Clothing Confessional

After working on the laundry this evening, I feel it's time to come clean, to own up to my obsession, my collection, my own personal clothing addiction......

TA-DA!

(this isn't even all of them, friends...) 

T-shirts. Cottony comfort in a rainbow of colors. I love 'em. I'd wear them every day, everywhere. Some are your standard material, others are so soft and stretchy. Some are large, and some of them are extra-large because you just don't know when you're going to wake up and demand that your clothing be loose and baggy, because you just aren't in a form-fitting kind of mood, and pass the chocolate already!

However, in my defense, I've purchased every single one of these for a reason. (besides the fact that I can always use another t-shirt contrary to what my husband may say, and despite the way I stuff them like sardines into my dresser drawer before applying the right amount of force to shut said drawer without any little flaps of fabric hanging out over the edge)

Sure, you may look at those shirts and see a cute logo, or a catchy phrase. But to me? I see...

• Families - Ethiopia, China, Uganda. Children who once were orphans are now sons and daughters. I've prayed for them before I saw their faces, while their parents traveled across the globe to bring them home, and I'm still praying for them. Some of those shirts are families who are still waiting for their child, just like ours.
• Missions - I purchased a few to help raise funds so young men and women could board a plane and hit the mission field before their 21st birthday. They amaze me with their bold courageous steps of faith to go and to share Christ to the ends of the earth, and it is a joy and privilege to pray and support them.
• Passion - Whether it's my adoption agency's tee, or one of the few I have representing several organizations, these are men and women united in the cause of loving on, caring for, and defending the fatherless. They work diligently, day in and day out, to be obedient to God's command and to go and meet the needs of these children. They're in the trenches doing the hard work and making it possible for others to come alongside.  
• Promises - So many of my shirts have scripture on them:

"Defend the cause of the fatherless..." Isaiah 1:17
"God places the lonely in families" Psalm 68:6
"You will strengthen their heart, You will incline your ear to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed" Psalm 10:17-18
"He said to them, 'Go into the world and preach the gospel to all creation." Mark  16:15
"For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited me in" Matthew 25:35

            Every one of those words is God speaking. It is a declaration of who He is. It is hope that I can hold onto. It is a command I should listen to.

• An invitation - When I step out into my corner of the world wearing one of those shirts and someone asks me what they mean, I've been given a moment to share. To tell the stories of families brought together under a great big God. Of everyday people stepping out of their comfort zone to go and do the unexpected. An opportunity to educate those who never realized so many children are in need of love, whether it be in their town, in their state, or in another country.  

And you thought they were just t-shirts.... : )