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a CAMEL through the EYE of the NEEDLE
Howard Buffett.
Ever heard of him?
Son of Susie and Warren Buffett.
Photographer. Philanthropist. Billionaire.
No?
I hadn't either, until seeing Charlie Rose interview him the other night.
What a wonderful man.
He proves that, although it is exceedingly rare, one can be super-rich and still sincerely serve Jesus Christ.
Howard Buffett, son of famed Wall Street guru and billionaire Warren Buffett, is spending not just his finances but also his life fighting hunger in Africa.
According to the Wall Street Journal:
It was ordained that Howard and his two siblings would see the family fortune given away rather than have it to spend on themselves.
His father, who lives far below his means in a modest Omaha house, has argued publicly that it does little good for society when children inherit great wealth by virtue of an ‘ovarian lottery’…Of his middle child, he says, ‘he’s got my money and his mother’s heart’…
It’s hard to measure the impact of Howard Buffett’s foundation, something Mr. Buffett himself acknowledges. He does most of the work finding and visiting projects…. He employs eight people, mostly in administrative roles. One man is based in South Africa overseeing research on Mr. Buffett’s 6,000 acres of farmland outside Johannesburg. It was there on a wildlife preserve that he set up that a cheetah bit him.
Mr. Buffett figures his foundation’s projects have helped about 1.5 million Africans so far. He hopes that the crop-breeding work he is supporting will eventually help millions more African farmers feed their families.
P.S.
A thoughtful post from Jill Carattini of Ravi Zacharias Ministries.
Here’s the nut of it:
In our impervious boxes and minimalist depictions of the Christian story, we comfortably live as if in our own world, blind and unconcerned with the world of suffering around us, intent to tell our feel-good stories while withdrawing from the harder scenes of life…
In reality, the stories Jesus left us with are so much more than wishful thinking and his proclamations of the kingdom among us are far from declarations of escapism.
The story of Rachel weeping for her slaughtered children and Lazarus waiting in agony at the gate of someone who could make a difference are two stories among many that refuse to let us sweep the suffering of the world under the rug of unimportance. The fact that they are included in the gospel that brings us the hope of Christ …
For Christ brings the kind of hope that can reach even the most hopeless among us. And Jesus hasn’t overlooked the suffering of the world anymore than he has invited his followers to do so; it is a part of the very story we tell.
Thus, precisely because the faith we proclaim is not a drug that anesthetizes or a dream that deludes, we must tell the whole story and not merely the parts that lessen our own pain. We must also live as people watchful and ready to be near those who weep and wait–the poor, the demoralized, and the suffering.
There are far too many Rachels who are still weeping and Lazaruses who are still waiting, waiting for men and women of faith to be the good news they proclaim.
Howard Buffett.
Ever heard of him?
Son of Susie and Warren Buffett.
Photographer. Philanthropist. Billionaire.
No?
I hadn't either, until seeing Charlie Rose interview him the other night.
What a wonderful man.
He proves that, although it is exceedingly rare, one can be super-rich and still sincerely serve Jesus Christ.
Howard Buffett farming in Burandi, Africa (photo: WSJ)
Howard Buffett, son of famed Wall Street guru and billionaire Warren Buffett, is spending not just his finances but also his life fighting hunger in Africa.
According to the Wall Street Journal:
It was ordained that Howard and his two siblings would see the family fortune given away rather than have it to spend on themselves.
His father, who lives far below his means in a modest Omaha house, has argued publicly that it does little good for society when children inherit great wealth by virtue of an ‘ovarian lottery’…Of his middle child, he says, ‘he’s got my money and his mother’s heart’…
It’s hard to measure the impact of Howard Buffett’s foundation, something Mr. Buffett himself acknowledges. He does most of the work finding and visiting projects…. He employs eight people, mostly in administrative roles. One man is based in South Africa overseeing research on Mr. Buffett’s 6,000 acres of farmland outside Johannesburg. It was there on a wildlife preserve that he set up that a cheetah bit him.
Mr. Buffett figures his foundation’s projects have helped about 1.5 million Africans so far. He hopes that the crop-breeding work he is supporting will eventually help millions more African farmers feed their families.
P.S.
A thoughtful post from Jill Carattini of Ravi Zacharias Ministries.
Here’s the nut of it:
In our impervious boxes and minimalist depictions of the Christian story, we comfortably live as if in our own world, blind and unconcerned with the world of suffering around us, intent to tell our feel-good stories while withdrawing from the harder scenes of life…
In reality, the stories Jesus left us with are so much more than wishful thinking and his proclamations of the kingdom among us are far from declarations of escapism.
The story of Rachel weeping for her slaughtered children and Lazarus waiting in agony at the gate of someone who could make a difference are two stories among many that refuse to let us sweep the suffering of the world under the rug of unimportance. The fact that they are included in the gospel that brings us the hope of Christ …
For Christ brings the kind of hope that can reach even the most hopeless among us. And Jesus hasn’t overlooked the suffering of the world anymore than he has invited his followers to do so; it is a part of the very story we tell.
Thus, precisely because the faith we proclaim is not a drug that anesthetizes or a dream that deludes, we must tell the whole story and not merely the parts that lessen our own pain. We must also live as people watchful and ready to be near those who weep and wait–the poor, the demoralized, and the suffering.
There are far too many Rachels who are still weeping and Lazaruses who are still waiting, waiting for men and women of faith to be the good news they proclaim.
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