The Poor and My Responsibility Toward Them

[funion987]

I am nineteen years old and finished my first year of college this year. I have a large amount of free time during this summer as I only work half-day. This job pulls in a reasonable amount of money. I also have a sizeable savings account.

What do I do to help the poor? Should I give all my money away? I don’t actually need any of it; I eat and sleep for free at my parents’ house during the summer, and they pay for most school expenses (any loans I have I will able to repay with money from the job I get after college). How much of my time should I donate to helping the poor, and how should I do it?

 

[Don_Machiavelli]

any loans I have I will able to repay with money from the job I get after college

HOLD YOUR HORSES. Don’t be so sure about that, buddy.

Anyway, make ALOT of money, and then start a business to that will keep people employed.

If you’re going to volunteer with the poor, volunteer with the children and teens and be their mentor.

 

[marbles_the_cat]

HOLD YOUR HORSES. Don’t be so sure about that, buddy.

Anyway, make ALOT of money, and then start a business to that will keep people employed.

If you’re going to volunteer with the poor, volunteer with the children and teens and be their mentor.

Agreed!

My advice… use much of your cash to avoid student loans. It is a myth that everyone after collage is guarenteed a job! I was told that in high school, and discovered it was not true!

Use the above advice (and others people give) to help the poor.

 

[creationlover]

Amen to all the responses mentioned before this one. You sound like you are a young adult, and we don’t know what the future may hold.

 

[midori]

Use your cash to help your parents out by offsetting the cost of your education. If you or your parents have to take out loans, you’re not in a position to be reckless with your money. Once you have your education covered, start saving so that you don’t have to be dependent on your parents once you do graduate.

You say you have massive amounts of free time. Give that to the poor. Volunteer in a homeless shelter. A soup kitchen. A food pantry. Get involved with a program that helps the homebound, or those in nursing homes, or whatever.

I strongly suspect being able to interact with a different segment of society than you’re comfortable or familiar with might be a greater act of charity than writing a check for money you don’t feel like you need because others are already supplying all your wants. This way, you can help both the poor and those closer to home.

 

[JRKH]

Great advice above.
Giving money away is fine, but it may not be the best use of this resource that God is giving you. As the first responder said, consider trying to open a business later that will employ more people.
Giving vs investing, is like the old saying;
“Give a man a fish and he eats for a day, teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime”.

By all means volunteer, working with the poor might help you discern how best to help them through work.
And if you feel compelled, set aside a percentage of your income for the poor.

Peace
James

 

[funion987]

If you or your parents have to take out loans, you’re not in a position to be reckless with your money. Once you have your education covered, start saving so that you don’t have to be dependent on your parents once you do graduate.

This is what I was looking for. Thanks.

By all means volunteer, working with the poor might help you discern how best to help them through work.

This, too. Thanks.

 

[Ponyguy]

GIVING money to the poor is foolhardy at best, encouraging laziness and a dependence on give-aways and handouts. Our hopelessly flawed welfare system is amply visible proof.

HELPING the poor help themselves by instilling a work ethic in them, along with a sense of responsibility, is an immeasurably better way to improve the situation.

So, which one does the American government foster? http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v313/ponyguy/facepalmsmiley.gif

 

[Jaypeeto4]

The welfare system in the USA was reformed in the 1990s. A person cannot just
sit back and receive welfare checks for years and years anymore. They have to be willing to find work, and the welfare is cut off at 2 years. They are expected to find something by then ((although in this horrible economy, that may not be possible right now)).
I don’t like the way that people assume that all or most people on welfare have no
work ethic. That simply isn’t true. Yes, there are welfare-queens who pump out babies to get more welfare, but that is not common, despite Conservative rhetoric. ((Which rhetoric is simply a device for stingy people who don’t want to contribute to the needy for the common good all too often)).