Close to home...

Praise the LORD!!!
   I just finished reading an article at Change.org on the homeless. This one hit an area close to my heart. It was on the homeless that have come from the confines of our prison systems. You see, before the LORD found me I had just been arrested and saw that I had totally messed up my life. This is when I was blessed to accept salvation, thus my life took a 360 and has never been the same. But this isn't about me, it's about those that have served their time in prison, sans the LORD, and been released into a 'new world.' For no matter the length of sentence, their world as they'd known it has changed.
   These changes range from their no longer being accepted by society as one having the rights of the normal person. They've become a lower than life form of being. No longer fit to be employed. Unable to receive many of the governments social programs. Like the young lady in this story, they become homeless, outcast of society. This even if they've changed their lifestyle or not. Many may resort to any means possible to survive. This woman chose 'pan handling', but many others will turn to illegal means to survive. This too, isn't the reason for this blog.
   What is the problem with a system that takes people into it and then just turns them out without caring about whether or not it had benefited the person? Our prison systems turn out possibly thousands like this each month. Many not able to support themselves by legal means, end up right back in the system that was meant to correct their problem in the first place.There are many programs in prison to improve oneself, but no guarantee that a person will take advantage of them, let alone complete them. At one time prisons were meant to adjust a person's behavior to that of the norms of society, but that is no longer the case. Now it is more of a money game, just meant to take them out of society for a while and later on run them through again. This too is not the reason for this blog!
   How is it that we as a "Christian" nation can sit back and allow our fellow man to be put through such treatment? It is bad enough that we allow a system that is truly flawed to continue to operate in such manor. Greater still that we can turn our backs on our 'neighbor' when they are treated in such manor. How is it that we as Christians can continue to vote in politicians that won't address these problems straight on, no matter what the repercussions to their political futures? How is it that we can call ourselves Christians when we allow our fellow man to be treated more like an animal then a human and not speak up or reach out to them with a hand of compassion? Have we lost sight of the very principles which made this country so great? Worse yet, have we lost sight, and touch, with the GOD that we call our LORD and SAVIOR?