God expects us to share the blessings he provides for us with those who have less. And the good news is that God never runs out of blessings.
But can we reach a point where giving to someone or some group becomes less like helping and more like enabling?
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Let me start off by saying that it is a mitzvah (good deed) to give to the poor. But, when you share your blessings with others, you also need to be aware of whether you are helping them, or being taken advantage of.
And when doing Tzedakah (charity) with people who live in third world countries, how can we tell if their needs are legitimate or not?
It’s a hard call.
For nearly 7 years, I have been involved with a Ugandan based messianic synagogue and a school for orphaned children, and one or two individuals who live in different parts of Africa. I have sent more than just a little amount of money to help them with building and school supplies, as well as to pay individual medical expenses and even send money just to help feed their families.
I was very careful to check, as best as I could, on whether or not they were legitimate; I checked web pages, required copies of paid receipts, pictures of the buildings and school students that I have supported, and asked for addresses where they live, which I verified using the Google Earth app.
And I believe my friends are all legitimate.
But this year I have pretty much cut them all off, except for one which is a school for orphans; I send them just $15 a month (in Kampala, Uganda, that goes a long way.)
But this isn’t about my tzedakah- it’s about yours.
Are you giving to foreign peoples or groups? If they are a charity, have you investigated the percentage of donations that is used to meet their mission statement? Ordinarily, if 75% or better from every dollar goes to meeting their mission statement, they are considered legitimate.
Now here’s the really important question: are your donations actually improving their life, or just helping them remain where they are? In other words, are you supporting their growth to independence, or just enabling their desire to have others give them what they need?
This is, again, a tough call. I had to use “tough love” more than once to tell people who were always starving or always sick or always in need of something that they will have to learn to depend on themselves.
I often think that I shouldn’t worry that I am retired on a fixed income, because God will always be able to send me more blessings. But then I think, if I give away all my money, expecting God to cover my tuchas, is that faith or testing? These blessings are a gift from God, and isn’t it incumbent on me to use these blessings wisely, and not just throw them away?
As I said, it’s a tough call, but I believe that if all I am doing is not really helping anyone get anywhere, just helping them today, maybe I need to share these blessings in a different place.
Yeshua said we will always have the poor among us (Matthew 26:11), and I believe that God wants it that way so we have the opportunity to share the blessings he gives us. But we can’t save the world, and we can’t save someone who lives in a country with a corrupt government, little or no opportunity for growth or work, and where disease is rampant and medical help is expensive. That’s no excuse for not helping, but when you are giving money and it goes as quickly as you give it, how much are you helping, really? Yes, you get them from today to tomorrow, and I know the prayer says, “Give us today our daily bread”, but I have to believe that at some point, it is better to stop feeding people fish because if they can’t or won’t learn how to fish for themselves, the fish you give can be more useful somewhere else.
So, I still help now and then, but I am not adopting someone or becoming their ATM whenever they need something, even it that need is legitimate. If I can give to a group of people instead of an individual, isn’t that a better use of my tzedakah?
Each one of us must decide how best to do tzedakah, and I am not saying not to help an individual or a group, even if all your money does is get them from today to tomorrow. What I am saying is that we should help the poor, but use discernment and be make the tough decisions. It always feels wonderful to give to those who are in need and who appreciate what we do, but at some point we need to decide if we are using the blessings God gives us in the best way possible.
Thank you for being here, and please share these messages with everyone you know, even non-believers, After all, you never know how fertile the soil is until you plant a seed in it.
That’s it for this week, so l’hitraot and (an early) Shabbat Shalom!