Our vision for a better future must evolve beyond handing out money or food to the poor and vulnerable. Handing out money to people is like the “fast food” version of change. It provides instant gratification and a sense of accomplishment. However, we all know nothing has really changed. You will always need to give money handouts to those people. The problem is that handouts are not sustainable and it cannot be consistent. You must be ready to take a long and thoughtful look at a problem and then build systems to solve it.
Apostle Paul writing in Romans admonishes us not to fit into the accepted norms of the world without thinking about it. You will find out that there is so much you can do if only you are ready to take time to think through. Strive Masiyiwa and his wife began a non-profit organization after a staff member of their business died, leaving behind small children. They were compelled to start offering scholarships to orphaned and vulnerable children because it was clear that nobody else was doing so at that time. Scholarships are not handouts, they are a handup. They help people get on their feet in order to lead a better life.
If you want to help people, start a business and employ one more person every year. It looks small, but it is more impactful in the long term. That is real charity. You must develop a deeper understanding of philanthropy. You must discover for yourself what it really means to love people enough in order to think through social and economic problems. And then build a system that will solve the problem in a way that is consistent and sustainable. Real biblical charity will make you invest ten years or more into getting your PhD so that you can be better equipped to invent cures to diseases that have claimed lives.
