When it comes to putting hard-luck folks to work...

... there have been a couple of things that concern me. A lot of little contractors like myself don't really have the kind of cash on hand to pay someone until we get paid for the job. That may be as long as 30 days. That's something that's always bothered me, and it's kept me from hiring any temporary help. This morning I got a solid reminder that it's not just my overdeveloped sense of responsibility that's talking to me:

14 “Never take advantage of poor and destitute laborers, whether they are fellow Israelites or foreigners living in your towns. 15 You must pay them their wages each day before sunset because they are poor and are counting on it.

Deuteronomy 24:14, 15a

I guess as much as anything it tells me that we have to be abundantly cautious to ensure that we don't take advantage of a poor person's lack of status. I know there are a lot of contractors out there who intentionally do so, and I would guess that there are a lot of contractors who do so unintentionally. I want to be sure, as I continue trying to move forward in service to the poor, that I'm not making the problem of poverty worse, that I'm consistent in applying principle to my own life and business.