Just like any other day of the week, walking home from University. Look up, look across and I see a crowd. I walk to the crowd. The crowd are watching. Watching him. Watching him real hard. I look at them. I then look at him. It’s silent. Everyone’s silent, except him.

He screams: “Kill me. Please.” Everyone else still pitch silent. They stare. “Don’t watch me, just slay me, please,” he says. Paul Sherlock, a weak, indignant homeless man.

He looks as though he’s already dead but alive in appearance. “I’ve lost my wife, my children, my work, my home; there’s nothing left for me in this world. I might as well be dead, and rot in hell” he says.

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I know the ’spread the wealth around’ idealism of the US’s  potential new government isn’t going to cut it with real poverty in the US or elsewhere. Spreading the wealth around has to come from the heart to be effective, it has to be born out of personal responsibility to help the poor and is best done in relationship. Jesus Christ said “The poor you will always have with you”, which means those blessed with plenty will always have the responsibility to help those without. Those in hardship in my circle of influence are my responsibility.

On a more micro level, I was talking to a friend on the phone about how the economic crises will affect smaller scale relief work and economic development at a community level. My friend wisely said: “I am endeavoring to make sure this crisis does not affect our giving. It may change the way we give, but we will need to practice extra generosity in a way that will be more sacrificial than before”.

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It seems like everyone�s asking for money now a days, and it can sometimes be difficult to tell who really needs the money, and who�s just cashing in your checks. And sometimes when we have money to give, we don�t know the best places to give it.

Although there are soo many more worthy places to give money (so I encourage the readers of this blog to comment with other places about which they know for sure that the money is going to the right place), here are four places (in no specific order) I currently recommend finding out about, and giving to, if you can, (and every little bit counts!):

The rest of the post at “A Diary of a Mad Muslim Woman”.

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Umm Zakiyya is a mother of two, a Katrina survivor, an active community member and student of knowledge (Islamic and secular). She is currently enrolled for an MA in English, and refuses riba-based loans, so she and her husband are paying out-of-pocket for her education.

Umm Zakiyya has created a short video starring Zakiyya for a scholarship opportunity. The video that gets the most views gets the scholarship. So we can help simply by taking 2 minutes to go watch this sweet little video, and by sharing this with others inshaAllah.

�You can help me win a scholarship just by watching this
video. The entry that secures the most views will win a $5,000
scholarship. All you have to do is view the video, available at this
link.� If you want to help even more, you can forward this video to
everyone you know. Every view helps. If you have a blog, facebook,
myspace page or website, I would certainly appreciate a link.�

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SO5oP8YlxR8

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There is one brother our family knew years ago whose faith in Allah SWT was so personified. May Allah bless him wherever he may be now. Lots of the power of dua stories I know are through him.

He narrated this true story:
He�d been working for the sake of Allah SWT, and for whatever reason, had nothing left at the end of the month to pay for the following month�s rent. His new wife (ask me another time about the power of dua that won him her hand) had left everything she�d ever known, including her country to follow him to the ends of the earth. He didn�t want to put her through the anguish of homelessness. So where did he turn? He made a sincere dua to Allah SWT.
And literally, the following morning, he was called up by a dear friend of his whom he hadn�t spoken to for ages. The conversation went something like this:

�Assalam Alaykum Abdul _________(the nameless hero of our story). I know we haven�t spoken in a long time and I really wanted to call you. You were in my dream last night. In it, I gave you $735.00. Tell me, brother, are you in need of that amount of money? I�m ready to send it to you.�

The brother started crying. It was the exact amount of his rent, subhan Allah.

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Before the end of Jumada Ath-thani, 1429 (June 8th, 2008), please help Sister Linda (Widad) Delgado, who runs the one-sister-show of Muslim Writers Publishing, to help teachers by publishing five teacher study guides (TSG).

You are not helping a lazy dude who opt to beg, NO, this sister didn�t ask for help, but the community recommeded HalfDate to help her. She had TWO HEART ATTACKS, yet, ma-sha-Allah still serving our community and doesn�t want the focus to be on her.

If you contribute between May 24 to May 31, LivingHalal.com will match $1 for $1 towards this cause.

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HalfDate.com is inspired by the teaching of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and prayer be upon him) where he called us to be part of the solution even if our contribution is as small as half a date.

Each month, you will suggest a specific cause (specific goal, amount of $, and due date) and HalfDate.com will feature it as a DateDrive.

Photo by Fairywren

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Click here for other winners
Via Rickshaw Diaries.

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