Before the holidays a wealthy man anonymously handed out $100,000 to random people – one crisp hundred-dollar bill at a time. He asked police officers to help him distribute the dough.
The officers – who were videotaped — generally stopped cars with dented doors, broken windows and other signs of poverty. Many drivers were angry when they saw the cop approaching but underwent a dramatic change of heart upon spotting the money.
The video is a riveting reminder that giving can be rather simple. The officers didn't interrogate the receivers about their plans for the cash. One lady began weeping and said she needed money for Christmas presents for her kids. But no one followed her around afterwards to find out if she spent it in less savory ways.
The generous impulse can get far too complicated when we over think it. I recall one evening when my husband and I were leaving church and encountered a raggedy-looking lady carrying bags. She said she needed money to get somewhere.
She was one of many panhandlers roaming around Decatur who often spin creative tales about their need for cash. Maybe they’ve discovered a simple request yields them a big fat no.
In the past I was one of the naysayers, but that night something about the woman stirred my heart. I peered into my wallet and saw a big clump of bills. I peeled one off for her, and told her I’d pray for her.
It’s comforting to give money to a big, legitimate organization dedicated to filling the bellies of hungry children. You can even get an annual report showing where every penny goes.
And it would be nice if every panhandler could produce credentials proving their true impoverishment. It’d be helpful if they could assure us our precious cash would buy things consistent with our values.
Let’s face it, though. Anytime we give money to a stranger, there’s a good chance he might be playing the system. But sin lies in deceiving people, not in being deceived.
C.S. Lewis was walking with a friend when they encountered a beggar. Lewis gave generously, but the friend chided him, saying the man would squander it on ale. “That’s all I was going to do with it,” Lewis replied.
Lewis said he wouldn’t be troubled at the hour of his death to realize someone had tricked him. “But it would be a torment,” he said, “to know that I had refused even one person in need.”
Someone long ago said that when you give to the poor, don’t let your right hand know what your left hand is doing. Yes, that was Jesus, and he never said a word about background checks.
In that video, some recipients of the money shouted and danced for joy. Others gave the officers huge hugs and kisses.
Not one person asked where the money had come from. No one inquired whether the giver had become rich through ventures that met their approval. Instead, they celebrated a joyous moment of generosity. And, really, it needn’t be more complicated than that.
