RUNwithGOD

Grand Opening Photos & Testimony

Starting to get some photos from the Grand Opening Party Friday night. I'm the attractive bald guy with the gotee. =) Aurelio Baretto, CEO of C28 and NOTW is sporting the Black Track Jacket. More photos are coming soon.

Also, below is the first testimony from the C28.com website. I've blocked out Alex's last name for obvious purposes.

Sent: Sunday, November 19, 2006 12:01 PM Subject: Testimony from C28.com

NAME: Alex ___________

CITY: West Palm Beach

STATE: Florida

TESTIMONIAL: Hey my name is Alex im 13 and i went to your store today in
florida it is the best store in that whole mall the people are so nice
they treat you like they've known you forever.

C28 Photos

I don't have any photos yet from my camera - it's been busy. Check out Kim's blog, she's got photos of the opening party, as well as some of the construction. I'll get mine up as soon as possible.

• Grand Opening Party
• Merchandising the store

C28: Opening Day

"You are a Christian What?!?" "Is this legal?!?"

We had a private party Friday night with the Grand Opening Saturday 10AM. C28 is officially open for business.

The past couple days were fun. People's faces were in shock, celebration, sheer disgust... the full spectrum. People stayed for hours. People left as quickly as they could. People covered up the obscene t-shirts they were wearing in embarrassment of where they were. Customers cried. Employees cried. Heck, I cried.

We were very well received by the Christian community. One Christian lady saw a shirt with a skull on it and mentioned that the skull really disrupted her spirit. She mentioned that to the person helping her, who then explained how the skull = death and explained the shirt to her. He then explained that C28 uses these images to connect to the younger generation, explained the purpose of the store, and pointed around the room at three of my employees who were at that exact moment praying with three separate groups of people. God couldn't have scripted it better. She caught the vision of C28.

The managers from Hot Topic came down, saying they were having customers raving about the Christian-version of Hot Topic that was stealing their customers. They saw the "Why Tree" shirt and said that was the coolest graphic-design they had ever seen. My employee shared the meaning with them.

A lady came in the store who evidently spoke very little English. An employee helped her, and at some point they prayed together (for each other) and it was evident God was moving. Evidently her son is not saved and needed this message. A little while later she comes running in the store with the cell phone in her hand, asking ONLY for the employee who helped her earlier, and asked him in broken English to talk to her son about Jesus.

Our first customer on Saturday (opening day) was a youth minister who showed up with his youth group of 20+ kids - they were here about 10 minutes early and poured in when the gates opened. He was one of 6 youth ministers we met on opening day. We talked of being a resource to the church's ministry, making sure that the kids we impact get plugged into a discipleship ministry.

I met a gentleman from Orlando, FL. He took off work for the weekend and drove his wife and three kids down here to WPB (3-4 hour commute) to see C28. He goes to the website almost daily, knows the ministry, and was beside himself to see that we're here.

Another gentleman walks into the store wearing one of the first NOTW designs created. He knew of the stores from California and had been praying for years that C28 would find a way to West Palm Beach.

These are just the stories I know of. There are many more. Don't you love divine appointments!

My employees did a phenomenal job, and I'm sure they will continue to grow in the grace of God. As I type this, the final touches are being done on construction. God answered prayers by finishing this process very quickly. Legal is happy, the mall is happy. We might actually make it through the chaos.

Pray for us. The past days were the calm before the storm. We celebrate with God with what He has done, but we are smart enough to know that we still need His protection to make it through. Continue to pray!

In view of God's Mercy,

Jeff Reed

Opening E-mail

This e-mail was sent to the C28 Florida Database announcing the opening of C28 West Palm Beach. Other than California, I believe Florida is the largest database they have.

Tick Tick Tick

We are days away from opening. Today is Thursday. Doors open to public on Saturday. How crazy is this? It's been an extremely hard week. Lots of work and effort have gone into the store. The California corporate crew has worked hard and brought a lot of needed insight into the process. The employees that Ryan hired are already starting to prove themselves. I think we might actually make it.... but...

Houston we had A several problems.

