortgage you would not know.... Unless you are a hard worker and cannot pay the mortgage because of balloon payments....
The pastor doing that sounds like a re-written chapter from Les Misérables.
Someone asked me once when we were sitting in a city café, how do you tell the difference between those really in need on the street and the hustlers?
There was a guy that had approached us while we were having coffee, grabbed my arm aggressively, putting his hand out and pointing at himself and then at our coffee and food. It was as if he didn't speak English, but gestured “you got money, I have none, so give me yours”. We turned him away. That's when my friend asked the question.
I pointed to a bloke playing his guitar sitting on a box with his dog, playing soft gentle music.
I said to him that the guy playing the guitar seemed humble and at least had gathered singing for his supper was better than hustling. He knew he had no right to get nothing for nothing so would probably get more because at least he was offering a service for his money, no matter how good the music was. My friend then went and put a good sum of money in his cap and the guitar player put his guitar down and said may “God bless you for helping me”. (While the other guy was still bothering the other customers shaking their sleeves). I guess it isn't always obvious but your heart leads you to who you should help I think, or not.
Someone asked me once when we were sitting in a city café, how do you tell the difference between those really in need on the street and the hustlers?
There was a guy that had approached us while we were having coffee, grabbed my arm aggressively, putting his hand out and pointing at himself and then at our coffee and food. It was as if he didn't speak English, but gestured “you got money, I have none, so give me yours”. We turned him away. That's when my friend asked the question.
I pointed to a bloke playing his guitar sitting on a box with his dog, playing soft gentle music.
I said to him that the guy playing the guitar seemed humble and at least had gathered singing for his supper was better than hustling. He knew he had no right to get nothing for nothing so would probably get more because at least he was offering a service for his money, no matter how good the music was. My friend then went and put a good sum of money in his cap and the guitar player put his guitar down and said may “God bless you for helping me”. (While the other guy was still bothering the other customers shaking their sleeves). I guess it isn't always obvious but your heart leads you to who you should help I think, or not.
I pray that never happens to you Jacob g. I reckon lots (most even) of the homeless are just invisible to most of us and are not necessarily begging, but need help. There was a tragic story I heard of a lady who was made homeless but was once well to do, with a beautiful house and home who lost it all due to her husbands debts when he died. She sold everything, only had one set of clothes which were fine with a hat and pearls. She dressed everyday like this so "appear" alright and normal during the day, but at night she was asleep in corners and doorways. I think a lot you would not know were homeless and are not the average "street dweller". I think this group have the hardest time as they usually are alone, not wanting or having anything in common with the usual groups. I pray for them too as it like throwing out a nervous pedigree dog that's been mollycoddled on to the street to survive, compared to a street dog who is used to running free all-day anyhow. The nervous pedigree dog has no chance. I think these invisible ones who need the most help totally rely on a strangers kindness to survive.
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Hi HeyJude, this is something I've thought about quite a bit also. My heart breaks for them, as I know from personal experience what that feels like. While I think there's no clear cut answer for this, we can follow Jesus' example and try to meet their physical needs. What that means for me is, that when I am approached for money, I ask them if I can take buy them a meal instead. This also gives me the opportunity to talk with them, get to know their story, and share the Gospel with them. If they decline, I still offer to pray with them. I've met several people that have told me no one's prayed with them before. My thoughts are, only God knows if they're telling the truth- we just need to try to minister as we can.
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Obviously action is required by Christians since agape is God's love in action..
Ideally if the genuine Christians in any city could pool their resources for the needy, they could provide shelters which would be more than just shelters. The objective would be to get the homeless off the streets, and make them productive Christian citizens, who not only have homes and jobs of their own, but are now in a position to help others. This would be a major commitment and a serious ministry, which would necessarily involve the creation of productive jobs in construction, farming, market gardening or manufacturing. But the first priority for the homeless is repentance, conversion, and regeneration.
However what we see today are half measures, which never seem to resolve the underlying issues. And sometimes *tough love* is needed to help someone who has become parasitic.
Ideally if the genuine Christians in any city could pool their resources for the needy, they could provide shelters which would be more than just shelters. The objective would be to get the homeless off the streets, and make them productive Christian citizens, who not only have homes and jobs of their own, but are now in a position to help others. This would be a major commitment and a serious ministry, which would necessarily involve the creation of productive jobs in construction, farming, market gardening or manufacturing. But the first priority for the homeless is repentance, conversion, and regeneration.
However what we see today are half measures, which never seem to resolve the underlying issues. And sometimes *tough love* is needed to help someone who has become parasitic.
Sure, its a difficult one to call. But if you gave to the sleeve puller because he was desperate, then you would also have to give to the hustlers who were also exuberant in their ways of getting cash from the public as they must be desperate too. I guess its discerning who is "desperate" and who is not. So you think give to all then or rightly divide the truth on the spot whenever possible? I think it comes from a feeling and your heart just tells you. The sleeve shaker gave me the creeps.
How do you tell they don't want responsibility though? Even lack of sleep can drive a person to appear insane, especially after months and years. One guy I heard of who everyone thought was Mentally Ill, wasn't at all, but had a urine infection from lack of water - he was always offered sandwiches and a coke or fizzy drink but no water so became temporarily insane. How could that man take on responsibility when he cant even think straight? Should he starve then like you say? Bit harsh.
Also, wanted to share a story how I saw God working one time. I've been advised to never give out money while traveling because of safety concerns. In fact, in some places it's even against the law. One day I was in Gdansk, Poland and there were so many poor Romanian children that were crowding around us crying and begging for money. One little girl I remember was barefoot and visibly shivering. It was snowing and so cold. I got down on the ground, put my jacket around her and told her she needed to go inside somewhere and get warm, that it wasn't safe to be out asking for money. I told her, in English, that Jesus loved her and hugged her. I didn't know what else to do. She looked like she understood and left us. Someone in my group then said to me, "I didn't know you spoke Romanian!" I was speaking in English, but everyone heard me speak that language! I think about that little girl sometimes and hope she's safe.
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That's a great idea. I also think they should not be all "lumped" together as they are not all one group. Sponsorship of each individual person with accommodation would be the first port of call as you can see what these people are like once they get what they need, as a first base attempt at rehabilitation. I still reckon a lot of them appear crazy because they don't get any sleep so a good bed and safety is the first thing. They cannot work or do anything without that. My family used to sponsor a kid in Africa from a baby to his adulthood. We followed what he was doing and his education etc to make sure he had what he needed. If all Christian AND non Christian people did that to one in their own land, it would show true charity. If they earned more or were more affluent than the average family, maybe they could afford to sponsor who families. There is enough money to go around in this world, it just needs to be re-invested into the bottom heap of humanity. And yes, the world hasn't closed its doors to jobs - these hands could feed whole towns and cities with crops if they were rightly employed.