What does it mean to give to charity? What about giving to someone you know or meet who has unfulfilled needs? Should you or shouldn’t you help those less fortunate than yourself? What can you give? Why might you choose to give?
Charity and giving comes in all shapes and sizes. You might know someone personally who could use a helping hand or a little kindness. Sometimes you identify with a situation of need that touches your heart and you want to help however you can. Other times it feels as though someone is just reaching for money or volunteers and you just don’t think they need them. Some people want to help those in third world countries who struggle to have clean water or decent health care. Still other people would rather care for the homeless or addicts in their home towns. Most of us find it harder to help those we know personally because we know something about their situation and, for a variety of reasons, feel unable or unwilling to help.
My Experience
One of the disagreements my ex-wife and I used to have was how to fulfil our desire and obligation to give to charity. She was often concerned about money, so she didn’t think we could afford to give much. She made up for that by helping with various functions or volunteer opportunities. I, on the other hand, value my own time and didn’t like how much of it volunteering required of me. I wanted to give money so I didn’t have to actively participate. Both of us wanted to help our community or the rest of the world, in various ways, but each of us had different ideas about what it should look like. The truth is, both of us helped in important ways.
Since she left, my kids grew up and moved out, and I lost my job, I’ve had a lot more free time and a limited budget so giving time lets me participate in my community. It’s also helped me to find and expand my comfort zone. It’s not always been a bed of roses, but I’ve learned what time and effort can do that no amount of money can ever replace. For one thing, the people I’ve gotten to interact with have given me some incredible memories. I’ve had the pleasure of working with some amazing people I wouldn’t have likely associated with socially or professionally simply because of differences in lifestyles.
Another thing I’ve tried to give more of is unconditional love. What that means to me is a few things. First of all, it means I don’t get to judge anyone for the decisions they make. There are many people I think should have said or done something differently to get the results they want, but I don’t know the story, hurt, or values behind their decisions, so judging them would only be selfish and inconsiderate. Unconditional love means I will allow them to make their own mistakes and help only when they ask for it. Second, when someone hurts me or those I love, unconditional love forces me to forgive them in order to feel the hurt, process those feelings, and move on. It doesn’t mean I should forget what they did or act like it never happened. It only means I take the steps I need to for my own healing and don’t let them dictate my feelings or actions by their actions. Lastly, loving those around me without judgement is an act of charity that doesn’t take time or money and can make a huge difference in someone’s life.
If this is you
Charity can give you the chance to make a difference in the world at large without being a millionaire or a celebrity. If you have enough money to make ends meet, consider what a small dent in your budget can do for someone who doesn’t have enough. Either through a non-profit organisation, or getting together with a few friends to help some local people. Both options have plenty of opportunity for volunteering possibilities as well if time is something you can spare a little of.
Don’t underestimate the positive power of loving kindness. A sincere smile at a stranger can change the course of their day and cause a ripple effect that could echo far beyond the people you meet. More importantly, though, is the power of helping the people you know out of personal trouble. Many of us turn a blind eye when someone we know is experiencing personal financial trouble. We find it easier to help someone we know with emotional issues than almost any other problem they may have. There is a good chance, however, you know someone who is short of money on a regular basis. Many of us find it much harder to help with financial problems, often because we see what causes the problem and how to fix it. We judge they have made mistakes and they must learn from those mistakes. What we don’t often consider is they might not see the same things we do and they may even know something we don’t. Either way, the mistakes we see might actually be the best those people are currently capable of and their financial situation can actually make it harder to deal with their own issues instead of teaching them to take responsibility for them.
Yet another situation we often overlook personally is helping people, especially children, who have limited physical or mental abilities. We often find it easier to help someone we don’t already know. Contributing time and money to the organisations that help people with disabilities is an important way to keep those groups helping people. For those of you who are able, though, personal interaction means so much more to these people and to the ones who care for them. Since so many of us have a hard time connecting with someone with special needs, often because they have specific ‘special needs’, most of these people lack the same kinds of personal friendships the rest of us have access to. Those of us who are able to spend quality time with someone who has disabilities can make a real difference. The love they have to share will be the purest you are likely to ever see.
If this is someone you know
Do you know someone who can’t make ends meet? What about a friend or family member who just can’t seem to get their shit together? How many people do you know personally who have utilised a public or non-profit agency to help themselves through a tough point in their life? When should we take responsibility for helping the people we know with the problems they can’t seem to solve on their own? How, when, and why should we help them? At what point do we need to distance ourselves from the people we know because they have become a negative drain on our resources? These are the questions all of us are faced with many times in our lives. We’ve all known someone who couldn’t pay their bills, had health issues they didn’t know how to handle, or lost their lust for life. How we deal with these situations is what defines our true character.
Most of us rely on old sayings and standardised attitudes to decide how to deal with these situations instead of really thinking about what each of us could personally do to help those we know and love out of a tough spot. Words like narcissist, lazy, selfish, or enabler usually serve to reinforce the negative self image of the person in need rather than forcing them to face their problems and deal with them. Instead of tagging then with a cliché stereotype and avoiding the real issues, try setting up appropriate boundaries to protect yourself and offering sincere help with the problems they can’t handle on their own. You’ll likely find the person/people you are helping will make practical progress. Better yet, you’ll probably help them see themselves as valuable human beings who have something to offer and that can set them up to start solving their own problems with solutions they can do themselves.
Charity isn’t something we should give to everyone all the time. There are circumstances when offering charity is not the best choice. One of these is when you don’t really understand the struggles of the people in need. If you don’t know what they need help with, you probably aren’t going to do much good helping them. Another scenario that could make charity inappropriate is when you lack the resources required. If you don’t have the time, money, or compassion needed to address the problem then giving those things might end up putting you into need of someone else’s charity.
What it means
Giving is one of the best ways to make our world a better place and increase the amount of happiness circulating our globe. It makes us feel good, and creates miracles that can’t happen on their own. It can, however, be confusing to know what and how to help others in our world of tightening limitations. The most basic ways to give are to help a friend in need. But don’t leave out the charities and non-profits in your area, they help the people who don’t have personal support groups.
I’d like to see us all reverse the trend toward helping strangers instead of those we know personally. No one has a better chance of helping someone out than the people who know something about his/her circumstances. If we helped out the people in our lives more often, the public and non-profit organisations would be needed less and could offer more personalised solutions to those they do help. Besides, you will never know how grateful someone can be until you help them push their lives in a positive direction.
If you have any questions about charity and giving, drop me a line and ask. I love the conversations.