From a Dream to a Latte: How a Local Coffee Shop Incorporates Redemptive Ideas
Every church across the world has their own clever take on the idea of outreaching to the lost within the community. These can range from a number of endeavors, but one of the most prominent ones has become running a church coffee shop. This dream was true for Light of Truth Mennonite Church in Wilmot, Ohio.
Founded in 2014 the church congregation and leadership always had a heart for outreach and wanting to show the local community the love of Jesus. After prayerfully meeting together and gathering ideas, their dream of having a local coffee shop to connect with the community turned into Cafe 8:32 in late 2019. At the core of the mission statement is the verse John 8:32 which reads “and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (ESV). This pulls from their overarching idea of having a mission to connect with the community and show them the love of Jesus.
At the start of their launch, they opened on a volunteer only staff. This really solidified the idea that every single proceed that came back into the cafe would be used to benefit the local community and mission of Jesus. Their mission on their website uses the words “relationships” and “service” continuously as well, installing the idea that these are their core values in their business model.
Sometimes, choosing a biblical based business route is not the easiest and rarely has a clear ending. Avoiding secular business practices, however, can lead to a path of success when it is done faithfully and diligently.
Hey Josh. Great post. I really like how Cafe 8:32 is doing business. I will ask some questions in my blog about the role of enterprise in the church. At first glance, it seems like Cafe 8:32 is doing it well.
Wow, I really liked how Cafe 8:32 aims to share the gospel and connects the community together too. Having a coffee shop is a really good idea and I also liked how the staff were volunteers. Having volunteers as staff really sets them apart because people serve because they want to instead of doing it for a wage.
Great job i love how you not only told me about the business but also told me about your prospective on the redemptive side of it.
Great post, Josh! I really appreciate their vision and effort to share their mission with the community. This is definitely a redemptive angle to a coffee shop!