Issue 001 - Angela
The 99 Collective: “Could you introduce yourself to The 99 Collective”
Hey yeah, I’m Angela. First and most importantly I’m a child of God and a follower of Christ. I’m simply placed on earth to serve as His vessel, and I’m just fortunate to have the understanding that all things are possible through Jesus, so everything I currently do and will ever do stems from this knowledge of truth. And yeah I just like to enjoy the life I’ve been blessed with by making the most out of every situation and finding joy wherever
The 99 Collective: “How have people in your life inspired you?”
My parents selflessness, faith, and determination inspire me to never give up on anything I pursue. I’ve learned from them to not only focus on achieving my goals but also on just appreciating the journey, as each day is a genuine blessing that you shouldn’t take for granted
The 99 Collective: “How have your past experiences helped you?”
My past experiences have taught me what not to do and how not to react in situations. In the past I was fixated on my environment and my surroundings which influenced my thoughts, reactions, moods etc but now that I’ve come into a newness of life, like a new reality, where my eyes are just set on things above, I now make decisions with eternity on my mind and now I’m just at peace and handle everything a lot more rational such as extending Grace to others
The 99 Collective: “Talk us through your design process and how much you lean on God during it?”
My design process comes from a place of intimacy and consecration, all designs, gatherings, and ideas that will ever be seen from Ahbaroi comes from what is able to be shared from the secret place.
I’m grateful that I’m blessed with the ability to discern what God is doing during specific times and seasons to understand what to do in response. This helps my idea process and from outside looking in, even if it looks like the brand is experiencing quiet or inactive periods I’m at ease knowing that from the inside we never rush to put something out prematurely, as we know that God is doing a mighty work preparing it for the right time
The 99 Collective: “What do you want to achieve with each design you put out?”
That with each design/idea that’s put out, people that see the brand will have many testimonies to share that was birthed through their encounter
The 99 Collective: “Where did the name Ahbaroi come from?”
Ahbaroi, pronounced ‘Abba / Roi‘, is the combination of "Abba", meaning Father, and "El Roi", being the God who sees me.
I put these together because one thing I always say is that God saw me as the child He formed when I lost sight who I was in the world, and I believe that’s how He looks at us all. So the name shows that God sees each individual as who He formed even if they lose sight of themselves.
The "Roi" part comes from "El Roi," the God who sees all and knows all. As believers, we are so privileged to call out "Abba." Galatians 4:6 puts the essence of this and the Holy Trinity perfectly "And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba! Father!'" …so yeah the name means The Father Who Sees Me
The 99 Collective: “What have you loved the most so far in your journey?”
Meeting some of my destiny helpers for sure!! Because at the time I never realise certain people are placed in my life to be my destiny helper, but when I look back at certain moments and reflect, I’m just in constant awe with God’s intentionality
The 99 Collective: “When it comes to Ahbaroi, what’s your why?”
I have a burden, a real burden for believers to live life with an understanding of how important they really are in this generation. A burden for all of His children to live life according to a genuine realisation that the same Holy Spirit that Jesus was anointed with, which allowed Him to fulfil His ministry and perform miracle signs and wonders is the same the Holy Spirit that dwells within each of us as believers. The miracles that we read happening back then can still happen now, and it’s even for that reason Jesus says in John 14:12 that “…whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do…”
So yeah the vision of Ahbaroi was birthed to support and raise a generation of confident believers to fulfil the great commission - by inspiring, teaching and creating opportunities for believers to speak out, use their gifts and their talents effectively so that others may see their light and give glory to the Father.
The 99 Collective: “What inspired your first design?”
There was a word that I once heard which made me think differently about the secret place. The Pastor said, "Don’t be like Adam in Genesis, when God is looking for you but He cannot locate you." To put it into context, when Adam became aware of his nakedness and hid in the Garden of Eden after the sin had been committed, God wasn’t asking Adam where he was because He couldn’t physically see Adam, but it was because that God couldn’t spiritually locate Adam. And it proper touched me because even when we are in a vulnerable state and feel distant from God, God is always still wanting to speak with us, guide us, reveal things to us, and teach us.
Also, when God comes to our secret place with Him and cannot find us spiritually because we have neglected our relationship with Him, it can hinder our destiny, as there’s things He wants to share with each individual. So yeah that that inspired the idea of having 'Found in the secret place'
Then ‘The Way, Truth & Life’ is from John 14:6-7 when Jesus spoke to His disciples. This is a statement and foundation that everyone should know, so that’s why it’s so big and bold on the t-shirt
The 99 Collective: “How impactful do you think Christian clothing can be?”
Very impactful, it can be a conversation starter for those who may not initiate conversations with other people about Christ or those that find it difficult in doing so. Usually what happens is that by nature people are more likely to go up and compliment a piece of clothing or even ask where it is from, from someone they’ve never met before and that entry point provides the opportunity for the person wearing it to sow a seed and talk about the gospel, which then enables the Holy Spirit to take over in that moment. Yeah christian clothing can literally draw people to the knowledge of Truth.
The 99 Collective: “What’s your favourite bible verse?”
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.” Psalm 91:1 ESV
The 99 Collective: “When did you have that moment that this MUST be God?”
In September 2022, I had my first true encounter with God. One night, I clearly heard an instruction to understand the importance of prayer. I was so confused as it came randomly, but not too long after hearing that, on one random day, by His Grace, I saw a post on Instagram from a Fellowship that was about to begin a ‘Prayer Series’ and I strongly felt led to go and when I went there, the lessons I learned during that series really transformed my prayer life and overall walk with Christ…Funnily enough, what I didn’t know at that time though was that the instruction God gave me to understand prayer was actually in preparation for intercession.
As a couple months after, I found myself praying fervently for a family member’s health. For the next seven months, I consistently interceded day and night, fasting, praying, and studying scripture. Hearing that instruction in September 2022 was when I first knew God because through obedience to that instruction the life and health of that family member—and another—were saved. That’s when I knew that MUST be God.
The 99 Collective: “How would you explain Christianity to nonbelievers?”
I love the Court analogy… imagine being in a courtroom where a trial is taking place. The Judge represents God, and you are on trial for failing to pay MANY fines. You are undeniably guilty and facing a life sentence because there is no possible way for you to pay off these fines on your own.
There’s nothing you can do and because the Judge is just, someone must pay the fines for you to be released (and bare in mind you can’t get out on bail). Then at that moment, before you are sentenced to life in prison, the Son of the Judge (some consider Him to be a lawyer in this analogy) steps forward and out of love and pure compassion, He pays the entire sum of your fines, as well as the fines of everyone else who will not be able to pay off theirs.
At that moment, you are left speechless, yet you just accept and trust in His ability to settle your debt. He covers the full amount, and you are set free from your sentence. Not only are you released, but you are given a fresh start at life and can speak freely with the Judge, as well as being given a Book guiding you on how to live to avoid getting those fines again.
In this analogy: The Judge represents God. Prison represents Hell / Eternal Separation from God. The Son of the Judge is Jesus Christ. You represent Humanity. The Fines symbolize Sin. The Book is the Bible.
The 99 Collective: “Who is Jesus to you?”
Jesus is my Lord and Saviour. Words cannot fully express who He is to me because His love still amazes me each time. God sent His only begotten Son, fully human and divine, to die for our sins so that we could be reconciled back to Him. Then on top of that He gave us the Holy Spirit as our helper?! fully knowing that we’ll will need the Spirit of God to properly live…Like the only possible and reasonable response to express my thankfulness to that compassion and love was to surrender my life to Him, for there is no greater love than to lay down one's life
