There is a controversial book When Helping Hurts: Alleviating Poverty Without Hurting the Poor... and Yourself. Written by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert, it argues that providing relief and rehabilitation for others can create an unhealthy dependency. I (Seth, here) think these claims are overblown. However, helping can sometimes do more harm than good; I agree with that premise. Jonathan and Seth discuss that. What happens when someone accuses us of hurting when we think we're helping? How do we feel? What do we do next? Who do we listen to? And, if our gifts are "for the common good" (1 Cor. 12:7), how do we ensure they're not self-serving?

Thanks for listening! We hope you're settling into 2025 and your resolutions are going strong. If someone told you they thought you were hurting when you thought you were helping, we'd love to hear about it at: [email protected].