On Responding to Beggars

When I was in the U.S., I would occasionally see people standing or sitting near the entrance to the Walmart parking lot and at the interstate overpasses. I'm sure you've seen these people too. You know, the ones in dirty clothes holding up cardboard signs with a backpack nearby. 

Seeing these individuals would set off a variety of emotions inside of me. I was confused, annoyed, convicted, sad, and so much more. And I didn't know what to do with those emotions.

In Ghana, I've had similar experiences. I see these individuals who are almost always either physically handicapped or children. They don't carry signs, but they do walk from car to car asking for money. In Ghana, I've felt the same emotions. I've been confused, annoyed, convicted, sad, and so much more. 

For the past eight months, I've tried to figure out what my response should be. I never had a good answer. I had a typical response. It went like this: Avoid eye contact, and pretend like they don't exist. I hated my response. I knew it was wrong, but I couldn't bring myself to do anything else. I thought, How can I enable them? If I give them money, what good is it going to do? There are so many people out here; how can a few cedi to this one person help?

Yesterday, I was reading an awesome book. It's called Orphan Justice by Johnny Carr and Laura Captari. I learned a lot from it, and it even helped me wrestle through my confusion on how to respond to the beggars on the street corners. Really, you should read it. 

Carr writes

"When we judge or criticize the hitchhiking teenager or the beggar on the street corner, we are not loving them like Jesus would. Often we figure they don't deserve our help, but that is not the issue. After all, Jesus loves us and died for us even though none of us is deserving of it. How can we do any less?" (page 93).

 You see, the fundamental flaw that caused me to feel conviction when I saw beggars was not that I wasn't giving them money. It was that I was refusing to acknowledge their presence. That was my disgusting sin. We live in a world that tends to treat beggars the same way people treated lepers in the New Testament. We avoid eye contact and pretend like they don't exist. 

"When we see a homeless person on the side of the street, instead of assuming he is lazy and his homelessness is his own fault, we should be reminded of our own neediness and dependence on God. What if God's attitude toward us had been the same as our attitude toward the poor? What if the Lord had shut His ears? What if He was not kind to us? What if He had been hard-hearted instead? What if we called out and He didn't answer?" (page 97).

That's a scary thought. Life would be so disgustingly hopeless if God pretended I was nonexistent when I came before Him in desperate need. Just thinking about it makes me want to puke and crawl into a hole. Want to know the worst part? When we do this to beggars, that's the presentation we give them of Jesus. Sick, right? Right.

I can be so hypocritical. I'll accept the blessings God gives me, but refuse to show his goodness to strangers. I don't deserve to be healthy, but I am. I don't deserve to have a secure job, but I have one. 

"It is believed that Martin Luther's last written words were, 'We are beggars: this is true.' The reality is that each of us is impoverished without God. Not only that, we were spiritually dead. But God did hear us; He did extend kindness and offer mercy when we didn't deserve it.

 "When our heart attitudes begin to shift from judgment to compassion, our actions will follow -- not out of guilt or obligation, but as a joyful response to the gospel and its work in our own lives. Scripture paints a beautiful and convicting picture of the generosity that should characterize a Christ follower's life (all emphasis added):

• "If you offer yourself to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted one, then your light will shine in the darkness, and your night will be like noonday" (Isa. 58:10).

• "Go, sell your belongings and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me" (Matt. 19:21).

•  "Speak up, judge righteously, and defend the cause of the oppressed and needy" (Prov. 31:9).

• "Sell your possession and give to the poor. Make money-bags for yourselves that won't grow old, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys" (Luke 12:33).

• "When you host a banquet, invite those who are poor, maimed, lame, or blind" (Luke 14:13).

"The overwhelming message here is simple: As Jesus' disciples, we are called to live sacrificially so we can give generously. A 'poor = lazy' mindset blinds us to the needs of vulnerable children. These kids did not choose poverty, but they live in it every day, and many have no hope of getting out of it. If we claim to care about orphaned and vulnerable children, we can't dismiss the poverty that is rampant both on the other side of the world and at our doorstep. Regardless of our political stance -- conservative or liberal -- we are all commanded to share liberally, particularly with at-risk and needy children" (pages 97-98).

One of my favorite stories in the gospels is Jesus responding to Bartimaeus in Mark 10:46-52.

Then they reached Jericho, and as Jesus and his disciples left town, a large crowd followed him. A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road. ⁴⁷ When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus of Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

     ⁴⁸ “Be quiet!” many of the people yelled at him.

    But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

     ⁴⁹ When Jesus heard him, he stopped and said, “Tell him to come here.”

    So they called the blind man. “Cheer up,” they said. “Come on, he’s calling you!” ⁵⁰ Bartimaeus threw aside his coat, jumped up, and came to Jesus.

     ⁵¹ “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked.

    “My rabbi,^[j]” the blind man said, “I want to see!”

     ⁵² And Jesus said to him, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus down the road.^[k]

What if Jesus responded to Bart the way I respond to beggars? What if he looked the other way? What if he failed to show compassion? Yikes.

What if I stopped responding like Kayla and started responding like Jesus? What if I looked into the eyes of beggars with love instead of disgust? What if I showed them the compassion Jesus showed Bart and me?

I want to do that. I know I won't do it perfectly, but I'm going to try. Yesterday and today, I've been thinking of what I can do to show love to beggars. I would love to take them out to dinner, hear their story, and tell them about Jesus' love for them. But that's not always an option, and it's definitely not an option here where whenever I'm see a beggar, I'm in a taxi on my way to a destination with a time restraint. 

But for now, I can give them money. And really, who cares what they do with it? It's not my place to judge. It doesn't need to be my concern. God freely gives me my money knowing that I'll make some poor choices with it. Giving it to someone he loves who is in need is not a poor choice. It's not wise in the world's eyes, but that doesn't matter. What matters is what God calls me to do with HIS money. And the Bible makes it pretty clear that I'm called to share it with those in need. 

Another thing I can do, is let them know that God is madly in love with them. I have a feeling they don't hear that very often. So today, I'm going to make a few little notes for these people who are cherished by Jesus. I want them to know that they're loved just as they are. I want them to know that just because they have unmet needs does not mean that God doesn't care. He weeps for them. He wants them to experience love. He wants to heal their hurt. I want to remind them of that. 

What are you going to do to love the people that Jesus so lavishly loves?