Nothing to Show for Their Work Until God Intervened
Early in their marriage, Sandy and Trish weren’t concerned about saving money, they just wanted to enjoy it.
Trish says, “We spent everything we made and there was nothing to show for it.”
But this lifestyle left both of them feeling lost and empty, until finally...
“God got ahold of me and I just met him on the end of our driveway and I said, ‘God, I've really messed up, and I repented that day on the driveway. I was smoking, I was drinking, I was overweight. It was like the Holy Spirit said, ‘You need to make a choice. You need to make a decision tonight.’ And I got down off the bed and that's where I got saved, that's where I prayed to received, it was that night.”
From then on, they dedicated their lives, and their finances, to the Lord.
Sandy says, “So we started doing the 10% thing just immediately. We weren't rich, but we always had what we needed for what we needed to do, and so when we had opportunities to give extra, we would give it.”
Then, a few years later, Sandy felt God opened the door for him to attend Moody Bible College’s School of Missionary Aviation and become a pilot – his lifelong dream. But financially, it would be a leap of faith.
Trish says, “And he said, ‘But the only thing is, I thought it was free cause it says it's tuition free. But in reality, you know, you still have to pay for the Avgas and you have to pay for plane time and I wouldn’t be able to work because it's that intense of a school.’ And I said, ‘Well, I figure if this is God's plan, then he'll take care of that.’”
Throughout the program the couple tithed off what little income they had, and eventually Sandy earned his wings.
“So that's how God works. He knows what we need tomorrow. Sometimes he doesn't provide till the 11th hour, but that's okay. He will come through. We just have to stand firm and trust.”
The couple would spend nearly a decade in South America, as sandy flew hundreds of missions into remote areas, piloting medivac and missionary support flights. In 2004 they retired from the missions field. They prayed about what to do next, and discovered God’s plan for their next adventure – a coffee shop.
Trish says, “It was a struggle the first few years. I knew the Lord would take care of us but just like when we had to raise support to be in missions working a small business like that is a – it's a walk of faith.”
They continued giving to their church and other missions organizations. And their business grew and eventually they began roasting their own coffee and selling it wholesale.
Sandy says, “Yeah. Our business has been growing since 2013, we started tracking this uh it's been growing about 30 to 40% a year, year over year.”
As their business continues to thrive, the couple remains committed to giving.
“With our business we look at it as a giving kind of machine. That's the focus of our businesses, believe it or not, is not to sell coffee, is to generate uh a tithe that will go out to missionaries.”
Trish says, “We're supporting more people than we've ever supported in our entire life and more ministry. Just our whole life is richer in different ways, and I believe it stems from having that heart to give. Oh, there is no better blessing than to be a giver.”
