Doing “social justice” ministries is not an easy task for the church. Inspired by the story of the Good Samaritan, people begin or start ministries out of a sense of calling or conviction that the church must be involved in the lives of the poor and the broken. These groups of passionate Christians feel they are taking the gospel, or good news, to the streets. Many of these well-intentioned folks start feeding ministries. Every Saturday morning, they serve breakfast in the parks, or Tuesday nights, they can be found scooping out dinners in Skid Row. Their motivation and their passion are inspiring, and the opportunity for people in the church to be exposed to the poor is unmatched.
However, the motto, “A Hand up, Not a Hand Out”, seems to be speaking directly to these church ministries. In helping the homeless and the poor, giving out free lunches and dinners isn't really going to solve their problems. The reason why churches are able to build such lasting relationships with the homeless is that the same people are there every week, ready to greet our team with a glowing smile and a “thank you” for our continued generosity. These people need more than just our “hand out” (which will leave them on the streets). Instead, they need a “hand up.” Back to the story of the Good Samaritan.
When the Good Samaritan saw the man on the streets, poor, hurting, and broken, he stopped what he was doing, and he did more than offer him a lunch and a prayer. He cleaned up his wounds, he put him on his donkey, and he took him to an inn (transitional living facility), and paid for the guy's stay until he could take care of himself. In other words, the Good Samaritan offered the broken guy a hand up, not a hand out.
As a church, we need to be prepared to offer a hand up to the poor and the broken. Paying panhandlers or giving out lunches is simply not enough. We must be prepared to take the time to learn about the various housing options for the poor in our community, and if there are no housing options, we must encourage our government to provide more, or begin to build some more ourselves. And then we must take the poor to these places and provide for them until they can get back up on their own... “A Hand Up, Not a Hand Out.”
