Some of you who have been reading this blog for a few weeks or so might remember my postings (here and here) about deal with Paul the homeless guy. Well, our church has been dealing with him quite a bit since I last reported, but recently things have not been going so well. Long story...At our church we are wrestling with how to deal best with the many poor people that drop by our church looking for hand-outs. This is a very complex issue and I would like to ask you to give some feedback if you are a church leader, are involved in your church with helping the poor, or have experience dealing with this type of thing on a structural/organizational level.
What structures/policies do you have in place? How does it work?
Any feedback you could give would help us out greatly. Thanks!
6 comments:
Hey brother...I'm emailing the couple that lead this in our church. They will email me and I'll email the info to you. What's your email again? I think they've put together a great process that deals not only with physical needs but spiritual needs as well.
One resource you might want to check out: Ministries of Mercy by Tim Keller. Great stuff here.
Not sure I totally agree with this policy but ours is simple enough. If you attend our church the we are in a position to help you and will. If you do not attend typically we will not help.
Hey Zach!
this is an issue I am constantly conflicted about.
I thought you might be interested to read this blog written by a man here in Nashville who has been homeless most of his life. It's fascinating. Check it out,
http://thehomelessguy.blogspot.com/
-Alli
The key is to keep a record of all communication and to be as consistent as possible. Our administrative assistant normally deals with initial contacts (which is very helpful because she's been homeless, and she's walked in their shoes) and she keeps a record of who calls and what was asked for and what she asked them to do. The policy she follows is that when someone asks for help, they are told that they need to come to the church and participate in what's going on that day/ night (e.g., worship service, mid-week ministries, etc.) and then meet with a pastor who then determines whether or not we can help and in what way (these decisions are also recorded). Our approach really was developed out of experience. At first we were innocent as doves, but we've learned that we also need to be wise as serpents (Matt. 10:16). This is a very difficult thing to do deal with. These people need help, whether they're trying to "scam" us or not ... and many are ... either way they need help. And when you have to say no, it's something that sticks with you for a very long time. It's much easier to just give than it is to actually try to figure out what is the best thing for this person or family, but you have to ... our means to help would be quickly exhausted if we didn't have some sort of process to determine when to help and when to say no ... and I think it's irresponsible to enable someone to continue living in ways that are harmful to their spiritual and physical health. What I like about our process though is that it's organic rather than black and white ... we're consistent in what we tell all people, but we meet face-to-face with everyone who is willing, determine the needs at that level, walk with them for as long as they'll allow us, and we try our best to love them like Christ. My prayer is that we don't burn bridges with someone who genuinely needs help, but the trick to figure out who those people are ... which takes time. I hope this helps.
It’s a hard call, Zach. Over the ten years I have been at this church (the one I work for), we have tried the whole gamut of assisting the needy. When I first came on staff in 1998, we were using an in-house food pantry. That didn’t really prove to work that well, for several reasons, one of which since it was always hard to find food that wasn’t outdated — it’s funny, but it often seems that when people find canned goods in their cupboards that say “1992,” they think, “Oh, I’ll give it to the church!” That’s not to say we had that happen a lot (we didn’t), but it happened often enough. We eventually decided that since we already financially support a local Christian foodbank, we would just develop standardized information sheets complete with a map, hours of operation, and what the people needed to bring to obtain food. We also provide a letter the person can take with them if they need specialized help (such as baby diapers, etc). The food bank honors the letter from us since we support them regularly.
We also maintain an up-to-date list of government agencies, food pantries, medical clinics, soup kitchens, etc, along with hours of operation and what the person needs to bring to obtain help.
For a time, we tried assisting with utility bills/motel rooms/disconnect notices/rental assistance, but that got very expensive very quickly, and we really didn't have a good way to adequately use checks and balances, unlike a government agency who is better equipped to cross-reference documentation. We even tried addressing checks directly to the apartment complexes, utility company, etc, but we found out quickly that word of mouth spreads like a California wildfire. As much as we want to help the truly needy, what began as only 2-3 requests for assistance mushroomed into multiple requests which would have required a full time staff person to handle that ministry alone. So we no longer help with utility bills or anything like that.
One time a few years ago, we had a somewhat mentally handicapped person coming by the church a lot. Many people in the church congregation took a liking to her, and our missions dept decided to take her under their wing. We even set her up in an apartment and gave her all kinds of housewares, food, etc. We paid for a month’s rent on the apartment to get her started and if that worked out, we were willing to help even more. If I remember correctly, it was less than a week before she had abandoned the apartment and went back to living on the streets. Driving to work in the morning, I still see her from time to time, sleeping behind a dumpster or sitting on a curb drawing pictures of passerbys, her dilapidated backpack sitting by her feet.
Since that time, a United Methodist organization called Saranam came into existence. It’s a program designed to help transition those who have a desire and motivation to change their lives, and thus, end the cycle of homelessness. It entails helping a family for a prolonged period of time (2 years), including job training, education, developing people skills, and setting the family up in a fully furnished apartment. At the end of the 2 year training period, if the family completes the program they get to keep all the things in their furnished apartment. Sadly, the program (so far) has a low success rate. It seems, for whatever reason, that many people who are stuck in a cycle of poverty/homelessness lack the motivation/skill/determination to “get better,” similar to what we discovered with our homeless lady. It’s not the case with every homeless person, but it is the case with many. It can be discouraging, because it often seems we are rebuffed whenever we reach out to a struggling person with wise advice, or assistance of a more lasting means, but it seems many are interested only in short term help and they only want enough aid to get them through the current day. And then tomorrow the cycle starts all over again — and sadly, many seem OK with that.
About 3 years ago we decided to move to a paper voucher system assisting only with food and gasoline, and so far that has worked very well for us. What we do is this: Several times a year we purchase $400 worth of $20 food vouchers from Smith’s grocery store, along with about $200 worth of $20 and $10 gas vouchers. I have them printed up direct from the corporate office with a notation “for food only: no cigarettes, alcohol”). The gas vouchers (the are two Smith’s gas stations in town) are labeled with “for gas only.” We keep these on hand, and when we get calls, I just use discretion as to how much to give each person, depending on the individual situation. I also keep a log of addresses/names so as to keep track if we have repeat clients (and to try to detect abuse). I try not to assist a single person more than once a month, unless there are extentuating circumstances. That way, we can assist a larger population of people. Again, it’s a judgment call. I pretty much can tell those who are “playing the system.” However, that said, I believe it’s always better to err on the side of love than judgment, so if in doubt, I just help them anyway.
Unlike some churches, we don’t require a “client” to talk to a pastor about Christ or anything like that in order to receive help. I do, however give each “client” a small package I put together which has a clear presentation of the Gospel, and also some materials directly related to comforting with Scripture those who are struggling in life’s circumstances.
We did have a problem years back with one or two people coming in for help and becoming somewhat “scary” in their forceful demands (and intoxicated to boot!), and due to that and other reasons, we instituted a front door system whereby I am able to see who it is and buzz them in. That way, if I think it’s a situation in need of “backup,” I can buzz one of the pastors to stand by while helping the person.
I should add that these are guidelines for anyone dropping in off the street. We have a different policy in effect for church members/attenders, and basically that is that we do whatever we can to help a person who has been coming to the church and is someone to whom we know a little about them. That also helps us to discern how best to assist them.
Our church tells the person in need that we can help if they are willing to work for the assistance. (For instance, come paint a room in the back and we'll give you your gas money)...
If they agree, the church doesn't always even make them do the work. It is a test of heart condition and need. Do you really NEED it or are you just looking for handouts?
Warning: Some people can get very upset when they are asked to work.
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