I have a Motorola ROKR E1 Phone. The first phone that had iTunes on it. The iTunes feature stinks, but the reception and battery life are so good that it literally is my favorite phone, ever. Battery life can go up to 5 days before needing charging. Needless to say, Energizer's Pink Bunny's got nothing on me. This week, my cell phone has died before the end of the day. The battery is fully charged @ 5am when I wake up, and dead by the end of biz. I have been putting out fires and applying massive amounts of (proverbial) duct tape on situations all week. What are the problems? Let me tell you:

1) evidently the state of Florida doesn't know I'm a registered corporation. The IRS/Department of Treasury does. Yet the state doesn't. Funny how the smaller gov't, which should be easier to work with is causing the problems. Why is that important? I was declined for insurance several times, and the mall threatened not to let me open unless I had insurance (which I fully understand the necessity of). It took countless hours and multiple FedEx documents to get this problem resolved. I think it's resolved. I thought it was resolved Monday and I spent yesterday on it.

2) Construction 101: Breakmetal is a decorative metal substance that can be bent and formed into a decorative wall covering. You could easily wrap breakmetal around a square pillar simply by bending the breakmetal in the appropriate spots. Long story short, not exactly sure when the breakmetal is getting installed. The installers were supposed to do it Tuesday, then Wednesday, now Thursday 8:30am. We will see, and hopefully they can do it in a timely fashion. Why this matters? The mall was hesitant to open because the work specified in our plans wasn't completed and they weren't going to let us open since we were to plans. We are still working through this one (PRAY!).

This, coupled with other problems has increased my stress level recently. I think we'll open in time, but the road was a bit harder than I was anticipating. Could someone please hand me the hose? I gotta get back to work.

C28 Prayer Update and Maps

Wanted to send a quick update and other pertinent information.

First off, I've received several calls from people wanting to know how to get there. Please find attached a map on how to get here from Miami. Trip realistically takes 1 1/2 hours, so plan accordingly. Those of you not in Miami, the mall address is:

Mall at Wellington Green
10300 W Forest Hill Blvd
Wellington, FL 33414 (Wellington is due west of WPB)
561/227-6900
http://www.shopwellingtongreen.com

In the mall we are next to Macy's on the first floor. Due to the quick turnaround of the opening of the store, we are not listed on any mall directories. Please do not look for C28 there, as you will only frustrate yourself. First floor, next to Macy's. We are a couple doors down from Halmark and PacSun.

Next up, I've got some prayer requests:
1) construction scheduling. we ran into a situation where a guy was supposed to do some work Tuesday on the storefront, but it was not done. the only thing we can get out of him is it "may" be done on Wednesday and now he won't return calls. Unfortunately, there are several jobs waiting for him to be completed before they can start, so we're getting a bottleneck. This will not prevent us from opening, er, it may prevent us from opening. Pray that the construction gets done!

2) energy. pray that we have the energy to pull off what needs to get done. yesterday my people worked a 15-16 hour day. today will be close to that as well. There's a lot to do and very little time. Pray that it would be completed in God's time. (and if he wanted to stop the sun for us, that would be great!)

3) divine audiences. pray that God would be working on the hearts of the people, preparing the ground for C28's ministry.

Looking forward to seeing you on Friday.

In view of God's Mercy,

Jeff Reed
c28 WPB

C28 Prayer Update: 6 Days to Launch

It's days away. Literally. Short of Armageddon, or the House and Senate getting taken over by democrats (oh wait, that already happened) WE WILL BE OPEN SATURDAY NOVEMBER 18TH.

We're already making connections. My manager Ryan has hired 3 employees to date, and I think that we'll have a full allotment this week. Abe the graphic artist is in town to graffiti the floor, and I have a full crew of C28 Corporate people coming in this week. If you would like to see some photos of the construction, check out my blog at http://www.RUNwithGOD.com

We are already touching lives! C28 made it's first public appearance this week at Wayfest, a Concert in West Palm Beach featuring BarlowGirl, David Crowder and Third Day. We talked with thousands of people, and I've heard testimonies of audience members breaking down in tears when my employees asked them a simple question: "Can I pray for you?"

C28 is a business, but the ministry excites me more than the financials. Lord willing we'll be able to impact people across Florida, and what we are seeing here is just the groundwork of a different kind of ministry.

Grand Opening Celebration is Friday, November 17th @ 7:30pm. It is invitation only. If you are getting this e-mail I want you to attend. Call me and I'll get you an invitation. You should have received a postcard in the mail, so if you haven't, holler. We're aiming to be done around 9pm.

