Caritas Clothing

So 2008 is over, and a new year is upon us. We hope that means big things for Caritas Clothing.  We can’t wait to see what happens. As you may have known over the past 6 months or so 20 % of all our profits have went to Imattertoo.org.  However for 2009 it is our dream that Caritas Clothing could fund the building of a well in Africa. This has been a dream of mine since before I started the company. Its sad that in today’s world of Iphones and SUV’s that 2.5 billion people worldwide do not have access to safe drinking water. 1.6 million children alone die every year. Even worse is basic hygiene education. In some parts of the world people believe that if you have diarrhea that it  means you have an excess of water, so they stop drinking it.

Caritas Clothing is not a very big company, but we have big dreams. To build a well it costs thousands of dollars. According to WaterCan, the organization we will be donating to, just 25 dollars is enough to provide clean drinking water, and basic hygiene and health education for 1 person for life. Ephesians 3:20-21 says, “20Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” and thats a promise that we claim here at Caritas Clothing, that God can do immeasurably more than we can possibly even imagine( and I have a pretty good imagination!) so join us in raising awareness of this global crisis that we have the power to change.

Hey whats up guys, Will here. Just want to let you know how excited I am for tomorrow. Canvas is probably one of my favorite events of the year. We always have such a fun time, and get a good response from the people.  Canvas 2 was the first event Caritas Clothing ever did and if it wasn’t for Bobby and Mike who run it, Caritas Clothing would not exist today. So if your in the Tampa, Fl area you should definitely come. For those of you who aren’t have no fear, the 3 new shirts are going to be available online starting tomorrow. I would get yours while we can, we did smaller runs than normal to test out how people like the new materials, so if you want to see more Polo’s or V-necks then let us know! Also one of the shirts was a partnership with Impact, a young adult ministry in Brandon. 100% of the profits go to supporting a missionary involved with the Adventures in Missions organization in Brandon.

Heres some pics to whet your appetite!

Impact - Printed on American Apparel.

Growth - V-neck by Canvas.

The Lion - Our first  polo. Printed on Gildan.

So for whatever reason it takes alot of motivation for me to actually get on this thing, when really its extremely easy to do. Tonight I have alot of random thoughts that I want to get out. They are just little things, realizations that I’ve had lately that I’ve wanted to write about for awhile, but I’m just too busy(lazy).

First off I am so excited lately about Caritas Clothing. We’ve attended this christian college ministry/coffee house the past two fridays, and it really has been amazing. Now the people there are by no means strangers, alot of them I’ve known for awhile, but its been so amazing going as Caritas Clothing these last two fridays because of the huge support we have recieved from them. The pastor Paul Humphreys interviewed us about our vision for the company, why we started it, and about the charity we give too, and then he prayed over us. We’ve sold alot of shirts there, but thats not even whats important, its the fact that the people there believe in what we are doing and share our vision. For me that has been so refreshing and encouraging.

Their are 2 things that I’ve realized lately about God. You might say that I always knew it, but it wasn’t till I really thought about it that the full impact of these things hit me. Now I’m not theologian, and I would never advocate taking my word over the Bible’s, I’m just a dude who is trying to get along in this world like anyone else.(/end disclaimer) The first I realized when I was having a quiet time. I was reading the story of when God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his son. That story has really been relevant to my life this summer for other reasons that I won’t go into, but the story in general is just crazy. God asks Abraham to sacrifice his son, his only son, his beloved son. Basically Abraham had prayed for years and years to have a son, and God finally gave him one, and now he wanted Abraham to kill him. Such is the loyalty and faith of Abraham though that he doesn’t hesitate. He sets off for a 3 day journey to this special mountain. Can you imagine how hard that journey must have been. Abraham and his son walking along, the whole time Abraham knowing what he must do at the end of the journey. What a burden that must have been. Then when they get there, his son Isaac asks him where the sacrifical animal is. How heavy was Abraham’s heart at that moment. The Bible says that Abraham raised his hand with the dagger in it. Then God sent his angel to stop Abe.  To Abraham there was only God’s Will, and though I’m sure he was filled with sorrow, he was prepared to do even the one thing that would hurt him the most. All of that is amazing to me, but the real “holy crap” moment for me was the fact that God spared Abraham’s son. At that most critical moment he called out to Abe and told him “Do not lay a hand on that boy.”  He tested Abe to be sure, but he was not going to make him really go through with it. To have Abe sacrifice his only son, after the long years of waiting for one, well God would not wish that on anyone. God KNEW/KNOWS what it feels/felt like to sacrifce his son, his beloved son. Knowing the unspeakable pain of that choice, he spared Abraham. There is a czech movie called Most, which means Bridge. It is a short film, but it is absolutely amazing. I would highly recommend everyone watch it, because its a very good illustration to what God felt like when he sacrificed his son.

