By: Macy Froetschner
Food and shelter are provisions we often take for granted. We know where our next meal will come from, and we trust that our house will remain warm in the winter and cool in the summer. But this, unfortunately, is not true for many people in the United States. Someone who is homeless does not have ready access to food and shelter. He or she lacks protection from the elements and does not know where his or her next meal will come from.
Homelessness is on the rise in the United States; in fact, the U.S. Department of Housing reported that over 770,000 people experienced homelessness in 2024. This means that thousands of our very own neighbors must compromise their safety as they spend another night on the street with an empty stomach.
I have witnessed the pain of homelessness firsthand. This summer I stayed in downtown Indianapolis for a weekend trip with some friends. While we were downtown, we decided to take a walk around Monument Circle, an area filled with coffee shops, restaurants, shopping, and a public park. As we were about to enter a coffee shop, I noticed a homeless man sitting outside. A couple walked past him, and he asked them for food. The couple ignored the man and kept walking. As the couple walked away the man called out, “Can’t you see I’m starving? Why won’t you look at me?” This last question is most poignant. Most homeless people are treated as though they are less than human. Everyday hundreds of people pass them on the streets and ignore their very existence. This leaves homeless people feeling as though they aren’t worth love and care, as if their lives do not matter.
The truth is, we are all beggars. God reached down to us while we were trapped in the muck, mire, and misery of our sin and pulled us out, surrounding us instead with the mercy and richness of His Son. Our lives have value not because of our own abilities or wealth, but because of what God has done for us. This means that homeless people, having been created by God, redeemed by Christ, and called to faith by the Holy Spirit, are not only valuable, but deserve dignity and respect. When we encounter homeless people, we Christians not only see their poverty with compassionate eyes, but are also moved to uphold a human life that Christ cares for. Matthew 25:35-40 teaches us that by caring for the hungry, the stranger, and the imprisoned, we serve Christ. Indeed, God values every human life and works through His people to give provision to the poor and homeless.
We can care for the homeless by first acknowledging that they have value on account of Christ; when we see a homeless person on the street, we see Christ Himself and so treat this person with the utmost care and respect. The first step of this care is to simply notice the person. This can look like making eye contact, offering a smile, shaking a hand, or addressing them as ma’am or sir. We can also care for them according to our own gifts, abilities, and vocations. This will look different in the lives of different Christians. It could include volunteering at a homeless shelter, raising money for a food bank, or bringing donations of food, furniture, beds, and blankets to a shelter. It may also look like carrying care packages or homeless kits in your car or offering a prayer for someone you meet on the street. Whatever your service may look like, God will use it to uphold the lives of the homeless and in doing so glorify His Son.