Opening Day Saturday, November 18th @ 9am. Pray that everything gets resolved, and we continue to follow God in our decisions at C28.

* Pray for health. Ryan and I have both been under the weather recently due to crazy hours.
* Pray for details. There's a lot that still needs to be ironed out. Pray that we get the small stuff figured out.
* Pray for employees. God will supply the right people for us. Pray that we get people that are passionate, on fire for God.
* Pray for our mission field, West Palm Beach. We are striving to have kingdom impact, and we can only do that if God will allow us and guide our steps. Pray that God will bring divine appointments, and that we will truly glorify our God with what we do.

Please continue to pray. Many, many, many of you have asked if there is anything you can do to help. I'm honored that you would consider giving of your time to help. What you can do is pray. And come celebrate on the 17th @ 7:30pm.

In view of God's Mercy,

Jeff Reed

Clothed in Righteousness (and Brick Slatwall)

Here is a photo of the C28 bin now. We've come a LONG WAY in 10 days.

Interesting story behind that. Amy and I were up at C28 talking with our Ukranian Contractor, Roman. In walked Al, our leasing agent. He was accompanied by Chris, a very young "up and comer" in Taubman Corporate. Al was surprised to see us, and explained that he was putting Chris on the fast-track, and wanted Chris to see this store so that he could fully understand what is involved...

We chit-chatted for a while. Eventually Al complemented us on the speed of buildout. I mentioned/joked that we are actually a day behind schedule. Al chuckled, and Chris asked how long have we been building out. I said, "eh, I don't really remember. Oh, wait, wasn't it Halloween when I got the keys?"

The look on Chris' face was priceless. Literally. He could not believe that we were building, merchandising and opening just over 2 weeks, and we were on schedule! God is good. Things go a lot better when you know He's on your side.

We will be open Saturday, November 18th. Come celebrate with us.

Wayfest 2006

C28 West Palm had it's first "official" public activity last night at Wayfest, a local concert sponsored by WayFM. There were 8,000 people at the Sound Advice Ampitheater last night less than 5 miles away from the C28 location.

I was not able to be there, but am told by my manager that it went incredibly well, and they thousands of contacts, handed out a ton of applications for the store, and promoted our brand like crazy. A recent phenomenon happened. People came up to the booth and said "Are you the new Christian store that's coming into the mall?" That is the definition of grassroots.... people are finding out about us without us even telling them.

Pray for Opening Day on Saturday, November 18th. And if you would like to see photos and her description check out Kim's (manager's wife) blog.

(included photo is of Ryan-manager, and Emily-assistant manager).

Family Force 5 @ C28 WPB

Family Force 5 will be having a CD signing event Saturday, December 16th at C28 West Palm Beach. The event is being scheduled as we speak, so keep checking C28.com for more information.

Family Force 5 is performing that night as part of Toby Mac's Winter Wonder Slam, and C28 is a major sponsor of the West Palm Beach Event. Support the South Florida Christian Rock Scene and be a part of the night.

C28 West Palm Beach Now Hiring

This was just e-mailed to 500+ people in Florida. C28 West Palm is hiring. If you're interested, e-mail me.

C28 Prayer Update: 15 Days till Launch

(to catch up people new to the list, I am starting a new Christian biz by buying a franchise: check out C28.com to see what it's about)...

Okay, it's been a great week. Prayers have been answered and it's still amazing that every time a difficulty arises, it's resolved. Your prayers throughout Miami, as well as Florida and across the country are greatly appreciated. We can finally see the finish line... we are almost there, but even as far as we've come, there's still a long way to go!

You have to come celebrate with us. Friday night, November 17th (from 7:30-9:00pm) we are having a private gathering of friends, prayer supporters, and people from within the community. If you are getting this e-mail, you are invited. I gotta get you a postcard "ticket" to get in, so shoot me an e-mail and I'll get you the postcard. I'll get the e-mail postcards out to everyone this week!

Updates:
1) demolition started this week, and went quite well. Everything is ripped out of the bin. Check out the photos online at my blog, RunWithGod.com - I'm updating my blog a couple times a week with C28 updates and other random postings.
2) I have had a number of friends volunteer to help with the construction/buildout of the bin. It's very encouraging to see people support an unconventional ministry like this - even if they don't totally understand it! The cash wrap will be worked on Saturday and the Carpenters will start working on the slatwall and other fixtures on Monday. We are moving full steam ahead.
3) Churches have been jumping on board. It's great to see.

