Charity: The Giving and Receiving Ends

Poverty has been made to be a very uncomfortable issue in our society.  I will admit that even as I write this, I am rambling, because it is hard to carefully choose words.  In a song written by Ben Haggerty, known to his fans as Macklemore, he asserts that "America the Brave still fears what we don't know."  Haggerty is addressing a different social issue, but I think this idea can extend to all kinds of inequities.  We often write out checks, but avoid interaction with people living out on the streets.  We try to live in a separate world from the impoverished.  We forget that that is a direct contradiction of how Jesus lived - among the poor and outcast.  Our charity won't mean much if we don't consider those we are giving it to as our equals. 

Charity can be such a glamorous thing on the giving end, but can be a very hard thing on the receiving end. We often feel that being in need shows weakness.  Donald Miller addresses this situation very poignantly in Blue Like Jazz.  He talks about a lady that he sees in the grocery store, buying her food with food stamps.  He describes the urge he feels to pay for the lady's food for her - but he stops himself, because he knows that his pity will draw attention to the situation, possibly embarrassing her.  Miller isn't saying that it is wrong to be charitable, but we really have to think about how and why we do it.  Our charity means nothing if we are making another human being feel less than human.

Part of our growth in Christ is growing in our giving - finding out the ways we are called to give, and how we can give the resources that God has blessed us with in a way that glorifies Him.  My church often talks about a triad of ways to give - time, talents and treasures.  We are called to give our money, and we are called to give our hands and feet in service.  One component cannot overcompensate for another - we are called to give generously in each of those ways.

There is nothing wrong with giving charity.  There is nothing wrong with receiving it either.  There is nothing wrong with being in a place of need.  We are always in need of God's grace.  We are always unworthy.  God doesn't give to us so that we will feel lowly, He gives to us so we can know that He sees us as worthy.  He calls us to give in that same way - not to boast in our charity, but to give generously and thoughtfully. 

~SP