In 2016, Kevin and Charlene Amacker set their sights on retiring; however, they were $150,000 in debt.

Charlene remembers, “Charlene and I did grasp the fact that if we can start managing our money better and get out of debt, because, we did not want to go into retirement years, with debt and having no money.”

Kevin shares, “The Bible tells us that the borrower is slave to the lender. And, and that's the truth.”

When they married in 2002, the couple agreed that tithing would be a non-negotiable. Charlene worked as an MRI technician and Kevin worked in manufacturing. Just two-months into their marriage Kevin was laid off.

Kevin says, “I'm thinking, you know, Lord, you've brought us through so many things. What, what is going on here?”

The Amacker’s never stopped tithing. Kevin had a small severance, and Charlene’s paycheck helped to make ends meet. Two months later, he was hired by another company, although it was $15% less they did offer a professional certification program.

Kevin says, “What I thought was a very setback turned out to be a blessing, because once I received that certification, it enhanced my ability to grow my income substantially.”

At the same time, Charlene was given more responsibilities at her job where she received 20 hours of overtime a week!

Charlene shares, “We never missed the 15%. God saw the job change for Kevin. God saw the position change for me, it wasn't a coincidence. It was His divine blessing.”

With the new credentials, Kevin was promoted to logistics manager and his salary increased by $20,000 a year! He was also given two raises over the next five years. With each raise Kevin and Charlene increased their giving as well.

Charlene says, “I do not believe as a Christian that we live by luck. It's God, He can't be anything but faithful.”

When Kevin’s aging parents needed assisted living, the Amackers’ helped with the expenses.

Charlene recalls, “We would pick up diapers, whatever we needed to help care for them. It's is a role reversal, but you do it because it's your parents and it's scriptural and no regrets. When you give the look on someone’s face of sheer relief that that needs been met, it's eternal. We’re building up our treasures in heaven.”

The couple says they have learned the secret of tithing and why god blessed their obedience.

Kevin shares, “We are willing to invest in other people everything that God has blessed us with is not ours. It came from God.”

Charlene shares, “When you give back to God your first fruits that releases blessings over the remaining of your money, why would you not want to have that blessing over your home, and your finances?”

After five years, Kevin and Charlene are free from their $150,000 debt. They support missionary outreaches and many ministries. They love the idea of being an answer to someone’s prayer. Today, Charlene is retired  following thirty years in healthcare with her salary nearly 400% above her starting pay. And  Kevin’s earnings are up by 40%.

Kevin says, “Influencing people, helping people, having a paid off home, having paid off vehicles, no debt. Having a nest egg retirement fund. I am firmly convinced that our faithfulness to tithing played a tremendous part in where we are today.”

When Mrs. Zhou found out she was going to have a baby, she went to see a shaman.   

“He put rice, an egg, and money in a bowl and began chanting that my child would have plenty of food, health, and wealth,” Mrs. Zhou recalls.

Yet soon after Jingchen was born, he got sick.

“He started vomiting, and his diaper was covered in blood. I was terrified,” Mrs. Zhou confesses. “The local doctors just gave him treatment for his bowel.  But a week later, Jingchen wasn’t better.”  

Mrs. Zhou returned to the shaman.  

“He had us kill some chickens and said they would take the devil's curse meant for Jingchen,” she remembers.

After this, things got worse.  There was no bowel movement, and as Jingchen lost weight, his stomach got more bloated.  

Mrs. Zhou shares, “Jingchen’s breathing got weak, and I started wondering if the gods really existed and heard me.”  

Mrs. Zhou contacted her husband who works out of town, and he told her to bring Jingchen to a city hospital for help.  

“The doctor there said he had an obstruction at the beginning of the large intestine, and he had an infection,” reports Mrs. Zhou.

Without surgery, Jingchen could die.  So, the Zhous tried to borrow money for an operation, but they came up short.  

Mrs. Zhou shares, “I cried and said, ‘Baby, there's nothing we can do to save you.’”

Then a doctor told the Zhous about Operation Blessing.   

