it's more than just selling t-shirts.

Oh, friends.  My heart was overwhelmed before the t-shirt sales began...I wondered "will anyone want one? will anyone like the design?  are we asking too much?  people have plenty of other things to spend money on..."

My faith feels so small sometimes (and I wonder if it really takes faith to sell shirts...but then again, I feel like God gave the idea/prompted us to do it....obedience takes faith sometimes (always?!)...we seek to trust Him and we seek to obey Him....obsequium fidei.)

Now my heart is overwhelmed by the generosity that has been flowing through our phones, our instagram accounts, our facebook, our email....From God through all of you.  Wow.  You amaze me.  God amazes me through you. 

We aren't really anywhere near the goal I had in mind for the number of shirts to sell...(but as the wise katie said "just give it time"....)(to be fair, we're about 1/3 of the way to the total of shirts) but we have been given an abundance of encouraging words and prayers and out-of-nowhere-donations...and we're closer than ever to having all we need financially for Zoe's adoption.  God's absolutely reminding me that it's about so much more than just selling t-shirts.

We read these verses at community group Thursday night - and they struck me as very applicable to this adoption...wanted to share them here....

Romans 4:4-5 MSG "if you see that the job is too big for you, that it’s something only God can do, and you trust him to do it—you could never do it for yourself no matter how hard and long you worked—well, that trusting-him-to-do-it is what gets you set right with God, by God. Sheer gift.

This job of adopting is too big for us...it's absolutely something only God can do.  We trust Him to do it.  And what's amazing is that as we trust Him to do it, it's setting us right with Him.  (the NIV says "their faith is credited as righteousness" for that last part).  God is so good...what we can't do, He does for us...and then He gives us righteous credit for it...it's like a teacher who knows you don't know the answers to the tests, gives you the answers to the test and then gives YOU a good grade for it!  Not sure if that analogy is perfectly accurate...the bottom line is that we're getting something we don't deserve.  It's quite fitting that her middle name is Grace. 

Fun Facts (and a prayer request): 

• The blue shirts are far outselling the red ones - almost 2:1.  Shocking. 
• We have a tie for most popular size -- Adult Medium and Adult XL 
• T-shirts can be ordered until August 5!! (next Sunday)
• Apparently "ZoeGrace" is a twin-sister gospel duo from England!  
• We go Wednesday to Birmingham to sign lots of papers that will put Zoe Grace legally in our custody (followed by a court date at some point that will finalize everything).  Please pray however the Spirit leads for this time on Wednesday and for this process.  We'll let you know how it goes.

Surely there will be more to come.