Joseph's Storehouse FL

The idea of Joseph’s Storehouse was born in 2014 out of a non-profit organization called Financial Freedom Christian Counseling Services (FFCCS), which John Arena and John Machado assumed direction of in 2003. FFCCS provided faith-based credit and budget counseling and debt restructuring. FFCCS offered Crown Financial Ministries classes to educate those in need about how to biblically steward thei

r finances. Simultaneously, both John Arena and John Machado, directors, had a vision from God that they also needed to “feed His sheep.” Mr. Arena felt he needed to provide those in his classes free food to help offset their food budget woes. John Arena prayed, “What food can I provide for these people?” And within weeks the Lord opened a relationship with a food wholesaler who was willing to donate hundreds of pounds of food per week. John Arena was then able to redistribute that food to those learning to mange their new budget. From that day forward, more relationships with other food purveyors were born, allowing FFCCS to provide for more and more people, eventfully 800 people per week. In 2013, new financial regulations for debt management services passed by the US government forced FFCCS to shift directions and eventually stop providing those services

John Arena still felt compelled to provide food for those in need. Inspired by the biblical story of Joseph, who was uniquely placed by God to feed people in a time of great distress, John launched Joseph’s Storehouse. However, in this new season, God revealed something extraordinary to John that was in the story of Joseph all along, something he had not noticed before. It became the very secret to Joseph’s Storehouse self-sustaining success. Joseph DID NOT give the food away; He sold it! The very thing that ultimately caused FFCCS to close its doors, and cease to provide both counseling and food, the new government regulations that made it unsustainable, opened John’s mind to a “new” and unique idea. He pondered, “If I can still procure the food from food purveyors, but this time, redistribute some of it for free and some for a nominal fee, we could have a win, win, win.” All those in need could get fed, and the ministry could keep its doors open indefinitely. When the famine had spread over the whole country, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the people…
~Genesis 41:56