Bill's Story

Life #1 did not go as planned. It involved a lot of alcohol, childish behavior, a drifting away from God--all culminating in divorce, loss of a business, financial self-destruction, and a year-long communications blackout imposed by my teenage daughter. Can't really blame her. I was as mad at me as she was. 

In August of 2016, Life #2 began. I fell to my knees and surrendered completely to God's will. I got sober. I leaned on God's strength every day. Still do. I began rebuilding my life with God's grace and mercy.

One day I came across 2 Corinthians 5:17, "If any man is in Christ he is a new creature. The old has passed away and behold the new has come!"

That's why I call this Life #2. God put my past to death. It's gone. I'm a new creature now. This verse hit me so hard I had it tattooed on my arm on my 1-year sober anniversary in 2017. 

Since then, I cannot count the number of times someone has asked me about that little tattoo. "What's that verse say?" At the very least it allows me to quote an inspiring scripture to someone. But there have been times when it's opened the door to sharing my story with people who wanted to know more, and to actually witness to them. A simple, nondescript tattoo on an otherwise untattooed guy allowed me to share the Word with people time and again. File that away for just a second...

A few years later I read 2 Timothy 4:7-8. This is where Paul, near the end of his ministry, is telling young Timothy, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith..." and that he'll receive a crown in Heaven. I was 50 at the time and those words clobbered me. All I could think was "Finish Strong." I wanted to be able to say those things near the end of my life. I scribbled down a shorthand code for the scripture: 2T478.

Back to the tattoo and how this all came together...

After my most recent encounter with someone asking about my tattoo, I marveled once again how much of a conversation starter it has been. Then my mind wandered back to the shorthand code of the verse from 2 Timothy that to me meant, "Finish Strong." What if I could design a t-shirt that could be a conversation starter like my tattoo, but be a little mysterious like my code? What if it included a short phrase in modern terms, describing what that verse means without sounding preachy and turning someone off before they ever ask about it.

That's where the idea for TRU Wear came from. A simple shorthand code for a verse that many people won't understand followed by a compelling phrase. Maybe a few of them will ask, "What's that mean on your shirt?" At the very least you'll get to share a verse with them. Maybe you'll get the opportunity to do more. Either way, someone gets to hear God's Word from you.

I feel led to do this right now, in this moment. I sense that people are becoming more bold in expressing their faith. TRU Wear is a low-impact way of sparking conversation about a biblical truth. Wear your TRUth. Share your TRUth.

Thank you for reading my story and learning about this brand and what it stands for. I love and appreciate everyone of you.

Bill Seymour, Founder