Prayer Requests:
1) Employees! Sometimes I think we put the cart before the horse. We have some great leads for employees, but we need MUCH MORE! If you know anyone in the area who may be interested in working for C28 West Palm, call 561-422-0696 or e-mail ryaneloe@c28.com.
2) My Assistant Manager - Emily - is currently driving down from Kansas. Pray for travelling mercies.
3) The unknown. I do not fear what I know. I fear what I don't know. Pray that we truly do have everything under control, or at least that God will continue to guide us through the chaos that will arrive.
4) Continue to pray for Amy's (my wife's) health. She actually has had a very good week health wise, and we are hoping this will be a turning point for her in that area.

Thank you again for your continued prayer. I look forward to celebrating with you on the 17th.

In view of God's Mercy,

Jeff Reed

Graffiti Floor

One of my favorite features of C28's store design is their floor. They have a polished concrete floor, and then Abe - their graphic artist - comes in and air brushes graffiti on the floor. Oh, and did I fail to mention that the graffiti is Bible verses? It looks sweet when it's done. You'll have to go into one of their stores to check it out.

Anyway, Abe asked us to give him some of our favorite, most impactful verses. Thus I submit for you Amy's and my list:

James 4:8a "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you."

Phillipians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength."

2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come."

Romans 12:1 "Therefore I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship."

Matthew 6:33 "But seek firest His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

Psalm 63:1 "O God, you are my God. Earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water."

Acts 20:24 "However, I consdiermy life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the track."

I'll post pictures when it's done.

Starting with a Clean Slate

Demolition started last night, and theoretically what was supposed to take three full days took one 10 hour shift during the night. The cash wrap gets covered Saturday and the slatwall starts to go up on Monday. Keep praying!

Keys Please

[Dana, possessed by "The Gatekeeper," answers the door]
Dana Barrett: Are you the Keymaster?
Dr. Peter Venkman: Not that I know of.
[She slams the door in his face. Venkman knocks again]
Dana Barrett: Are you the Keymaster?
Dr. Peter Venkman: Yes. Actually I'm a friend of his, he asked me to meet him here.
(Ghostbusters, 1984)

I am very excited to say that I now have the keys to the future C28 West Palm Beach! Woohoo! The keys were turned over today after I met briefly with the construction superintendent and the head of construction for the Mall at Wellington Green. Construction Deconstruction starts Wednesday, and everything is on schedule! The floor will be easy to remove, and the slatwall shouldn't be that difficult.

There are times in my life when I've felt like God was with me. Then there are times like C28 when He has to be there, because there's really no other way to explain how great things have gone. I'm not one to sell the proof of God since there's no such thing as luck, but this story is as great a testimony as I have heard in a long time. More updates coming.

C28 WPB Schedule v4

Please find attached the fourth edition of the C28 Schedule. Pray hard!

C28 Prayer Update: Day (too tired to count)

(to catch up people new to the list, I am starting a new Christian biz by buying a franchise: check out http://C28.com to see what it's about)...

This week it set in... I have 2 retail businesses during the busiest time of the year. I have not been this tired for a long time. God will be glorified through it, I know it. And I know He's behind this, because it really has gone smoothly to date. I am solely following Him by faith, praying that He will continue to open doors as He has all along! Thanks for your prayers!

Before I get to praises and prayers:
We are having a Grand Opening Celebration Friday, November 17th @ 7:30pm AND YOU ALL ARE INVITED! You will receive formal invitations, but please come. I don't care if you're in Miami, Orlando, North Florida.... if you've been praying for us during this process I want you to come celebrate with me. Book the date and plan on coming! The Friday night Celebration will be a invitation-only, and we look forward to you being there. I know that many of you have sent this list on to your associates, and they are invited as well. If they've been praying (or will pray) I want them there. Please let me know and I will make sure they get an invitation. Due to the mall being open, we have to require all attendees have a separate invitation.

I've started my BLOG back up: if you want to keep up with the chaos of Jeff Reed, please check out my site at http://www.RunWithGod.com

Praises:
1) We will get the keys Tuesday! Construction starts Tuesday!
2) My manager, Ryan Eloe, arrived safely from Texas
3) Taubman Mall continues to be very cooperative with us, and has repeatedly allowed us to do whatever we want with the space (despite what their current policies are).
4) Last week I mentioned the mall was being difficult on some details. Without going into detail, everything was resolved in the blink of an eye (in ways that God could only do).

