Something for nothing is generally worth nothing. What is given can be taken away. What one has earned no one else has a right to.
Generally speaking, when one has not earned the money they have, they tend to spend it freely. When one works hard for their money they tend to spend it wisely. Examples of this might include people who have won the lottery or people who have inherited money. “Easy come, easy go,” is an old saying that expresses a truth. Then why do we continue to fall into the trap of giving to the unworthy, to the lazy? How often has aid fallen into the hands of the greedy and not used for the purposes intended?
The truism, “give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Teach a man how to fish, you feed him for life.” Earning one’s way gives a person dignity and a feeling of self worth.
Giving can be an honorable thing. Giving to the truly needy, giving to promote a worthy cause, etc., is something we should do. Giving to the undeserving is throwing your money away. The same can be said for good advice. Offering an opportunity for self-help is a gift of lasting value.
Give, but give wisely.
March On... 
Dear Abe,
Your point about giving is well taken. I believe charity should be approached like any other business venture. Simply handing money over to a church, may mean that most of it will be used for promotion and building projects, instead of the needy cause. Government aid programs are even worse. Trickle down economics should not be a part of charity.
Charity is one of the highest virtues. But the way churches have browbeaten us into making them the First National Bank of Charity sets up a trickle-down economics that benefits the church much more than it benefits the poor. More importantly, it robs us of the direct spiritual benefits of this virtue, and it does little to further the brotherhood of man or to implement the Golden Rule.
If, on the other hand, you seek out the needy on your own, their monetary condition is lifted much further than by filtering funds through a middle-man fond of grand buildings and self-promotion. A person helped by an organization becomes grateful to the organization, but a person helped directly by another person becomes acutely aware of the personal brotherhood of man. It not only boosts his financial condition–it boosts his spiritual condition. And by raising the act of charity to a personal level of a compassionate experience, your spirit is blessed far beyond anything you can imagine as you drop your dough into a collection plate. You will realize that the most industrious way to tear down the wall between yourself and God is to remove the barriers between yourself and your neighbor.