I mean, you might ask, “Why a clothing brand?”
You wouldn’t be incorrect to think that perhaps it’s too much. Or in wondering who has time for that, but I am guessing if you actually clicked the button to come read this you might be looking for a real reason. So, I guess I can give you one.
Quite a few years ago when I lived in South Korea… yes, I lived in South Korea for 8 years. I was part of a church plant that took me to Cambodia. Now when I went to Korea I wasn’t really thinking outside myself too far. I mean, every decision I made was to fulfill my needs. To do the things that I wanted to do. To achieve my goals. But five or six months into my (first) year in Korea God started to bring this prodigal home to him. My life was drastically changed over the next 6 months after that – which included learning about the things that were on His heart, becoming things on my heart.
Now, back to Cambodia. We put together a missions trip through another team member on our staff. I was very desperate to get out of my bubble and see the world around me. To see how God was moving in places that I would not otherwise have any connection to. Well, Cambodia was the perfect place for God to open my eyes and show me something that I wasn’t prepared to see or hear about.
When we landed we had plans to attend a youth group at a church that our pastor was connected to, and then we had plans to spend the week with AIM – Agape International Missions. It was there that I had a chance to see what other things were going on in the world. There were human slaves – I couldn’t believe it. There were both women AND children being trafficked in the areas we visited. We entered into dumps where full communities of people lived for lack of resources to live anywhere else. My eyes were opened.
Long long story shorter than longer… during our time at AIM we learned that they were removing women from trafficking and giving them skills/jobs that would allow them the ability to take care of themselves and their families. AIM had taken a factory that had been used to make bricks and they created a factory to make clothing where women could work. I don’t have a lot of money, but as soon as I heard about that I wanted to order as many shirts as I could to support their endeavors. That’s when the idea to start a clothing brand started.
The years went by and I never had the capital to actually gets shirts ordered, printed, and out for sale. But, it has been on my heart for years and years. SO, if there was any time to start now is the time. I can’t wait any longer to do it. There are still women and children that need to be rescued from sex slavery, and maybe it doesn’t seem like a t-shirt can change that, but I’d posit to you that God can use anything to save His sons and daughters.
So, would you join me in this endeavor to do the work that is set before us? Let’s bring the gospel to the ends of the earth. Through design, through clothing, through any way possible.