Prayer Requests:
1) My wife's health has been up and down. Please continue to pray for her health.
2) My assistant manager, Emily Day, will be driving down in the coming week from Kansas. Please pray for her safety on the road.
3) The fate of C28 Opening Date is now in the hands of God and Construction workers. That is a very difficult place to be.
4) My fear continues to be small details that were missed.
5) Employees! Employees! Employees!
6) Relationship with Churches! Relationship with Pastors!
7) TIME. It's amazing. Most people get stressed enough with one job. Two is crazy. I just got my new biz cards and I now have 3 jobs. Pray for patience, time, and strength.

Thank you all for continuing to pray with us. I hope to see you all in West Palm on the 17th.

In view of God's Mercy

Jeff Reed

C28 WPB Schedule v3

If you're really keeping up, C28 West Palm will open officially Saturday, November 18th. Hope to see you there. Find attached construction schedule.

Concert

On Saturday, October 21st at our C28 Concert in Temecula, California (south of Los Angeles) with Thousand Foot Krutch, Seventh Day Slumber, Manic Drive, Eowyn, and Brothatone. At the concert:

* Over 1,100 accepted / rededicated their life to Christ in a secular mall!
* All 8,000 parking stalls were filled to capacity (How many come in a car?)
* No injuries or complaints by Temecula Police
* Balconies and wings were filled to capacity

C28 PrePhotos

I've posted some photos of what C28 West Palm looks like now... before we get in. It's currently called ZenGarden, a Oriental gift company... you can see in the photos.

We start Demolition on 10.31.06. WOOHOO!!!

Also, here's the calendar showing the next 4 weeks before we open. Pray hard!

C28 Prayer Update: Day 100

(to catch up people new to the list, I am starting a new Christian biz by buying a franchise: check out C28.com to see what it's about)...

100 Days. That's not a joke. I can't believe we're already here. I can't believe we're opening in less than a month! That's right, less than a month. We have had some phenomenal testimonies and stories coming out of this experience. And I can tell you that God is with us, because there's no way it should be this easy.

1) The landlord and legal team has bent over backwards to get us open before Thanksgiving, often breaking their own "set policies" without me even asking them to.

2) Churches have been very open to the C28 concept, and Ryan (my manager) has had a relatively easy time connecting with them.

3) Even with the chaos of the minutia details, God has still managed to show that He's in control by working the details out. More often then not, the details work themselves out without me even having to step in...which is a good thing, because I really don't know what I'm doing! HA!

Thank you for your prayers.

* My wife's health is struggling right now. Today was her last day at work, so we will soon begin the restoration of her health phase. Please continue to pray for her.
* Ryan (manager) has spent the last week in California, and is very homesick for Kim (his wife). He has had an awesome time of training and growth out there, and I know he will hit the ground running in West Palm.
* Emily, my assistant manager, was able to find a roommate w/o even being in the same state. Emily is in Kansas, and had offers from like 6 people to share an apartment. I know what you're thinking, a little creepy. But really, it's a God thing.
* The Leasing Agent was able to get the lawyer to rush the paperwork, and as of right now it will take an act of God for us not to open Friday, November 17th.

Things we have coming up to pray about:

* We're starting to squabble over some of the smaller details with the mall. Things were going way too easy, so they felt they had to complicate things. Pray for God's patience while we try to resolve. This isn't going to stop us from opening...
* Employees. We've been following the "Field of Dreams" theology: "If you build it, they will come". Now it's time to go get them. Pray that we can find hyper-evangelic students willing to stand up for their faith. And if you know anyone interested, have them e-mail me.
* Traveling Mercies: over the next 2 weeks Ryan/Kim and Emily will be moving their belongings from the Texas and Kansas respectively to Florida. Pray for diligence on the road.
* Everything I haven't thought of. Because of the quick timeline, and the fact that I own a Christian bookstore that has to prepare for Christmas too, I'm sure there's many things I just haven't gotten to yet. Pray that we can get those problems resolved too.

It has meant so much to get your e-mail responses back. I think some of these e-mails get passed on 2 or 3 times. Believe me, we need all the help we can get....prayer is not an easy thing to come by. Thank you for all that you do, and I'll drop a line again next week.