The second revelation/realization is this: In Genesis, God tells Moses his name is I Am. I don’t know if any of you ever thought about that deeper than surface level. I know I really didn’t until recently. I Am is a form of the verb “to be” as in being, as in God calls himself Existence. Its such a rock solid statement. I exist. It also is completely timeless. I Am. It just blows my mind. There is a worship song called “Great is Thy Faithfulness” I think its called. It has a chorus that goes. “You are. You were, You will always be. ” Another song goes ” …who was, and is and is to come.” I don’t know about you, but something about the fact that my God declares himself to be existence. He is. I don’t even know what else to say about it.

And last but not least, and if your still with me I commend you for getting this far is, I just want to share my heart about Caritas Clothing. We are officially a “business” but to me thats just a word. If we sold a million shirts or if we only sold 1,its all the same to me. I don’t want to be a shirt company. I don’t want to be a clothing company. I want to be a light on a hill. I want to be an inspiration to others. I want people to be inspired by the message of Caritas Clothing, that is to love each other, to help those who need it. Our shirt “Do Something” says it all: We could change the world, we could make a difference. Please do something, do anything, but please do not do nothing. I honestly believe that. Its about changing people’s hearts. So I hope that if you read this it encourages you to do something. Find someone you can help someway. Whether its buying a homeless guy a meal or helping your best friend move furniture.

So I don’t know if anyone has noticed but the sites stability and functionality have been off and on lately. Thats because I have been doing new things to it. Hopefully I’ve got all the bugs worked out but if not let me know. If you’ve been to the site before you will notice that the layout has changed slightly. Its more uniform, cleaner, and now theres a bar on the left with your shopping cart, and all sorts of goodies. Notice the new url in the top now(well technically now your on the blog so it doesnt count) Don’t worry you can still get to the site by typing www.caritasclothing.com or even just caritasclothing.com. Because of the magical nature of the internet, things work this way. Anyways I am pleased to announce that Caritas Clothing has a new shirt!

You can find these at the Store. 

Also Caritas Clothing will be in attendance at the Impact Coffeehouse on SR 60 in Brandon, Florida on Friday, July 18th.  Its from 4-12 I believe, we’ll probably be there from 6-10ish. Our good friend Jay Aden is playing his first show, and we can’t wait to hear it.

So there are a few announcements to make.

First off, NEW SHIRTS!!!! They came out perfect, and they are selling like flapjacks at a Trucker’s Convention.(I’m not sure if thats real saying or I just made it up.) Point is, they are going to be gone quick.

A big thanks to my models Jon and Jessie who are awesome.

Second Announcement is Caritas Clothing is going to be a part of Square One Fashion, Art, and Music Showcase called GO!

When: Saturday May 31, 2008 at 7:00 PM
Where: THE RITZ YBOR
1503 E 7th Avenue
Tampa, FL 33605

It’s free to attend! There are going to be over 80 local artists plus live music. Come on out and say hey!

Its the end of the semester, its always a bitter sweet time. Freedom from school, but at the cost losing touch with friends as they leave for the summer. I know that when they return, both parties will be changed by the little life experiences that mark everyday. Tonight as one last final hurrah, a few of my friends drove out to the middle of nowhere, and lit off a few fireworks. I was in an introspective mood and I just layed on the hood of my car staring up at the sky. It’s amazing the difference in the sky. In the city whenever I look up and am always amazed by the beauty of the stars, but that holds nothing to going out past the lights, past the fingerprint of technology. The sky is filled with stars. It always lifts my spirits to look at the sky in general, but when I look up at a sky strewn with stars, it reminds me of how truly huge this universe is. When I was laying on my car, something profound struck me. As much as I love the sky, the one fault in it is that its just huge , so encompassing that no matter how I try I can’t see everything at once.  It struck me that God is like that in so many ways. So huge, that no matter how we try we can’t take him in a single glance.  We can only see a small part of him at any time, and while we see that one small spot, he is all around us,  so much we do not know or understand. But then again thats what makes him God. If the sky were a small window in the air, then we would grow comfortable with it. Every star could be catalogued, its location marked. There would be no mystery, no awe. I’m very glad the sky is so huge, the stars seemingly infinite, they are a reflection of their creator.

