There is a local, cultural difficulty with obedience to this. I live in a begging culture. I'm generous to the poor but ONLY the poor who live in places remote from my home. The reason is this. Were I to give to one person from my home or my car, the following day there would be a long lineup in front of my house.

We lived with this for a while when a retired missionary lived across the driveway from us. He listened to every sob story that came along and, during daylight hours, there were seldom less than 20 poor people who waited for him. So many of them came and banged on our door that I had to hire a security guard to fend them off so as to get some work done. His days were entirely consumed with dealing with the poor--both the really poor and the pretenders.

I've considered financing the benevolent fund of a local church, but the church is so corrupt it's more than likely that the money would line the pockets of the rich.

When I'm at clinic, the situation is different. The poor cannot travel easily between there and my house, so I'll listen to the stories, evaluate the needs, and respond appropriately. Perhaps this is merely rationalization but literal obedience to this injunction on my home turf would burn us out. We would be packed and gone within a month. Yet I feel guilty for not responding. Any solution?

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Mary Vanderkooi
Kale Heywott Church (KHC)
Soddo, Ethiopia