In view of God's Mercy,

Jeff Reed

C28 Prayer Update: Day 94

(to catch up people new to the list, I am starting a new Christian biz by buying a franchise: check out C28.com to see what it's about)...

Alright, here's the newest update. Praise God for Lawyers. After much prayer, deliberation, pushing, and dealing with a guy who's nickname should be "bulldog" I'm happy to say that the leases have been approved and signed... just a couple days behind schedule. My lawyer, Larry, says that it was a record time to have a lease signed by this leasing company, and in fact we had one signed in 5 business days (instead of the proposed 35 business days).

The bad news, is that they were signed a couple days behind schedule (okay, my schedule). The problem is that a couple days could in fact cause us to open in December, not November 18. It's funny how 2 days could make the difference, but when you throw a holiday in there too, the time just backs up. As with everything it's in God's timing, so I'm not going to worry about it. We'll fight to rush things through, but it looks like there are other intangibles that are leading to a later launch.

Things to pray for:
1) We found an assistant manager, Emily Day, from Kansas. Yes, manager from Texas, assistant manager from Kansas. Right out of HS Emily spent several years as a missionary through NAMB working in Las Vegas, so she's used to unconventional ideas, and she's passionate about her faith. She's also spent several years as an assistant manager in apparel/clothing, so she knows the industry. Emily is a trooper, and we are anxiously awaiting her arrival. If you want to drop her a line and tell her hello (or warn her in advance) email her at emilyday@c28.com

2) My manager, Ryan Eloe, is training in California for the next 10 days. He will be working in the stores, learning the model, software, concepts, etc. Pray that he picks it up, and that he has the time to cram 2 weeks of training into 1 week.

3) Taubman (our leasing agency): at this point the biggest delay in us not opening is going to be Taubman (the leasing agency)'s inability to get through the bureaucratic red tape. It could take 1-2 days or 1-2 weeks. Can't get a straight answer. That God's gotten us this far is a huge encouragement to me, but we've got a couple hurdles left. At this point, though, I can safely say it's not an "if" anymore, it's a "when". And that is exciting to me.

4) Construction: We are now dealing with major planning on construction. We've always been planning, but now we focus more on the details. Russ is our contractor. Pray that he can find capable workers to sub-contract the job out to.

5) My health: I don't get sick often, but I got slammed with a stomach virus or something a couple days ago. I've lost 7 lbs in 2 days (which is great) but I now have a major aversion to food (which is not good). Pray that this won't slow me down, and that this is not an ulcer in the making (I'm not that stressed).

6) In retrospect I should have put this at #1. Most of you know my wife, Amy, and her struggles with fibromyalgia/connective tissue disorders. Unfortunately her health this year has gotten progressively worse. In a step of faith that God will provide, Amy has asked for personal leave from her school teaching job, and Friday, October 20th will be her last day as a teacher for the 2006-2007 school year. We will obviously miss her income, but we should be able to supplement it with some tutoring gigs, and extra help around the store. Realistically, I think it's doable. More than anything I want to make sure she's healthy, and with her continuing to work there is no chance for her to get healthy. Pray for her that she can cope with a new lifestyle. Pray that we can figure out how to live. Pray that she'll get better.

Thank you for your time. It's therapeutic for me to write it, and I'm sorry that you have to read it. I appreciate your thoughts and prayers, and if there's anything we can do for you, simply let me know.

Steadfast in Christ,

Jeff Reed

New Business Cards

Hot off the press, new business cards that I've developed that better shows my chaos. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

C28 Prayer: vol 5

(to catch up people new to the list, I am starting a new Christian biz by buying a franchise: check out C28.com to see what it's about)...

Okay, I know I just sent one of these out, but I've got three big things coming up:

1) PRAY FOR LAWYER RELATIONS. I'm stumbling through this lawyer deal, and my lawyer and I are really having a hard time connecting/communicating with each other. Pray that we can figure out how to communicate with each other, and get this lease signed. In typical legal fashion, things are starting to take a lot longer than they should. This is the last stumbling block I have before clear sailing, and this process could break everything if not handled properly.

