If you have been around me for almost any amount of time you have probably picked up on my love of coffee. As a matter of fact, I am currently sitting drinking coffee out of the french press that my parents brought me from the States, alongside my hand grinder and freshly roasted Counter Culture coffee beans (yes, I am a little spoiled). If you look back at my “About Me” page you will see that I have a coffee station at home with my multiple french press’s, my Chemex, Breville Smart Grinder, Bonavita Scale, Bonavita Digital Variable Temp Gooseneck Kettle, Toddy cold brew system, and other various different coffee equipment including homemade syrups and a plethora of mugs.
My passion for coffee started several years ago, while working at Kilwins in Highlands, NC. We introduced espresso based drinks and my love for handcrafted coffee was born. There is something particularly special about the whole process from grinding, to tamping, to extracting shots, to texturing the milk, to pouring, and finishing off the perfect cup of coffee. It is an art, and one that I am slightly fond of.
This month, while in Cambodia, I got the opportunity to go to the Cambodian National Barista Championship in Phnom Penh. It was a 3-day barista competition to determine the best barista in Cambodia. There were top name companies from all over the world exhibiting their specialty products. “Monin” (A French syrup brand) even had their representatives working the bar tossing bottles in the air and lighting things on fire! Simply put… it was amazing! Our host’s son (Kakada) works for Feel Good Coffee and was competing for the title himself. He actually ended up winning 2nd place while his good friend (Peth, also from Feel Good) won 1st!! Way to go guys 🙂
Every time I enter a new village/town/city the first thing I do is find my favorite coffee shop. This has taken me many places and given me the blessing of meeting different people from all walks of the world. At the minimum I have frequented 5 coffee shops per country I have been to on the race (that equates to at least 60 shops!!).
Here are several of the photos I can find from my
“World Coffee Tour:”
Coffee and Friends: Skopje, Macedonia
Slowtown Coffee Roasters: Swakopmund, Namibia
Macallum Connoisseurs: Penang, Malaysia
Soma Book Station: Prishtinë , Kosovo
Cool Coffee Bar: Belgrade, Serbia
Lana Coffee: Chiangmai, Thailand
Star Anise: Terengganu, Malaysia
Elefin Coffee: Bangkok, Thailand
Café Crema: Battambang, Cambodia
I don’t intentionally hit as many cafes as I can, it kind of just happens naturally. I am gravitated towards them. So, yes, as you can see I do like coffee, but there is something really special behind it; much deeper than what you see on the surface. It actually has nothing to do with coffee at all.
Today’s coffee shop is similar to the modern day drinking well. People of every culture, demographic, and status gather around coffee. They discuss memories and lessons learned from the past, hardships, joys, and pressures of the present, along with visions, dreams, and plans for the future. Going to a coffee shop is so much more than just drinking good coffee. Due to their public/private setting they become the perfect environment to flourish relationships of all kinds. Lives can be and are being changed right in the middle of our coffee shops. I desire to meet people right where they are at, just like Jesus did! I like coffee because I like people…and people seem to like coffee.
*Tout Suite in Houston, TX*
I want to share something with you that I have not shared publicly before. This is something that has been on my heart and mind for a very long time. I have shared it with those closest to me but now I want to share it with you. God has given me a vision and a passion to open up a coffee shop. He has actually been putting the pieces together over the past 4-5 years, but it is starting to speed up pretty quickly now. It all started with an idea to own my own business while at Kilwins and then it developed into a coffee shop. Then, in Namibia, He stirred a desire to connect it to a guesthouse. “A guesthouse? What? Ok, God, I choose to follow you!“
I hesitated for a long time because I didn’t want this to be just another good idea; one that comes on quick and then loses its fervor just as fast. I wanted this to be real, I wanted this to be from Him. After much time in prayer I can now firmly say that this is from Him. All along the way, from conception to creating a business plan, He has been involved.
The day after I arrived in Malaysia I was told that a local church was hosting a 2 day BAM (Business as Mission) conference. This is exactly what I have been praying about; I signed up that day!
At the core, the purpose of this coffee shop is discipleship, a Matt. 28 calling. I have been a part of many different communities, bible studies, cell groups, discipleship groups, churches in my life, but in order for a biblical model of discipleship to work effectively, you have to live LIFE together. We all talk about this but how many of us are actually doing it? You have to bring people into your mess. What better way than to engage them right in the middle of their lives, where they happen to spend the majority of it?
We are all called to work, it is good, it is biblical, it was there before the Fall, and I believe it will be there in Heaven as well. To work means to take up responsibility and ownership while at the same time still producing. In doing so you gain a multitude of life skills and character building opportunities.
So, where does this leave me? What is next? “What is after the World Race, Josh?“
Well I am really glad you asked. Because this has been on my mind for the past 3-4 months. I want to let you know that I am going to move forward with this dream and I am currently in the process of figuring out what that looks like. There are a lot of unknowns when it comes to what this path looks like, but I am confident that He who began a good work (putting this vision and passion in my heart) will carry it out to completion.
