http://www.markrekers.com/

*Photo 1: Last December, One Thread Outfitters, partnered with...

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:02:00 -0500

*see caption below

Young boy holding baby brother-Nicaragua

Girl holding a balloon we gave out-Nic

Me and a beautiful Nicaraguan girl

*Photo 1: Last December, One Thread Outfitters, partnered with Spartanburg, SC based non-profit, Chosen Children Ministries, to deliver over three hundred food packets to poverty stricken areas of Nicaragua. Each packet contained a variety of items providing on average forty meals to a family of four. Packets were provided through the sale of the Project Nicaragua collection from One Thread. One Thread converts the sales from this collection of items into holistic development in distressed areas of Nicaragua.

"Pre-Occupation is a temporarily job where you spend your time while you fuel and drive your dream to..."

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:18:40 -0500

“Pre-Occupation is a temporarily job where you spend your time while you fuel and drive your dream to the land of fruition. The great thing about a pre-occupation is that with determination, desire and consistency it’s just a pit stop on your way to your true occupation.”

- Angela M. LaBord

GET IT IN FOCUS MAN

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:05:12 -0500

Am I focusing on what is pure and holy? What builds others up? What adds value to my life and others? What is beneficial and healthy? What is productive?

Or am I focusing on what tears me down? What hurts and exploits others? What holds me back? What is destructive? What I know is slowly tearing and eating at my soul?

Questions I challenge myself with. Am I who I claim to be?

I try to challenge myself frequently as I tend to lose focus. I am not always solely focused on whom I need to be focused on, Jesus Christ. Right when my focus seems to be so clear, sin has a way of creeping up in my life getting me out-of-focus and even focused on the wrong things.

Although these questions are “focused” on me, maybe it will get you to take a minute and think about what you are focused on in life. Is it on what it needs to be? Whom it needs to be on? Is your focus positive or negative? What areas in your life do you need to change to get back in focus? Has your focus lead you down a destructive path and you feel hopeless, like you will never get back in focus?

I am reminded of some powerful words Pastor Steven Furtick of Elevation Church said in one of his sermons, ”You serve a God. You were made by a God. No matter how far you’ve drifted. No matter how hard you’ve run. No matter how many battle alliances you’ve made. No matter how hopeless it seems. No matter how enslaved you are. You serve a God, a good God, who can turn your mistake into a miracle.”

Food4Thought: Steve Jobs on the ingredients for success

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 01:20:09 -0500

Food4Thought: Steve Jobs on the ingredients for success

These pictures were taken when I was in Nicaragua this past...

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:26:00 -0500

Me holding a Nicarguan child

Matt (brther) holding a Nicaraguan child

These pictures were taken when I was in Nicaragua this past December. The kids there are beautiful! My heart goes out for children in Nicaragua and around the world who are living in poverty. If God provided a way for me to work full-time right now providing needs and showing His love to these children, I would jump on it. Ever since my trip to Kenya years ago where I worked with homeless children in extreme poverty, God has laid them on my heart. I cannot sit back and do nothing. I will not sit back and do nothing. They need my help. They need to see God’s love through me.

There’s a lot to learn when starting a business! It’s one thing to learn business...

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 23:14:00 -0500

There’s a lot to learn when starting a business! It’s one thing to learn business principles in college; it’s a totally different thing to implement them in your company or your start-up.

Even with an undergraduate and masters degree in business, starting One Thread Outfitters brings challenges and learning experiences (some that I would never have imagined and classes cannot teach). I will periodically post things I’m learning along this incredible journey. If you have any tips or advice, I’m all ears! Email me here or leave a comment. Come along for the ride…

Making Major Business Decisions

When starting a business and/or running one, you have to make decisions. Decisions are crucial for any company; without them you have no business. Well then, how should the process for making major decisions look like? In its simplest form, I believe it looks like this:

1. Plan - Preparation is key. Make sure you do your homework. This includes things like organizational tasks, due diligence, budgets, research (i.e. market analysis), you name it…

2. Execute - Do it as planned with necessary adjustments along the way, but stick as closely to the plan as possible.

3. Revisit - Analyze the outcome. Is it what you expected? What went wrong? What went right? Were there any hiccups or setbacks? How would you do it differently next time to make it better, more efficient, etc?

