Generosity Encouraged

Cap and Trade: All Increases Converted to Heavenly Riches

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 14:27:00 +0000

I was very challenged by something I read** on a flight to Cleveland this week. It was a biographical article about the generous life of John Wesley. I'm sure there are better biographies on him, but I recommend this article for its brevity and well-organized outline of some of the more notable aspects of his life (practice) and preaching on the subject of money and giving.

What blew me away was the degree to which he internalized things which Jesus and the Apostles taught. What is plainly seen in the Scriptures was so fully embraced by John, that it is rather shocking.

In summary, he got to a point where he committed to cap his spending at a fairly low level, and whatever extra came in after that, he would give it all away.

By why should I be shocked by his example? Is it because I feel the call to rise to a similar level of trust in God, expressed through generosity, but am as yet unwilling? Hmmm... Selah... Ouch.

In my work with high-net worth individuals, on behalf of an exceptional Christian ministry, I am privileged to know several individuals and families who have made similar commitments. I think of one young man who has great inherited wealth and has handed over control of around 80% of all that God has given him, putting it into a charitable trust that can only be used for gifting... and many similar stories of people who are indeed rising to a level like John Wesley.

Oh that I and many others would have faith like this. Lord Jesus, help (compel) us to live according to all the trust and joy you have in mind for us!

Other things that impacted me from Wesley's example (blog posts to come):

1) He was pro-business, arguing that to set up profitable endeavors was good stewardship.
2) He believed in giving during your lifetime, versus giving after you're gone. I'm not sure about this, seeing value in both. But I want to explore his thoughts more.

** This article is intended for the most mature of givers, what some call "Giving Champions." Do not be discouraged if the article seems, form your perspective, to be calling to a kind of giving/trust that you are not ready for. Instead, check out a great Web site (www.givingjourney.com) which is built around the idea that growing in generosity, like all spiritual growth, is a process, and there are stages. The creators of this site recognize four stages, and have created actionable suggested items for each stage, including things to read, and things to do. I highly recommend, no matter where you are in terms of being generous, that you click on one of the four stages:

I intend to share more on these stages soon...

The Artful Journey

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 14:12:00 +0000

This year, to sharpen the saw, I'm setting aside a little time each Monday to read "The Artful Journey" by William Sturtevant. If you are a someone who has the privilege of working with people who have means, encouraging them to abound in graciousness, I consider it a must-read.

I received my copy from the VP of Advancement of one of the country's largest not-for-profits who said it was the best book he'd found in his 30+ years working with major donors.

But if you have a line on one for less than Amazon's lowest price, then please comment on this post with the link. Thanks!

Downsize for Christ's Sake

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 14:56:00 +0000

This article from The Gathering tells a story of a family that made an unusual, but very realistic decision to downsize their house, in order to give away 1/2 of their wealth.

I don't know this particular family, but I do know first hand more than one such family that has made the same decision. I'm compelled to consider it for myself.

By my rough calculation, if 1% of the population in America who made any charitable gift last year were to make this same decision to liquidate their main asset and give away half of their wealth, then the total* given by all US givers would increase by 2.5 X (250%) !

* Let me reiterate: Even if 99% of US givers kept their giving this year exactly the same as last year, the effect of the 1% going from normal giving to the "1/2 my wealth" standard would make the cumulative US giving go up by 2.5 times.

Okay, so you are thinking (and so am I) that it is just not going to happen that 3 million people (1% of our rounded US population) is going to follow suit...

But what about at a micro-level? What about your church family? Could 1% of the people you worship with take this step of faith? Could you? ... Could I?

Stair rail in progress

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:25:00 +0000

Joshua Harber

-- Sent from my Palm Prē

Island Countertop Installed

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:24:00 +0000

Joshua Harber
-- Sent from my Palm Prē

The Drywall is up!

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:54:00 +0000

It is amazing how quickly the drywall goes up! These show Nathans new room, the archway leading to the new kitchen, and the new future master bedroom.

Siding finished

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:03:00 +0000

New photos of the North and South sides of the house. Notice Nathans new window in the "old" part of the South side.

Speechless, with a Thousand Praises

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 17:20:00 +0000

Truly, no words I here type can add or detract from the joy of knowing and parenting these three. Today was Day 2 at Playalinda Beach, a place I'll never forget.

Signed,
Father to Nathan, Laurel and Elise

Playalinda Beach Day

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 13:27:00 +0000

We spent 6+ hours at a truly pristine, beautiful National Seashore beach, called Playalinda.

It is adjacent to where the shuttle launches. We set up a huge screen pavillion and stayed all day.

Baby Laurel loves the water. Nathan spends 90% of his time chucking fistful of sand. Elise likes to jump over the surf.

Joshua Harber

Windows installed

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 17:25:00 +0000

Tincaps Night

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 01:11:00 +0000

Big Brother

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:14:00 +0000

With all the talk of Orwellian suspiscion, I thought I'd remind everyone of what a good, benevolent and loving Big Brother looks like.

»» Sent from my Palm Pre

Sisters

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:08:00 +0000

I don't have much to say that can add to this. I love these girls!

»» Sent from my Palm Pre

Doll Baby Laurel

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:38:00 +0000

As a bonus for you family members coming to www.joshuaharber.com to see updates on the house construction, I'm throwing in a photo taken today of 10 month old Laurel. She is too cute.

Scroll down for phots from today of the house...

