“Tithing is just 10% --- and when we realize the power of tithing, I think it's worth it.”

When Sam and Nan met, he was an accountant, a devout believer and Bible college graduate. In 2018, they worked in the same New York office building, and after passing her for nearly a year, Sam invited her to church. Later, she received Christ, and 8 months later they began dating. In 2021 they were married, but they’re story began with less favorable circumstances.

Shortly after Sam earned his MBA in Accounting, he transferred to a new firm, and was laid off six months later, with no real explanation from his boss. Sam shares, “He said that I didn’t belong, and that I belonged in a large corporation.... he was trying to find every reason to release me from the job.” Sam felt his dismissal was totally unwarranted, but he humbly walked away.

The company gave him two weeks of severance pay, and he had about $2,000 in savings. “I ran out after a few months, and then I maxed out my credit cards.” Sam continued, “One day I got home, and I saw a letter on my door --- It says you have three days to get out of your apartment.... And that same day, I hear a tow truck and found out it was the bank seizing my car for missed payments.”

When Sam reached out to family and friends for help, it was just enough to stay in his apartment and temporarily keep his car. Sam leaned into his faith. For several months, Sam drove for a rideshare company to make ends meet, and then a friend told him about the principles of giving and tithing, which ignited his faith. Sam says, “I tried to build my faith by looking for sermons, and one of the few I found on YouTube was Pastor David Ireland, at Christ Church in New Jersey here. He was on YouTube preaching on the difference between First Fruits and tithing.”

After Sam put these principles into action, he prompted his then girlfriend Nan, who also needed a new job at the time, to do the same. She did, and after 37 days of giving, fasting and prayer, she was offered the job that she needed. In 2021 Sam and Nan married, and he remained with the same top firm for several more years. Likewise, Nan continued to progress at her job as well and received two promotions and two raises within a single year. Today, Sam and Nan continue their lifestyle of tithing and giving regularly. They live financially secure, with their newborn son Elim --- and ZERO debt. 

Sam and Nan believe this is directly correlated with their choice to tithe faithfully.

View some of Dr. Ireland’s messages on giving and tithing that changed Sam and Nan’s lives at www.christchurchusa.org. 
 

Mrs. Yang could hardly wait to give birth to her first child, Ke.  She planned to throw a traditional Chinese blessing banquet for him when he turned a month old.  But it never happened because Ke was born with a cleft lip and palate.

She explains, “I knew if people saw him, they wouldn’t bless him.  They’d laugh and say he was a monster.”

Mrs. Yang had to take care of Ke herself because her husband works out of town. To protect Ke, she kept him home a lot and covered him when they went out. Still, someone managed to see him.

She asked me, ‘Did you eat rabbit when you were pregnant.  And now your baby is cursed by a rabbit?’” Mrs. Yang recounts.  “After that, the whole village knew about Ke’s cleft lip.”

It was hard for him to eat, and at six months, he was small, malnourished, and always sick.

“I hardly ever saw him smile,” his mother recollects.  “The doctor said maybe it was because of the gap in his lip that his respiratory tract was so susceptible to infection.”

A fortune teller said the reason Ke had problems was because he was haunted by dead people.  The man suggested building a small bridge and having the first person to cross it give Ke a nickname.

“I took the advice,” Mrs. Yang shares.  “And a man gave Ke the nickname ‘Strong Tiger.’  All I had to do was call him that, and he'd be healthy.”

Instead, Ke landed in the hospital with pneumonia.  After this, the Yangs diligently tried to borrow money for cleft lip surgery, but it cost too much.  So, Mrs. Yang searched online for help and found Operation Blessing.  We helped to make Ke’s surgery possible.

Mrs. Yang exclaims, “When I told my husband the good news on the phone, he was so excited that he cried.  Now my son looks good.  His life is full of sunshine, and I don't have to hide him anymore.”

Ke recently turned one.  And Mrs. Yang was finally able to throw him a party.

“Some people hardly recognized him and they apologized for the things they said.  They gave him a lot of blessings,” Mrs. Yang says.  She concludes, “But I know God’s are all that matter because Operation Blessing volunteers told me God always loved my baby.  So, I’m grateful to Him. And I thank the Operation Blessing donors for giving Ke a bright future.”

In 1985 as a new Christian, Deanna Todd began watching the 700 Club. She was a single mom of two kids and found encouragement and peace during difficult times through the ministry of CBN. “I would call CBN periodically, ask for prayer. They were so gracious and good to me. They prayed and over and over the Lord would answer those prayers,” she says. 

Deanna would donate to the work of CBN on occasions but didn’t do so consistently. She made her living as a contract wallpaper hanger for several hotels in Florida. Then during the real estate crisis in 2007 her work came to a halt as new hotel construction stopped. Deanna says, “It was as though the world stood still. The housing crash was just beginning and my business tanked. It was a very deep and dark place. It was a bleak time. All I could do was cry out to God.”

With business expenses and work opportunities completely dried up, she was $20,000 in debt. Deanna remembers, “I would turn CBN on and they were there for me. I would say they were a great anchor, I called CBN and I asked them to pray. I said in the middle of my bed, crying out to God to help me, I told God that I would commit myself to be constant in my giving, if he would open doors from that point on, I would be faithful. I said, ‘Lord, show me what to do.’ And I called a lady that I had hung wallpaper for, and she did not have any work for me. But she said, ‘Deanna, why don't you clean houses? You're very good. You could do something like that. As a matter of fact, I'll give you your first job.’ And there began my new business.”

Deanna called several more former clients. Before long, she had a thriving house cleaning business, and with every new job, she remained faithful to tithe ten percent of her income. “Then the jobs just started coming. And within nine months I paid off all my debt. I knew it was only the hand of God and my faithfulness to him that had brought me through I never missed a bill,” says Deanna. 

Deanna has been a CBN partner since 2011. Time and time again she has seen God faithfully provide for her needs and give her peace. She encourages everyone to be faithful in their tithes. “Ever since I committed 100% to the Lord to give my tithe and to be faithful to do that, everything has changed. He has been faithful to give me peace. My job and my work has been consistent. It is such an honor to be able to tell the world what God has done for me as a single mom. He's always been there. His blessings are upon us. We can believe that and expect that and I do,” she says.
 

Lydia and her children live in a run-down hut in Kenya.

Lydia explained, “This house is too small for my family and it’s full of cracks and holes. When it rains, everything gets soaked and it’s so cold. It makes it very difficult to sleep.  I work as a day laborer on farms. Sometimes, I wake up so tired I simply don’t have the energy to go out to look for work. We’ve tried to patch up the holes with iron sheets or boards, but it’s all in vain. One day, my fireplace got flooded and we couldn’t even cook.  I felt like I had reached my end. It troubled my heart to see my children living in these conditions. As much as I wanted to build them a good house, I couldn’t afford it.”

Lydia’s youngest children attend a school run by Operation Blessing. When we learned of their plight, we built them a brand-new brick house, equipped with solar lights, and a separate kitchen area.

“We never dreamt this would happen to us,” exclaimed Lydia. “It brings me joy that I no longer worry about a leaking roof when it rains. We are protected from the wind and cold. I am very happy with our new kitchen. We don’t cook and sleep in the same place anymore, so we no longer suffer from the smoke from the fireplace. Now, I have my own bedroom and the children have theirs. I sleep so well, and I wake up every morning feeling refreshed and rested. I am so happy now. We are grateful to God and everyone who helped us. May God bless you and prosper you, so you can continue giving these kinds of miracles to other families.”