2) CallFM - Some of you are familiar with Miami's Christian Rock/Rap/Hip Hop Radio Station CallFM (91.7FM) They are doing a limited 1-day fund drive on Friday to help raise some funds. They've had some major expenses come up, and since they are totally listener supported they need all the help they can get! I WILL BE ON THE RADIO FRIDAY FROM APPROXIMATELY 2-6PM CO-DJing the show, and I would love to have my friends and supporters call in and donate some money (guilt trip implied!) So listen on 91.7fm or online at http://www.callfm.com and call the station at 305-662-7736.

3) Amy's Health - As many of you know, my wife Amy (teachpalmetto@yahoo.com) suffers from a serious case of fibromyalgia (sp?), at least that's what it is diagnosed. It's probably worse. Regardless, her health now is probably the worst I have seen it in 5 years. Please pray for her that God can give her the strength to get through the day, and give her the wisdom in making some key decisions ahead.

You all have no idea how great it is to have friends praying for the ministry ahead. Thank you for playing a part!

Steadfast in Christ,

jreed

C28 Prayer: vol 4

(to catch up people new to the list, I am starting a new Christian biz by buying a franchise: check out C28.COM to see what it's about)...

"Pray like it depends on God. Work like it depends on you." Mark Batterson, TheaterChurch.com

79 Days ago I started talking to C28, a Christian Retail Company about opening a store in Miami, FL. 79 Days later, we are running full steam ahead. Our present goal is to open on Friday, November 17th in the Mall at Wellington Green in West Palm Beach. Ironically, there are 128 days from the first day we started talking to C28 to the day we will open. In case you didn't catch the irony. 100 is "C" in Roman Numerals, therefore, the irony of C28=128.... eh, maybe it's not that funny.

Okay, the God stuff:

1) Our business terms with the mall were approved. They threw in an extra little gift at the last minute (that I didn't even ask for). On the document they sent me to approve it said "Security Deposit: None Specified". I called the agent asking what that meant, and I was told "oh, you don't need to pay a deposit." Now, usually security deposit is 2 months worth of rent, and in a mall you can imagine how high that number is... don't know why we got it but Thank you God!

2) We have found a manager for the West Palm Beach location. Ryan and Kim Eloe are friends of ours from the TCU era. Some would say I am responsible for their hooking up and getting married. (OK, I'm the only one who would say that.) We flew out to LA with the Eloes to look at the ministry, and they fell in love with it! Another Godsend is when I told them they would have to move everything from Fort Worth, TX to West Palm Beach in 3 weeks, they didn't laugh at me! God's great that way, preparing those that will be called... Ryan will be the full-time manager, and Kim is looking for a marketing/promotion position in West Palm Beach. If you want to e-mail them a congratulations (or a warning b/c you know what it's like to work with me) you can do that to ryaneloe@c28.com or kimeloe@c28.com

Now the prayer stuff:

1) LAWYERS: The only major snag left is that the mall's lawyers and our lawyers need to negotiate the lease. When I asked our lawyer if he could negotiate the legal terms in 2-3 weeks (the amount of time I have allotted) he laughed at me. I'm not sure that's a good sign. God has gotten us this far, but please pray that we can get past this.

2) TIMING: The schedule is ultra tight right now. There are several items (fixtures, electronics, etc.) that will take a while to come in, and I'm rather nervous about delays in the schedule. We literally have no time for delays.

3) EMPLOYEES: We found our manager, but we still need to find the rest of our employees. Pray that God will bring us students and young adults who are evangelistic, prayerful, basically on fire for God. This is not your typical "mall job". We are opening a church in a mall in West Palm Beach, and these youngsters will be the ones spreading the message.

4) TRAVEL: It seems like at least once a week from today to launch we will have people flying back and forth to LA.

5) AMY AND I: At this stage I can safely say I have three (3) jobs. That takes a lot out of me. On top of that, Amy is having a difficult year teaching as she has a very rough schedule. Pray for both of us that we don't let my (work-o-holic) and her (perfectionist) attitudes get in the way of "us".

Thank you all for your time and prayers. You're all invited to the Grand Opening. Thank you for who you are.

Steadfast in Christ,

Jeff Reed

C28 Prayer: vol 3

(to catch up people new to the list, I am starting a new Christian biz by buying a franchise: check out C28.com to see what it's about)......

