What will you see on this newsletter?

1. A daily devotional, simple Christian living will be the topic
2. Occasional videos
3. Opportunities to support me in different projects
4. Featured giving opportunities
5. Book giveaways
6. Occasional guest writings
7. Information on other newsletters that focus on specific topics.

I hope you join me on this new endeavor. I think we all are going to get a lot out of it. Sign up soon so you don’t miss a thing!

It is better to wear out than to rust out – Bishop Richard Cumberland

 - an excerpt from Manvotionals ” Timeless Wisdom and Advice on Living the 7 Manly Virtues” by Brett and Kate McKay

*Yes, I will get paid a very small portion of the book sale if you by it from Amazon*

Just a side note, I have been really enjoying this book. I just pick it up in the morning after my devotional and read the next selection. Even if you aren’t a man you should really check this book out. Take your time reading through it, it is meant to be eaten slowly, pardon the cliche analogy.

God bless

When a man of advancing years tells you something is true, either believe him, or nod politely

- Star Wars: Lost Tribe of the Sith: Pantheon by John Jackson Miller

If you aren’t willing to sacrifice your comfort, you don’t have what it takes.

- The Flinch by Julien Smith

That is true for many different things. Comfort, the enemy of all things great.

By simple things, we know the world.

- Lost Tribe of the Sith: Skyborn by John Jackson Miller

I’ve been reading a lot lately. I want to get something out of my reading though. Leisure reading is fine, but sometimes you have to step back and see if you are really paying attention. Expect to see a post like this every day or maybe every other day. I hope you get something out of it like I have.

Feel free to let me know what you think of the quote on twitter.

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. (Ephesians 5:15-16 ESV)

We all have a limited amount of time on this earth, for most of us it is relatively short, sorry but its true. We all go about our days thinking we have all the time we need to get whatever it is we want to get done…done. That is a lie though.

Sorry for the serious tone, but we don’t. We live in a world that could be categorized as evil. I can already hear a few of you yelling at me for being such a downer, but really, evil rules this world. If you don’t believe me, search war in google.

The days are evil, but that doesn’t mean they are hopeless. In Ephesians 5:1-21  we see a command, a conviction, a caution and then a way to accomplish the command.

In verses 1-2 we see a command.

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:1-2 ESV)

We are told to be imitators of God, to walk in love, love like Christ had for us and that is to be our sacrifice to God. This is a heavy command, even tonight I came home with an attitude that could be described as far removed from the command above. I had to ask forgiveness with tears for some of the harshness I showed my family, I wasn’t horrible or abusive…but I know I was not imitating God.

In verses 3-18 we see the Spirit Convicting us of behavior that does not show us as children of God and also a Caution to not associate with those who are in the body but only pay lip service to living the way verses 1-2 command us to. 

But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, (Ephesians 5:3-18 ESV)

What hit me the most out of this section was that after all the conviction and then calling us to walk as children it reminds us to make the best use of our time. The wise do this, they realize the days are evil and that we shouldn’t be caught up in things that cause us to be unfruitful. Reading that section again, do you see the American church? Ouch…I do. Perhaps believers in other parts of the world would listen to this and have nothing to do with us if we didn’t “arise from the dead” to live in the light of Christ.

So how do we make the best use of our time? Well verses 19-21 answer that question in a beautifully simple way.

addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
(Ephesians 5:19-21 ESV)

Talk to each other (believers) in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing songs to the Lord in our hearts. Always thanking God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, even submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Sometimes we think that Ephesians 5 is this;

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Address one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

One day we will live that way, but until we are made perfect by our Lord we have to deal with the stuff in the middle. How? By making the best use of our time on this earth…that is why I seek a simpler lifestyle because I can then devote my time to Ephesians 5:19-21. Amen?

God bless you and may He make your life simpler.

Tell me what you think on Twitter or Google+

1. Reading a lot

2. Catching up on the Cosby show (Amazing show)

3. Got my old high school acapella group back together after 10 years (we have 4 gigs now)

4. Getting rid of the copious amount of toys my two kiddos (and I) have.

5. Finding out that I will have  a third child soon (due in May)

6. Memorizing scripture (love the Fighterverse app)

7. Not writing my ebook

Yes, I admit it. I started out hard on my ebook “The Principles of Simple Christian Living” but I got stuck. I came to a point where I didn’t feel like I had worked them out in my own life enough to suggest them to other people. This sucks, I really wanted to release it soon but I have to learn a bit more before I do. It might still show up on January 26th 2012 but at this point I am not going to force myself to finish and put out a bad product.

I’ve really enjoyed the time away from the blog. Not having to come up with something to write about every week freed me up to enjoy my life without over analyzing it. It has been really nice to say the least. Moving forward though…I have a lot I want to do.

First off I have 4 Series that I would like to start releasing next week.

I’ve been doing a lot of studying on leadership lately and I think I have come up with my style of leadership that might work for you as well. I don’t really like the “Jesus CEO” style of teachings so I don’t want to get into that style of thought. However, I do see a way of leading people by being servants that can be beneficial in all areas of life that I would like to share.

