helping the homeless

My friend John recently told me a story of how he had been inspired to reach out to the homeless. A friend of his had heard a sermon about giving the homeless dignity, if nothing else. Find out their name, treat them as you would want to be treated, the pastor urged. So, when a homeless woman approached the guy right outside the grocery store, he thought it'd be a great chance to put into practice what he had heard. The woman said that she needed money to buy her children food. The guy replied, "I won't give you money, but let's go right back in the store here, and I'll buy you some food for your children." While in line, they were subject to the stares of other shoppers. The woman smelled badly and was unkempt. The guy helping her felt like he was extending a hand to Jesus, as he helped the "least of these."

John found an opportunity to apply all he had heard as well. Shortly after his conversation with his friend, John was on the subway in New York, when a homeless man approached with a cup asking for some money. "What's your name?" John asked. "Stan. What's yours?" the fellow answered warily. "John," he replied, as he put some money in his cup, "Have a nice day!" "It's cold out," Stan replied gruffly. "Yeah, but, it still can be a nice day," John stammered. "Makes you wanna cut somebody's head off!" John started to worry. Heads started to turn. "Makes you wanna kill somebody!" Stan continued. "How much did you put in the cup?" Stan asked menacingly, "Looked like 75 cents!" "It's all I had," John whimpered. John then proceeded to get off at the very next opportunity, even though it wasn't his stop!

Two stories of men who wanted to make a difference, but one didn't turn out at all as it was "supposed to". When you extend a helping hand, you hope for the happy ending, but there are no guarantees.

Our church housed homeless guests this past week, in conjunction with a program called "Winter Relief" that provides shelter for the homeless during the coldest winter months. Over 60 people found shelter at our church, and 300+ volunteers made it happen. It wasn't easy or comfortable. But, then again, life isn't easy or comfortable for the homeless, either.