Last week it was a great joy to travel to the Seattle, Washington area for the wedding of our son, Larry, and his beautiful bride, Ashley. Through the years, we have prayed for each of our children daily. I have also prayed that God would provide godly spouses for each of them. We thank the Lord for Ashley’s parents who faithfully raised their daughter through prayer, the Word of God, and faithfulness to their local church. What a thrill it was to see the culmination of many years of prayer, love, and nurture come together at the wedding of Larry and Ashley.

The wedding ceremony was truly beautiful to behold! Many friends, guest pastors, and family members from various states gathered to support Larry and Ashley as they began their lives of marriage and ministry. Please pray for them as they begin serving our Lord!

Each year during February or March, we have a special stewardship emphasis at Lancaster Baptist Church. It is during this time we consider God’s goodness to us and how we may honor and worship Him through our giving.

I can still recall how Terrie and I began tithing as a young married couple. Over the years, it has been a joy to grow in the grace of giving and to honor the Lord through our giving as a family. Beyond that, it is a thrill to pastor a people with hearts to give and to further the cause of Jesus Christ.

In writing to the Philippian church, the Apostle Paul said, “Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church communicated with me as concerning giving and receiving, but ye only” (Philippians 4:16). God blesses giving people and giving churches with abundant joy!

In his book Who Really Cares, Arthur C. Brooks recently described the effects of our faith upon our charitable giving. In the book he says, “Here is a curious fact: Families in San Francisco give almost exactly the same amount to charities each year as families in South Dakota – about $1,300. This may seem counterintuitive, because, in every other respect, the two communities – 1,500 miles apart – could not be more different. South Dakota spreads the same population as San Francisco County’s area over an area 1,615 times larger. A South Dakotan is half as likely to hold a college degree as a San Franciscan.”

“The $1,300 to charity represents a significance, as well, because the average San Francisco family enjoys 78% more personal income than a family in South Dakota. For a family making $45,364 [the South Dakota state average], $1,300 represents a much larger sacrifice than for one making $80,822 [the San Francisco County average]. So the real difference in giving between the two communities is this: the average South Dakotan family gives away 75% more of its household income each year than the average family in San Francisco.”

When Mr. Brooks asked an executive at the South Dakota Community Foundation why South Dakotans donated so much of their incomes to charity, her response was immediate: religion. “We are all taught to tithe here.”

Mr. Brooks’ book Who Really Cares definitively proves that in places where faith abounds across America, giving also abounds. I have always felt the more passionate our faith is, the more consistent our giving will be.

Ministry takes place when divine resources flow through yielded vessels to the glory of God. May ministry be strong in your life and mine because of our yieldedness to Him in the days ahead!

One week from today, Terrie and I will watch our son, Larry, join in holy matrimony with his new wife, Ashley.

It seems like only yesterday when Larry was born in Santa Clara, California. I had the joy of leading Larry to the Lord at our kitchen table shortly after moving to Lancaster, and it has been a great joy to see him develop his faith for the Lord since that time.

Larry worked at a local law firm while attending West Coast Baptist College and for the last several months, has been serving as an intern in the ministry here at Lancaster Baptist Church.

Ashley came to West Coast Baptist College from Washington, and we are thrilled with her servant’s heart and her desire to serve the Lord with Larry for the rest of her life.

Tomorrow, we will have our last Saturday night dinner as a family, before getting ready for the big event next week. I know I will cherish every moment of that time together, as it will mark the closing of a chapter in the upbringing of a young man for God.

I am thankful we will have the opportunity to continue serving with Larry and Ashley and I want to remind every reader who still has children at home to hug your kids, talk to them about the Lord, their futures, and the joy of serving God. May God bless you and your family, and please continue to uphold ours in prayer!