Why Are People Homeless

QUESTION: Why are people homeless?

ANSWER:

Why are people homeless? There are a million reasons.

• Some lost jobs and thought it would be a good idea to camp out to save money.
• Some were injured or disabled and have not been able to find work.
• Others are substance abusers and can’t straighten up long enough to break the cycle and find employment.
• There are heartbreaking stories of women who were abandoned by abusive husbands.
• People with epilepsy, who had no insurance, couldn’t get medication to control seizures, and resorted to alcohol to control their conditions.
• And there are people who simply like the freedom of not having to work, living off handouts, and keeping a steady supply of beer.

When you get to know the homeless, you sense that they don’t feel loved. Some feel they are worthless to society, that even God has abandoned them. The homeless are no different in this respect from someone who is in prison, or from someone who is in a dead-end job and drinks out of a sense of hopelessness.

Why are people homeless – Reaching Out to Them
It may sound strange, but it may be easier to reach out to the homeless than it is to reach out to your next-door neighbor. They often are refreshingly honest, even if they are extremely suspicious. But if you are willing to develop a relationship with them, bring them more than money and a meal, show them the love of Christ, you will see them begin to blossom into the person God wants them to be. No one is more shocked at the transformation than the homeless person.

When we ask “Why are people homeless” the question carries with it a sense that there is something wrong with being homeless. That may be an illusion. God created every person and endowed each one with special gifts and blessings. When we judge this one or that one as somehow lacking, we are not looking through God’s eyes, but through our own.

When we learn to see the homeless, or the imprisoned, or the crippled as members of the body of Christ, we take a huge stride in learning to love the way God intended us to love. Then we can turn our love to our own families and churches.

Helping The Homeless - GO!