    Something I’ve been thinking about recently is the human perspective towards God and His Righteousness and how it affects our view. The bible calls us Children of God, and what exactly does that mean? Presupposing that God exists, and he created us(naturally or supernaturally) that in effect makes us his property. To us being human, with a selfish 1st person view of things to many people, they simply can’t accept that. They think themselves independent and not belonging to anyone but themselves. In Isaiah 29:16 it says “¹⁶You turn things around!
         Shall the potter be considered as equal with the clay,
         That what is made would say to its maker, “He did not make me”;
         Or what is formed say to him who formed it, “He has no understanding”? ” 

     Being an artist the way I see it is, if I make a painting it is mine, I can do whatever I want to it, including destroy it. If we are created beings then we belong to the one who created us. As much as it assaults our senses to think of such a callous relationship its a simple fact. However the beauty of our relationship with God is that he does not treat us as property. If I were to have a child would it be my property? Could I destroy it?(Some would argue yes in the case of abortion, but I am speaking of a child who has been born) Of course not. Even the most controlling of parents do not really believe the child is their “property.” God could treat us much like a piece of art to control at his whim, but the truth of it is that He loves us and treats us like his children not his property. In Ephesians 1: 5 it says, “⁵He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His Will.”  We have been adopted as Children of God, Romans 8:16-17 says, “¹⁶The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. “

It is a beautiful thing indeed, that by all rights we deserve none of things given to us, yet God treats us not like a thing but instead has adopted us as sons and daughters. Heirs even!

    It’s been almost a week since the last Revolution. For those who haven’t heard of it, or don’t live in the Tampa area, Revolution was a 20 somethings collegiate ministry based at The Crossing Church of Brandon. For the past 2 year, every monday I had a ritual. I’d go to Chick-Fil-A around 7 pm. I use to go to Moe’s Southwest grill to get the special, but after working there I lost my appetite for it. Now chick-fil-a is closed on Sunday, and the way that the universe works in its infinite irony is every Sunday I get a huge craving for Chick-Fil-A. Particularly their Sweet Tea. 

    Anyways, I sit down for my No. 5, 8-piece, Value-Sized, with sweet tea for 5.94(these are the bedrock details of my life!) to kill time, because Revolution never starts on time.  When I arrived I was usually still sipping on my very large, and very delicious sweet tea(A free refill for the road of course) I would mingle or not, and more often than not would find my self sitting in the uncomfortable orange chairs on the right side by myself till Worship started. There was a brief intermission inbetween worship, and announcements where I would go and get myself a cup of hot chocolate regardless of the season. After the announcement video, by far one of the best things about Revolution, we would sing more songs, and then Bobby the pastor, would usually say he was a big nerd, and quote something from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, or tell us of his chubby cheek days as a highschooler.

     So it went for 2 years. The worship was great, Bobby’s messages were always insightful and entertaining, but I don’t think thats what really left an imprint on me. It was the underlying sense of sincerity underneath it all. It was the compassion for people, and the motivation to actually do something about it. The sense of community with people I didn’t and don’t even know exist.  It really was a revolution. It challenged the way I viewed Christ, and the way I viewed the church, and it reshuffled my priorities and what I thought was my place in the church. The church is something I take with me whereever I go, and in whatever I do, not a place with 4 walls, some greeters, and a guy who talks alot.

      Bobby spoke often about dreaming big, and God’s dream for our lives.Without his guidance and inspiration Caritas Clothing would not have existed. I am saddened not by the loss of Revolution. It had taken its course, and in fact has not died but evolved into Element(a new church Bobby is planting), it spawned I am a Revolution.org, and the spirit of Revolution’s meaning lives on in those of us who took Bobby’s passion to heart and go out into the community to be a Revolution to others. No I do not mourn its passing, instead I selfishly mourn its time slot on monday night, where I could go to Chick Fil- A and get my sweet tea, to the inherent safety of routine.

This is the first post of the new blog system for Caritas Clothing. Its alot better than just linking to the myspace page, and should be updated more frequently!