It is imperative that you document the three stages in detail. And remember if you are doing something that doesn’t require originality, you don’t necessarily have to recreate the wheel. See what others are doing. If it works, mimic it (of course stay clear of copyright infringement and patents).

This can even work in your personal life, but maybe scaled back some. Like you could probably lose the market analysis, however, the principles of the three stages still hold true.

Mr//

MUSIC VIDEO

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 13:19:33 -0500

MUSIC VIDEO:

I bet you didn’t know I was in a real music video when I was younger. Yes that’s me with my shirt off. Ok, so my brothers and I made this for a coffee house fundraiser. Whatever…Enjoy!

Click ‘MUSIC VIDEO’ above.

Thanks Andrew for uploading.

This is pretty cool. Thanks @mackbrock for sharing.

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 19:47:00 -0500

This is pretty cool. Thanks @mackbrock for sharing.

"I cannot bend the Bible to conform to my lifestyle, I must bend my lifestyle to conform to the..."

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:04:20 -0500

“I cannot bend the Bible to conform to my lifestyle, I must bend my lifestyle to conform to the Bible.”

- Darrell Cheeks (Darrell works in Columbia, SC at Space Metal Fabricators with my brother)

AGAINST THE FLOW

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 23:28:03 -0500

This was a post I made back in May 2009 on my old blog. I’ve been thinking about/dealing with this tonight, so I thought I would re-post it (with some additions). Let me know your thoughts.

May 2009: It’s easy to go with the flow. It’s difficult to go against it. Some go with the flow simply because they are afraid of conflict. Others will not stand against it because they are afraid of what others will think or believe leadership has all the answers. Although they know what is right or know what could be better, they will keep quiet in efforts to keep things calm and avoid being singled out. I encourage you to get out of this mindset and challenge leadership. Now this does not mean be divisive, but if you have a genuine concern over something that you believe is wrong or think could be done better, challenge it. But you must do it in a loving and respectful way, while having the individual’s, those he/she leads, and/or the organization’s well-being in mind. Don’t just be a spectator follower, be a participant follower. Get involved. Challenge the status quo. This is the type of follower I want to be.

This goes for relationships as well. I want friends that challenge me, challenge what I do and say. Friends that will come to me and say “hey, what the heck are you doing?” Friends that are bold, stand up to me, and point me in the right direction even when they think it might risk our friendship. I want to be involved in relationships where we push each other to be better. These are true friendships.

Now be careful of hypocrisy. Do not look at the speck of sawdust in your leader’s or friend’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye.

If you are a leader, challenge the status quo as well. Just because it’s always been done one way doesn’t mean its the right way. Just because society has been comfortable doing it this or that way doesn’t mean it’s the best way. If the flow is wrong, have the audacity to stand against it. If the flow is flawed, have the guts to make it better. We need more leaders who will stand up for what is right no matter the cost. Our world is the way it is because of lack of true leadership. Who cares what people think? Stand for what is right. Be a true leader. Be proactive, not passive. I hope and pray this is the type of leader I am.

***Always look to scipture for your ultimate authority!! Always.***

LINKS

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 23:39:21 -0500

The start of my links page. Stay tuned for more links to come…

One Thread Outfitters: Want-for-need clothing that turns your purchases into the needs of impoverished people worldwide.

PatWright Photography

InterAct International

Chosen Children Ministries

HOPE International: Their mission is to enable people in the developed world to connect with people in the poorest communities on earth through compassionate giving and other opportunities to help

MY QUOTES

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 00:50:00 -0500

The start of my quote page…

No matter the cause of need, it’s our responsibility to fight it. // Jan 25, 2010

Excuse and hesitation breed lost leadership opportunity (Inspired from Exodus 4). // Feb 1, 2010

If you try to do everything, you will do nothing great. Determine your level of focus in which you are able to execute all with excellence. // Feb 18, 2010

Don’t just be a spectator follower, be a participant follower. // Feb 21, 2010

It’s late and I should be sleeping, but I wanted to share some...

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 00:53:00 -0500

It’s late and I should be sleeping, but I wanted to share some awesome news with you. I just had an exciting conversation tonight with Pat Wright. I am proud to announce that One Thread Outfitters has just finalized a partnership with a girls’ co-op in Madriz, Nicaragua! We are both excited to see the wonderful items they will be making for One Thread’s up-and-coming accessories collection, GATHERED. I want to give God all the glory for setting up this connection for us while we were down in Nicaragua during Drop One. The girls’ story, which includes a strong drive and passion for education and small business, is incredible! I can’t get into too much detail right now, but the income from the items they sell will help them attend school by subsidizing the cost. I can’t wait for you to hear their story and hear more about the GATHERED collection that is launching soon! Stay tuned…

We are humbled to partner with these girls. One Thread sales from the co-op items under our accessories collection will go to further help these girls in need.

