Hello! We are Ryan and Amy Smithson.
We have been given a new start in life and it is our strong desire to work together by owning our own double drive thru coffee shop. We have been married for 22 years and we have 4 kids ranging in age from 15-21. In January 2021, the Lord revealed to us that we were not walking the path together with Him that we should be.
We let life and busyness get in the way of our relationship with God and each other. Ryan was busy with work and had long, exhausting hours to support our family. I was a stay at home, homeschool mom, busy with teaching, kids’ schedules, and extracurricular activities. Ryan and I were living life together, but not doing life together. That is when the Lord our God, being gracious and loving, brought us into a closer relationship together and into a deeper relationship with Him.
We began praying and reading our Bible together daily and God gave us a strong desire to do life together. He also gave us the desire to use our talents to open a coffee shop. I was a barista in the early years of our marriage, and Ryan had a college degree in Business. We both love coffee and Ryan had been roasting our coffee beans at home for several years. Putting all this together, we feel it is the path that God is guiding us down. This also what led us to our blue-fire roasting method.
Our dilemma used to be that Ryan had a job and it kept us from being together while going in this new direction the Lord is leading us into. As of August 2021, Ryan is no longer employed and free to spend his time doing what we feel God has led us to do. We are trusting in Him and His perfect timing to provide for this coffee business. Our first plan consisted of a double drive thru and roasting beans, which has been placed on the back burner. Our second plan was a result of listening to God and was to roast beans only. As God closed the door to the drive thru part of the business, we were given the bean roasting side of it to work on. God’s providence in action.
We have decided to name our business “Dry Grounds Coffee” because of the promises God demonstrates in the Old Testament. In Exodus, God parted the Red Sea and lead the Israelites through on dry ground. Then again, in Joshua, the Israelites passed through the Jordan River, on dry ground. God fulfilled his covenant with them by leading them to the land he promised them. God also parted the Jordon two more times, once with Elijah and once with Elisha. God is faithful to those who trust in Him, so we would like to give Him the glory He deserves in our business.
Joshua 4:23-24 says, “23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, 24 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.”
Thank you so much for taking the time to read our story!
