Giving More Than Money

Last week a friend came by for our weekly Bible study at the church. As we turned to the passage, she mentioned her cooking gas (we use propane bottles for stoves) had finished, and asked if I could give money to buy a new one.

A few years ago I would have given her the money……..

But last week I didn’t.

Because that wouldn’t be the loving thing to do.

Few books have influenced my thinking more than “When Helping Hurts” by Steve Corbett. It’s an excellent resource on how to respond to financial needs of the poor in our community. This is especially useful for me since I live in an area of Saint Vincent that struggles with poverty as a result of few consistent jobs, and many single mothers.

Much of the book is incredibly useful, but the most important part for me is the difference between Relief, Rehabilitation, and Development. Steve Corbett and the co-author Brian Fikkert explain that much of our ministry towards poverty is “relief” when it should be focused on “rehabilitation”

Relief is “An urgent and temporary provision of emergency aid to reduce immediate suffering from a natural or manmade crisis.”
Rehabilitation is “working with individuals as they participate in their own recovery”
Development is “a deeper relationship between the helper and the helped, as they draw closer to God.”

Basically, relief is meant to “stop the bleeding” in extreme circumstances. Rehabilitation is helping that person develop skills that can help alleviate their poverty. And Development is bringing them to the point where they no longer need us, and can help others.

I must confess I fell into the habit of giving relief when there wasn’t a crisis….and learned the hard way this creates deeper problems.

The issue with relief is the individual becomes used to approaching you whenever there is a need instead of trying to find a way to fix the problem themselves. On at least one occasion in the past, I purchased a tank of gas for my friend so she could cook. This was done out of the kindness of my heart, but was a mistake because now she relies upon me to do the work FOR her instead of doing something WITH her.

There is nothing wrong with relief in extreme circumstances….but once that crisis is over we must turn to Rehabilitation.

“When Helping Hurts” does a good job of explaining the focus of Rehabilitation is empowering people by paying them for a job they accomplish instead of just giving a handout.

Monday I brought my friend the money she asked for since without gas she couldn’t cook. But before receiving that money she agreed to begin washing some of my work pants by hand (I have a washing machine and it does well, but work pants have especially tough stains). She enjoys washing by hand and is VERY good at it!

After about three weeks of washing I plan to pay her for another three weeks. And over time there will probably be other jobs she can help with. This doesn’t mean she won’t receive relief to “stop the bleeding” occasionally. But the emphasis will be on rewarding her for excellent work.

I’m grateful to Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert for their book which helps me deal wisely with a challenging situation on the mission field.