So I’m in Denver this week for a pastor’s conference. The temperature right now (in honor of John Elway, I presume) is 7 degrees. Last night I went out on the town with some friends and was surprised how many people were out on the streets of downtown Denver asking for money, even in this extreme cold. I didn’t give anybody any money (or food, or time, or anything but a smile and a “sorry, not tonight”). I almost never give money to people asking for it. If I take the time to do anything, I might buy a sandwich or just try to strike up a conversation - but that dosent’ happen very often. I usually just walk away, last night to a trendy restaurant, feeling a bit like the characters in the Good Samaritan parable who just walk by. This morning as I logged on to my two hours of free wireless, there was a link to a website (http://www.giveabetterway.org/) dedicated to convincing you not to give to panhandlers. The logic is that giving money dosen’t really solve the problems of the people on the street, and likely just keeps them there and possibly feeds their addictions. This site suggests donating to an orginization that provides for the “real needs” of the homeless: job training, mental health care, rehab. This makes sense to me, and is the logic behind my decision to not give out money. It makes sense to me logically, but I am still always left with these feelings of guilt and doubt after I walk by the homeless. Anybody have any suggestions for what you do with these kinds of encounters?

By the way, if you feel compelled to donate to some folks who are working to help homeless people, may I suggest Christ House, a 32 bed facility in Washington, DC that provides 24-hour a day medical care for the homeless (http://www.christhouse.org/).