I look forward to getting back down to Nicaragua to meet these girls and start working with them!

Exciting things to come…

"If you try to do everything, you will do nothing great. Determine your level of focus in which you..."

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 11:24:30 -0500

“If you try to do everything, you will do nothing great. Determine your level of focus in which you are able to execute all with excellence.”

We need to act with a sense of urgency. We can do something. ...

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 22:44:54 -0500

We need to act with a sense of urgency. We can do something. We can change the world.

MY PASSION

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 23:38:00 -0500

My passion is One Thread Outfitters. One of my best friends, Pat Wright, and I have been spending countless hours getting the company up and running. I thought I would share with you a little about us. You can also find this information on our website.

One Thread Outfitters LLC, an online apparel store, was founded by two men unable to look on global poverty indifferently, we are committed to establishing sustained humanitarian efforts in need stricken areas. One Thread is a for-profit company committed to world aid with a want-for-need business model that converts profits from our retail sales into funding for social, humanitarian based aid projects for men, women, and children worldwide.

We are actively expanding our clothing lines and seeking like-minded partners interested in utilizing common resources to achieve educational improvement, economical stability, social advancement, and spiritual development in impoverished and underdeveloped areas around the globe. If you are interested in a partnership, please email us here.

OUR CLOTHING LINES
Anmwe Haiti: To address the immediate need for financial support for Haiti earthquake relief, we have unveiled the first item in our Anmwe (help) Haiti collection. For the first six months of this launch, 100% of profits will be donated to Haiti earthquake relief through our partner non-profit organization, HOPE International. HOPE, founded in 1975, began with a mission to enable people in the developed world to connect with people in the poorest communities on earth through compassionate giving and other opportunities to help. They have been involved with social and economical development of Haiti since 1980. HOPE has committed resources and manpower to medical relief in the earthquake aftermath. HOPE has also committed full allocation of all fund earmarked for earthquake relief to directly fund efforts, no overhead is being taken.

Project Nicaragua: Every Project Nicaragua shirt sold provides 40 meals for a family of four throughout Nicaraguan villages in Masaya, Managua, and Leon. We have partnered with Chosen Children Ministries for our drops to Nicaragua. Our 2009 drop in Nicaragua was a huge success! Over 8000 meals received, 800 people fed, and two guys eternally humbled. But there is so much more left to do. Even with an old school bus filled with food, we had to turn people away. There are families starving still right now. So with that, we want to remind you that Project Nicaragua 2010 is going strong!

As a company and individuals, we are committed to the holistic development of impoverished and underdeveloped areas around the globe. This effort will, as it always has, require all of us to join in. By spreading the word of One Thread Outfitters, purchasing our apparel, and supporting our organizational partners, you are helping us make lasting change in our fragile world. You want. They need. We bridge the gap.

Please help us get the word out and change this world!

"Excuse and hesitation breed lost leadership opportunity. (Inspired from Exodus 4)"

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 23:23:00 -0500

“Excuse and hesitation breed lost leadership opportunity. (Inspired from Exodus 4)”

The Way to Sport a Speedo // Nicaragua 2009

Sun, 31 Jan 2010 14:50:26 -0500

The Way to Sport a Speedo // Nicaragua 2009

TAKEN CAPTIVE

Sun, 31 Jan 2010 00:08:00 -0500

“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” Colossians 2:8

Oh how prevalent such hollow and deceptive philosophies are today, even within our churches. I am concerned that such philosophies are accepted and followed due to popularity or the appearance of reasonableness. Whether disguised as “new generation” or traditions of man passed down from long ago; be aware of such philosophies, teachings, and ideologies that are based on human reasoning and not divine revelation. These principles of the world are void of truth, deceptive, and take us captive. Challenge philosophies of man and ideologies of this world. Look to the scriptures. Base philosophies, teachings, and ideologies on Christ and Christ alone.

Wish I brought her home // Nicaragua 2009

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 19:59:00 -0500

Wish I brought her home // Nicaragua 2009