»» Sent from my Palm Pre

Good Light

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:27:00 +0000

This photo is taken from the front door, looking upward and due west. Today they cut into the existing roof and attached the new ridge to the existing joists.

Standing from this vantage point, looking up, Becky commented "It lets in a lot of good light." True, but I think we'll go ahead let them affix the rest of the sheathing.

»» Sent from my Palm Pre

Dining Area

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:04:00 +0000

This picture is from under stairs, looking southwest. In the middle of this frame you see where the existing house ends (left) and new 8' bump out begins (right).

»» sent from my Palm Pre

Kitchen Gutted

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 02:11:00 +0000

If you have ever been in our home, you'll notice some changes in this pic. It is the (former) kitchen, as viewed from the living room.

JH

"Cave Monsters"

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 19:54:00 +0000

Nathan (age 6) and Elise (age 4) pretend to be cave monsters as they march around the freshly-dug trenches before concrete was poured in to establish footers.

Groundbreaking

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 03:07:00 +0000

Photo of the footers being dug

Facebook Notes Blog Import

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 22:01:00 +0000

Testing...

This is a test, this only a test.

Encouraging Generosity,

Joshua

Bible Verses - Our Giving; God's Agenda

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 02:42:00 +0000

Our Giving Must Reflect God’s Agenda*

Proverbs 19:17 — “He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done.”
Luke 19:8 — “But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.’ ”
Acts 10:2-4 — “[Cornelius] and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, ‘Cornelius!’ Cornelius stared at him in fear. ‘What is it, Lord?’ he asked. The angel answered, ‘Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God ...’ ”
Galatians 2:9-10 — “James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews. All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.”
James 1:27 — “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”
Matthew 25:34-40 — “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ ”
Luke 8:1-3 — “After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who ... were helping to support them out of their own means.”
1 Corinthians 9:14 — “In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel.”
Philippians 4:15-17 — “Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need. Not that I am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account.”
Romans 12:13 — “Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.”

* The above was originally listed on GenerousGiving.org. (I think this list follows the outline traced through my favorite little book on giving.) All verse are NIV, copyrighted by IBS, used by permission of Zondervan.

Shed Dormer - Passive Solar Overhang for Summer Shade and Winter Sunlight

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 21:02:00 +0000

While working with an architect on the design of a home addition, we decided on a south-facing shed dormer for the second story. Given the shed style, I mentioned I wanted the overhang of the roof to let winter sun in, but shade out most of the summer sun.

Because I'm a fairly hands-on guy, and my architect (great guy) had not designed such a thing before, I went online and found the following helpful bits of info. But it took a lot longer to find it all, so I thought I would post it here for you, my loyal and devoted readers:

With the equation to the right, you should have most of what you need to calculate how much overhang you need. Two of the variables ("S" and "W") require you to know where you are going to build. If you don't know that, then you need more help than I can give.

Go here to calculate S and W. If I'm thinking correctly, the two dates you need to use are the Summer and Winter Solstices, June 21 and December 21, for S and W respectively.

Seoul, Korea - a preview

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 23:35:00 +0000

Okay, so right now I'm "just" on a brief layover in the airport here in Seoul Korea, on my way to visit friends in China... But I just finished an hour of planning for the 12-hour layover I will enjoy on the return flight, about 10 days from. Here's what we have planned:

1) Visit the Changdeokgung Palace, built in 1394 during the last Korean Dynasty. Super cool site: http://eng.cdg.go.kr/main/main.htm

2) Stroll the 5.7 Km from there to one of the largest churches in the world, Yoido Full Gospel Church, which boasts over 800,000 members: http://english.fgtv.com/

We'll do this next Saturday, so look for picture posts then.. maybe.

747 at 1 AM

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:24:00 +0000

I have the privledge of going on tri-country, nine-flight, twelve-day trip through Asia beginning soon.

This big 747 will take me and my co-traveler, Nate, from Chicago O'hare to--14 hours later--Seoul, Korea.

Wow. Praise the Lord.

* Post made via mobile device *

Birth Annoucement

noreply@blogger.com (~ Joshua Harber) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 09:19:00 +0000

With great joy, Joshua and Becky Harber announce the birth of their third child:

Laurel Catherine Harber
Born: 4:20 AM, 10/10/08
Weight: 7 lbs, 0 oz.
Length: 20.5 inches

God's love for us is expressed perfectly in Jesus willingness to go to the cross for our sins. His mercy is expressed perfectly in the forgiveness and home in heaven we're given through trusting in Christ... And today, even though these things are everything we need, He has added to us little Laurel... It is awesome to think of how much God loves her... how perfectly and thoroughly he loves her and every single person. I can't imagine a more pure love than that I feel holding this new daughter of mine... yet I know God's love for me is infinitely more. Amazing.

Okay, now more on the birth... We checked into the hospital to be induced on Thursday, 10/9 at about 4:30 PM. They gave Becky one dose of a drug to stimulate the process, intending to give her three more. But the first one kicked in and started the process faster than the Dr or nurses expected. It was funny, because by the time the OB/GYN got here and checked to see how dilated Becky was, she said "I think you should sit up, push a couple times and you'll probably have a baby in 10 minutes."
About 1/2 of a push later, Laurel breathed her first breath.

First official photo, under the warmer.

First time in Mom's arms.

First family (partial) photo.

As of the moment of this post, Laurel has already successfully had her first meal from Mom. Everything is perfect. Ten fingers, ten toes, and parents with eyes full of ten tears.

We'll be staying at the hospital through Sunday. Feel free to call us...