Coffee Shop/Deli

A few months ago John Crissman called me unexpectedly and told me about the possibly of the UK Wesley Foundation starting a coffee shop/deli. John thought it could also be a space for the church plant/ministry. I called the Foundation’s director, Bill Hughes who is a Methodist Pastor. Bill was excited about the new church and the possibly of collaborating. Since that time, we began to dream about what can take place. Down the street from the Foundation is a corner store. The store was shut down due to shady dealings taking place. Bill started talking with the owner about renting; he would call him every other day. The holdup was that the owner could not get into his own building because the previous tenants placed a lock on it. Therefore, there were some legal problems we had to wait on to be sorted out. Anyway, Bill called me today and told me to come down to the corner store. The owner was meeting inside with a prospective tenant who wanted to start a pizza shop. We were not worried because we knew God had opened the door for us and that His will was going to be done. Once the man left, we talked to the owner about renting it and told him our vision for the store and the community. Bill told him he was going to write a check for the first months rent…and like that, the building is ours!!! Once we stepped outside, we talked with the man who wanted to start the pizza business. He also was a Christian and said, “I don’t wanna be in the way of what God wants to do…I’ll find another place to rent.” I believe this only confirmed what God had placed on our hearts.

Our next steps will be cleaning up the old place and probably painting which means I will need some volunteers.