Why would we judge on whether the person is getting alcohol or not. If a person needs money are we not supposed to respond. I am not saying we can't take them to a restaurant or something but we should not judge on how they spend their blessing that we give themkateliz wrote:Yeah, so they can head straight to the liquor store. My dad was a homeless alcoholic for at least one year. He said that most guys on the street do that exact thing. Which is why you don't give them money, you give them what they should be buying with that money. I once gave a sincere looking guy a bag of home-made chocolate chip cookies that I had on me. He was very touched and softly thanked me. That may have made his week, and encouraged him.
A lot of them are mentally ill who refuse their medications, my dad told me as well. He was one of them while he was out there. That's a very hard spot to pick yourself up and out of. Thankfully he had the whereabouts to remember he had kids, miss them, and admit himself to a hospital. He ended up a few years later in a residential home for the mentally ill, and told me that a lot of the people there had been homeless alcoholics too. It's really a sad thing.
I went up to this other homeless guy I saw in the grocery parking lot. It was odd he was there because you never see any homeless people where I live. I went up to him out of a desire to help in some way, not knowing how. (Sorry, I just want to mention this one thing: he thought I was soliciting him! He was confused because he obviously thought I didn't look the part, and that helped me assure him I wasn't.) He said he didn't need any help with anything after I asked in a way I hoped wasn't offensive, and he understood that I was referring to him being homeless. He then told me, (he was waiting for the bus,) that he had just taken a shower and how it felt good. Said that it's good to take a shower at least every other day. Tugged at my heart, that did!
I did mention something about trusting God for needs. Not sure how I said it, but I tried to fit it into the conversation. I'm pretty sure I was talking about myself and my low-paying job. He got pretty uncomfortable with that and didn't say anything in response. Then his bus came, and I went back to my car and drove off speaking to God about him. I hope I did him some good, but if I did I couldn't tell. If I had been thinking I would have asked him if he had any kids, or family in general.
And if he hadn't left so soon I would've told him something about my dad. He looked a lot like him, which he astutely noticed from how I looked at him. Oh, and he also shared with me how he got the jacket he was wearing by helping someone with some labor. It obviously meant a lot to him, as it did to my dad when I bought him jeans, socks, underwear, shoes and a big, thick winter coat. These guys' hearts don't get touched with money- you got to give them something that really reaches them. Take them without shame into a restaraunt and treat them as someone worthwhile! Bring them to a Target and help them pick out some necessities.
My dad said that in Minneapolis, which is where he was when he was homeless, there's no shortage of places to get free meals, cots to sleep on and donated clothes. That's not always the case, obviously. But if you give these guys something that can touch their hearts and give them hope, then you've really done something good for them.
Sorry, I know I got a little off-topic! Just wanted to share!
My two Cents