“He said Operation Blessing is a charity that specializes in helping needy families,” exclaims Mrs. Zhou.  I saw on the application, and it said, ‘Give help, bring hope’, and right then, I had hope.”

You helped make it possible for Jingchen to get surgery.  

“Now he can eat and digest food normally.  He’s gained weight and has lots of strength,” Mrs. Zhou expresses.    She concludes, “An Operation Blessing volunteer prayed for Jingchen.   She said there’s a God who loves my baby and our family. He doesn't seem to be like the gods we know. He died for us.  I don't understand it all yet, but I know his name is Jesus.  I really appreciate the Operation Blessing donors for helping my baby.  Now Jingchen can grow up healthy, and our lives are full of sunshine.”

After graduating college, Carmen Woodkirk landed a job as a crime scene investigator. In 2014, she married David. To start their new life together, David quit his job in New York. His search for a new job in his new home went on for months.

Before long, between student loans, credit cards, and car payments, the couple had $50,000 in debt.

“We were paying the minimum balances on a lot of things,” stated Carmen. “The months that we were short with money, we would resort to credit cards.”

“We were trying to survive,” said David. “I would say anywhere from two to six hundred dollars short every month.”

Carmen added, “I remember all we had in our refrigerator was ketchup and eggs.”

David took odd jobs, and Carmen picked up adjunct teaching gigs at two different universities. Still, the extra income wasn’t enough to solve their financial struggle.

“I started feeling pretty depressed, anxious, stressed,” recalled David. 

The couple knew something had to change. Growing up, David had been taught about the importance of tithing. He suggested they start putting it into practice.

“I was really working off of my own strength, my own knowledge rather than allowing God to take precedent over every area of my life,” said Carmen.

”We made the decision to tithe before we paid any bills, before we got any food for the fridge - anything else,” explained David.

Shortly after they started giving, the couple saw results.

I felt that a heavy weight had been lifted upon me,” explained Carmen. “I felt more hopeful.”

David landed a stable job, while Carmen got a fifteen percent raise at work. For the first time, they were no longer losing money at the end of every month.

“Money started coming in, both from her job and mine. We started chipping away at our debt and paying a little extra every month,” said David.

Soon, Carmen got her dream job as a DNA analyst and David was hired as a construction safety officer. They used these new opportunities to pay down their debts.

“We were able pay off about $35,000 in one year,” explained Carmen. “There’s more money that we can play with within our budget, and we’ve been able to give more.”

David added, “Starting to tithe and being obedient in that, changed our lives.”

The Woodkirks have been debt free since 2018. Today, their combined income has nearly tripled since they started tithing.

“It was reassurance and just knowing that God was always going to take care of us,” said David. “God is gonna reward your obedience and faithfulness.”

“God says test me in this one area and I’ve seen God fulfill His promises,” stated Carmen. “Watch Him and what He’s gonna do in your life and with your tithe and the impact that He’s gonna make. I think it’s gonna blow your mind.”
 

As the cost of living continues to soar, many are struggling to make ends meet. Beatrice, a widow, mother, and grandmother, is one of them.

“When I was working and I took care of my four kids all by myself, and I did better than I say I do now. I done worked all my life and on Social Security and it's just not enough,” Beatrice said.

Beatrice doesn’t qualify for government help with food, so she relies on her Social Security check to cover all of her living expenses.

“And with the food and stuff, that’s going up higher, everything going up but my check,” Beatrice said.

So, Beatrice turned to Cupboards for Christ, a partner of Operation Blessing.

“Cupboards for Christ have I believe saved my life because I don’t worry about, well, ‘What am I going to eat today?’ This month come and I need it, I go and I don’t have no problem but smiling all the time. And you know you never know what’s going to be in that bag! So that makes you feel good. ‘What I got today?!’” rejoiced Beatrice.

Because of you, people here in the United States and around the world are receiving the food they so desperately need.

“They do a fantastic job and I pray that they keep up the good work because I’m one that really, really appreciate it,” Beatrice said.