Wow, what an incredible week. A month ago I told many of you that it would take an Act of God to open this store by Thanksgiving. Within the past month, I could have sold tickets to the "God show", because He has been doing some awesome things in West Palm Beach. Allow me to elaborate:

* A month ago the leasing agent for the mall told me point blank that there is no way that C28 would be open before March 2007. This week he told me that he would not rest until we were open before Thanksgiving. The agent is not a Christian, and when we went into detail on the ministry/impact this store would have on teens, his response was: "I don't really understand what you do or how you do it, but if you can have a better impact on these kids than Hot Topic does, I want you in my mall." God is working on him through the store, and when you pray, pray for "Al".

* The architect looked at the location this week, and we have presented plans to the Mall for our redesign. We stressed in these plans that we thought we did not need permits. If you know anything about construction in SoFL, you know that permits take 2-4 months on any project (even something as simple as building a wall). Long story short, NO PERMITS NECESSARY for us to build in. You really cannot understand how huge this is. The architect is not a Christian as well, and when you pray, pray for "Deepak".

* We have been praying for a manager, and next week Amy and I will be flying to LA to have a potential manager and his wife meet with C28 management. God has been leading them recently to start looking at ministry opportunities, and what I believe is divine timing we are reuniting an old friendship through ministry. Please pray for both "Ryan" and "Kim" as they seek God's wisdom on this ministry opportunity.

These are only three of them. I could go on, but maybe I'll start my blog again and post it there. I appreciate your continued prayer on these and all other issues. Major hurdles still left:

1) final lease has to be approved
2) their lawyers and my lawyers have to approve (if you ever worked with a lawyer, you know why this needs prayer)
3) we need to employ the store!
4) the general contractor can find sub-contractors capable of the job (Hard to find in SoFL right now)

I'll update you as more prayer requests come in. Thank you for your
prayers and thoughts.

Steadfast in Christ,

Jeff Reed

C28 Prayer: vol 2

I wanted to touch base again with everyone in regards to where we are with C28 deal. As most of you know Amy and I started discussion with C28 (http://www.c28.com) about opening a location in Miami, FL in July, and those conversations escalated quickly. Through a chain of events we've seen God open doors and close others, and in typical God-form, where we ended up is nowhere near where we thought.

we are currently negotiating a lease in West Palm Beach at the Mall @ Wellington Green. The mall likes us, and has conceded on most of the major business points we wanted changed... so those concerns have gone by the wayside, and at this point I believe we will be in there at some point.

However, there's two major points of prayer: 1) there is an outside chance (maybe 25%) that we could be open by November 10th. This would be INCREDIBLE! Obviously, the financial situation would help getting a Christmas right off the bat, but more than that, the exposure of the store to everyone walking around the mall would be a great jumpstart for us. There are some MAJOR hurdles to overcome; pray that we can work through these.

2) we are in need of a manager for the West Palm Beach location. The manager is a crucial person for the store. He/She is part businessman/part pastor, and having the right person at the location will greatly impact the ministry of the store. Pray for us as we seek God's direction, and pray for those that are considering this unusual ministry.

The attached photo is Seventh Day Slumber's lead singer, Joseph Rojas, wearing a shirt from C28. Enjoy it.

Thanks for your prayers. It's comforting to know that while we are doing this, there are friends and family praying alongside for God to move through this. I'll update you all as we go.

Steadfast in Christ,

Jeff Reed

C28 Prayer: Vol 1

Hello all!

Wanted to update you on some things. Sorry to do it in bulk, but the time for heavy praying has come. Most of you know that I am looking to start a franchise of C28, a trendy Christian clothing shop. C28 currently has 8 franchises in the California area (LA, SoCal). Well, in a nutshell, we are very close to signing a deal with Dolphin Mall and would likely open late 2006/early 2007. Needless to say, God has gotten us this far, but there's still a long way to go. While the business model is solid, the EVANGELISTIC OPPORTUNITY IS HUGE! Check out the website, C28.com for more information, but this company has been directly responsible for over 5500 salvations in less than 5 years.

Also, the CEO (Aurelio Baretto) of C28 was interviewed on the 700 club today (Tuesday). You can watch the interview online.

When asked if they were opening other locations, Aurelio mentioned that there is a "gentleman in Miami of all places opening a shop". They already have had people wanting more information on when the store opens!

Aurelio will be flying down to Miami tomorrow (Wednesday) and we will be having extensive meetings on the subject. I appreciate your prayers and look forward to what God has in store.

(And no, we will not be selling the bookstore, which is doing fabulous!)

Steadfast in Christ,

jreed