This past Saturday I sold bracelets at a flea market. I woke up at 5:00 am, drove 30 minutes away, set up camp, and waited. Waited for people to come, waited for the clouds to cover the horrendous sun, waited for God to show up. Of course, He was already there when I arrived.
As the first hour slowly passed I began to feel incredibly discouraged. Not very many people seemed interested in my booth and as a result sales were low. I got more questions about how much the decorative globe at my table was than about the bracelets I was selling. I prayed in my head that whatever happens happens and if He wants this to work out then it will. A few minutes later a man who worked for the flea market walked from booth to booth collect the $10 renting fee. As I pulled my money out he asked “Is this a donation table?” To which I confusingly replied “Um yes, why?” Right about now I’m thinking ‘Oh my gosh do not tell me I woke up this early and drove 30 minutes just to be told I can’t sell these bracelets here.’ It was the he said “I don’t charge donation tables, put it towards your trip. Have a good day.” I was so overcome by the complete generosity of this complete stranger I simply could not stop smiling.
Things were still a little slow after that but I chose to remain hopeful. Some time went by and a woman and her teenaged daughter walked up to my booth. I gave them my mini speech about why I’m selling the bracelets and who the money goes to and yada yada yada. The woman told her daughter to pick out some bracelets so they could support me and then continued to stare at my whiteboard. All it had was a list of prices written on it. She then said to me “You need better signage. If it weren’t for you explaining your story to me I wouldn’t have bought your bracelets.” With that in mind, I erased the prices and wrote “HELP SUPPORT MY 9 MONTH MISSION TRIP” and then listed the prices below. That’s all it took for people to really start taking an interest in my booth. Many people after that bought bracelets or just donated simply to support me. Even if people didn’t buy anything I got a lot of “Wow”‘s, “Good for you”s, and even a “I’m glad someone’s doing it” I was blown away by the support I received from perfect strangers.
A little while later I ran into a friend with whom I went on my last Guatemala trip with (I’ve chosen to keep his identify hidden). He was with his wife and they said they wanted to pick out some bracelets and lanyards to support my trip. While his wife was picking some things out we were all small talking and for some crazy reason my trip came up (that was sarcasm for those of you who didn’t catch it). He asked me about the money and deadlines and what not. Not holding anything back I told him how much I had left to raise and he responded with “Well here this should help you out.” as he handed me a hundred dollar bill. I was at a loss for words I don’t even remember what I said to them to be honest.
How crazy is all of that?!? It amazes me how God comes through in the tiniest of ways! From a $10 rental fee, to changing a sign, to even running into an old friend God is there and present through it all.
I still have about $4,000 to raise before my next deadline so be sure to be praying for me and donate if you haven’t yet! I will be back at Jake’s Flea Market (1380 Rt. 100 Barto, PA 19504) this Sunday the 21st so come out and buy some amazing bracelets! They’re designed and made by women and children in the Philippines. 50% goes to funding my trip and 50% goes to them as their source of income!
ALSO, I’ve received some exciting news about my trip so stay tuned… Wow, what a GREAT cliffhanger!
Peace out Brussels Sprouts,
Maddy 🙂
