If I were homeless, I would want to be treated with dignity and respect.
I would want people to see past the street dirt and grime to my tender heart beating underneath. I would ache for them to know that I have feelings–hopes, fears, and despair–and that I am not cold and uncaring.
Even if others could do nothing to help financially or physically, I would wish for them to stop and talk to me as a human brother or sister. I would yearn to feel the love of Jesus spilling from their words and seeping into the crevices of my pain.
I would long for both justice and mercy from those who call themselves Christians. I would crave their rapport as I seek a sustainable lifestyle, along with their affirmation that I have value to offer the world.
If I were homeless, I would want people to realize that they are each only one support-system away from being homeless, too.
arabah rejoice 
Love this! Same thoughts I’ve been mulling over lately. Too often we forget that ‘but for the grace of God, there go I’.
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So true. A lady who has been attending our church for a few months – long enough to learn to know her as a person and not just a face, is back on the streets because of her addictions. In a new way I am realizing how blessed I am to have a firm support system. We often glibly thank God for our “godly heritage” but when you watch someone struggle to live free of the habits that have claimed them for years, it is sobering to know that it could easily be me. Oh to love as God loves.
Gina
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Read “Under the Overpass.” Eye-opening look at homelessness. I’ll never look at the homeless the same way again.
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Yes, that is an excellent book!
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Another excellent book is – Same Kind of Different As Me.
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I haven’t read that one. Thank you!
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