Tom Sine of Mustard Seed Associates sent along this link to an excellent article he wrote for Christianity Today about churches preparing for the recession. He describes the situation pretty well.
Shelters all over the U.S. that provide food and housing for the homeless report that demand is soaring and resources are shrinking. States and municipalities are cutting social services to the poor as demand is increasing because tax revenues are declining due to the recession.
He also gives a call to action
Followers of Jesus, during times of crisis, don’t abandon neighbors, but share their resources with them.
Find some time to read the entire article, it’s worth reading regarding of your theological or political world view.
I’d really like to see a church set up showers and lockers for homeless dudes (and dudettes). The only thing they own is the clothes they are wearing, so they would need a place where they can securely and privately place their stuff (like a small closet), and strip down, and wash and dry all their clothes and then dress. One shower, one washing machine and four dryers. Plus a box of used clothes they can go through, and some new socks.
Mike,
There is one in Seattle – http://www.urbanreststop.org/ – but your idea got me thinking of how we can do that here.