The next series will be about “Simpler Church”. This won’t be a direct advice or instruction type of series but more of an open discussion with structure. I want to look at the church in the Book of Acts as an example and use that to guide our thought process. The basic model of doing church is laid out in Acts and I want to see what the church’s role (as a corporate body) as well as the individual’s role in the Body of Christ is. I think we over complicate church in the Western world by copying the corporate business model instead of the church’s model in the Book of Acts. However, I don’t think there is a perfect distinct model. I better stop before I spoil the whole series.

I also want to write a Stewardship Series that covers tithing, offerings, giving as worship, and how we should view money and things in light of our role in God’s reality. I am most excited about this series in particular, I foresee a lot of people changing their lives via this…including myself (God Willing)

Finally, I am going to start my most ambitious series, “History of Christian Minimalism”. I am going to be putting on my egg head hat for this one. I want to study church history and look for examples of minimalism and simple living. I think it will probably turn into a book, but I want to have that happen naturally through my posts to this site…not by forcing myself to write.

I hope that gives you at least a partial idea of where my writing will be going.

Keeping it simple, focusing on the content, and seeking a meaningful relationship with Christ through the way I live.

“It Shall be Done”

Tell me what you think on Twitter or Google+

I am officially going to be taking a break from my blog at Combsy.com. The reason being is that I have a writing project that I need to put my full focus in over the next few months. I plan on releasing in on January 26th, along with a complete revamp of my site by Forte Creative.

I feel that spending my mornings writing my first book and not worrying about publishing or answering comments is going to do me good. I also will be moving my blog back to self hosting via word press . Done. I just like the ability to have total control over my site. While Squarespace has been awesome, I can’t justify the $ while I take this break. (see Simple Ways to Save Money)

I still plan on interacting with the Minimalist community via commenting on other blogs and occasionally doing a video or two about some of my thoughts or progress (sign up for the newsletter to get those), oh and by the way…it is now free!

Well, that is my reason and even a way to stay in touch why I take this little sabatical…onto the next step.

Step 2: Give Reasources to New Readers

If you just found my site, welcome! I hope you find a lot of great content here on my site and as a little gift to you I have laid out a few of my most read posts for you to paruse through. Enjoy and while I have turned off comments you can hit me up on twitter or send me an email @ Mike@Combsy.com.

Step 3: Give alternatives

If you are new to my blog or a faithful reader (Thanks!) you are going to want to read some current minimalist content while you eagerly await my first book to come out so I am going to give you some alternatives to myself while you wait for January 26th 2012.

The Minimalists

Untitled Minimalism

Zen Habits

Minimalist at Home

These are the four minimalist blogs I read the most, you should go to them and subcribe to their RSS feeds. Trust me, the content coming out of these four is fantastic and varied.

Step 4: Thank

I have been really excited about how many people have come to my site and stuck around to read even one of my essays. I really am blown away sometimes thinking about how cool that is. I really can’t wait to bring you the content that I know you will love and better yet will use to make your life just a smidge more meaniful.

God bless you for spending the time reading my words, may he make your life simpler…and deeper too.

See you on January 26th, birthday wishes welcome, and again…thank you.

Step 5: Really Take a Break

25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 

1. Listen

Make sure that you listen. Again, make sure you listen. Most of the issues in any marriage are due to people not listening to each other. I’ve been married to my wife for almost 8 years now (9/27/2011) and been dating her for a few more years than that. If there is one thing I know it is that when I listen; giving eye contact, engagement, and confirming that I understand, that is when Jessica really comes alive.

I can see her light up a little bit when I fully interact and listen to her. This is not just something to do when you are having deep conversations but with any conversation. No matter what you are doing, stop and listen to your spouse. Show them they are valuable to you and watch your relationship grow.

Trust me; it took me 8 years to figure that out…make it sooner for you!

2. Act

For my wife, me taking initiative is what makes her happy. Whether that means mopping the floors, finishing a project on the house, or getting the kids in the bath right after dinner as long as I do them by taking initiative I make her life easier…which means happier. Jessica isn’t much of a flowers and chocolate type of gal, she likes action.

Just last night while she was at the store I saw her To-Do list said she needed to clean/mop the floors. I went ahead and did it and a couple more items because I knew that it would really make her happy.

Don’t paint me as a Saint of Husbands though, seriously, deep in my heart I knew there was a selfish reason. When Jessica is happy I am happy and the kids are happy. We can go through a lot together when we take time to listen to each other and also take actions that show that we love each other.

3. Predict

Eventually you will start to learn what makes your spouse happy. You will know exactly how to make them smile and in turn give you a big smooch. Write them down when you notice them; make sure your spouse knows that you know what makes them happy too…because that will make them happy too.

$800 for 8 Years

Speaking of spouses…my wife and I are celebrating our 8^th Wedding Anniversary this month. We are also trying to do some good while celebrating the good in our life. We have been blessed with a loving family and a great marriage and we want to share that blessing with others.

We have decided to do a fundraiser for Charity Water. Our campaign is $800 for 8 years; all the money will go towards the September campaign to buy more drilling rigs to dig more wells. These drilling rigs will bring water to 40,000 more people this year; I think that’s a worthy clause don’t you?

So go to http://mycharitywater.org/800for8years and donate what you can. We technically have 90 days to get to our goal but I would love to get their by the 27^th.

Thanks for your support, God bless you.