This morning I got to speak at City Church in Lufkin, TX. I shared on the importance of obedience in every season of life. When we only rely on God in difficult times, we miss out on what it really means to be in Christ.
Give you life to Jesus. Your whole life. Trust Him. Rely on Him and His church.
My full time job is traveling as a speaker and comedian, so obviously I’ve had a lot of experience being incredibly poor. Some seasons are super busy and lucrative while other seasons are slow and terrifying. There’s harvest and famine. You get used to both, but harvest is a lot more fun.
I’ve learned a lot about how to succeed at being poor. Here are some tips for when money is tight.
Stop driving. Save money on gas. You can walk more places than you think.
Look inside your heart and make important ethical decisions before moving forward as a poor person. Does stealing toilet paper count as real stealing?
Get a library card. No more buying books or renting movies.
Don’t do any research about incremental fasting. Just use that concept as an excuse for only eating one meal a day.
Only eat at restaurants that have rewards programs that can lead to free meals. Chik-fila is your new best friend.
You won’t spend money while you’re asleep. Take naps to pass the time.
Stop buying stuff. Please. Please stop. Just because socks have holes in them doesn’t mean they need to be replaced.
Always look on the bright side. Some research is now showing that being poor can actually make you more creative.
Also, I should probably mention that there’s no shame in living in your van. I did it for 2 and a half years. It’s cool. Not that bad. Get a gym membership so you can shower.
I've always said ministry is the closest thing I'll ever get to time travel.
I'll never get to go back in time and talk to myself in jr high or right out of college. I'll never get to warn him, encourage him, or convince him to get help when he needed it most. But there are times in ministry where you come face to face with someone in a similar situation to what you've been through before.
It's like you're them for the future.
You're on the other side of what they're currently in, and you get to tell them what you wish you could tell your younger self.
That's why I'm so excited for people to read my book. It's exactly what I wish I could have read in my darkest moments.
There are several great things in this clip of the wonderful Gary Gulman on Late Night with Seth Meyers.
First, Gulman talks about doing stand-up for high school kids. He says it was great training for being a comedian because they could be a tough crowd. Yes. Yes. Absolutely. I speak in school assemblies. I do comedy for 9th graders. Some times you feel like the funniest human being alive, and other days (like yesterday) you feel like human garbage.
Second, Seth brings up Gary’s daily comedy writing tips on Twitter. These are always incredible. I’m so grateful he’s doing this. Now that my book is finished and out I want to start working on new stand-up (I’m tired of my jokes). His tweets have been so helpful.
275) Try standup at least once. Getting laughs from strangers is the most exhilarating thing I’ve ever done and I’ve dunked hundreds of basketballs. Write down your funny ideas for a few months and then find an open mic. If you already do it be GRATEFUL. #GulManTip #WriteNow
— (((GARY GULMAN))) (@GaryGulman) September 30, 2019
278) I remember in an interview @BrianReganComic (who I consider the GOAT) said he tried to write away from the areas he became known for. I think that’s one of the secrets to staying fresh and maintaining a high level of creativity. #GulManTip #WriteNow #ReganTip?
— (((GARY GULMAN))) (@GaryGulman) October 3, 2019
I know I said there were “several great things” about the clip, but I guess I just meant two.
My favorite compliment to receive about my book is also the simplest. People are telling me they’re actually reading it.
I’ve had several people tell me that my book is the first one they’ve actually sat down to read in a long time.
That’s the best.
That’s exactly who I had in mind when while writing. I wanted to make a Christian book for people who don’t like reading Christian books. Or just books in general. I wanted to make it fast, funny, and unique. I didn’t want it to sound like anything you’d find in a Christian bookstore. I wanted the jokes, stories, illustrations to all come out of left field. It had to be really different if I ever hoped to attract the audience I wanted.
There are a lot of boring books out there.
But there are some really incredible ones out there too. Reading can change your life.
I’ve always thought it would be cool if In the Altogether was someone’s gateway drug to reading better books.
I was on Jaron Myers’ podcast, They Don’t Bite, talking about vulnerability. It starts with us discussing my new book but it ends with a weird moment where I’m probably a little too honest and I make things awkward.
I really didn’t want to cry while filming myself, but boy did I get close.
In the Altogether comes out Monday.
I’m so excited about the event I’m producing called A Night of Vulnerable Christianity.
This started out as a book launch event but has turned into so much more.
I've invited a group of speakers to come present on the importance of vulnerability in the life of the church. I wanted to cram a whole conference into one night.
It's totally free but you've got to reserve your spot because space is limited!
You're going to want to hurry, too. This event WILL sell out.
Taylor Johnson, comedian (and now) author
Dr. Garland Owensby, youth and student ministries professor at SAGU and stand-up comedian
Peter Pinion, licensed professional counselor
Clayton Brooks, worship pastor of The Oaks Church in Red Oak, TX
Andrew Lawhon, associate pastor at Freedom Church in Carrollton, TX
Seth Urbina, former missionary to Bolivia
Dani Barrera, singer and entertainer
I hate naming stuff. When I was a youth pastor, it was torture for me to come up with a good name for our ministry. If I ever have a child, they’ll probably remain nameless until they’re 3 or 4 because I’ll be unwilling to commit to any one name.
It took me forever to finally decide on a title for my book. I bugged a lot of my friends with text after text of TERRIBLE title ideas. I knew I had to get all the bad ones out of my system if I was ever going to find one I was happy with.
I probably came up with at least 100 words or phrases I thought I could name my book. Here’s a list of 45.
Let me remind you that the book is about vulnerability. Why it’s important in the life of the church, why we’re afraid of it, and why we don’t have to be.
The title I came up with is IN THE ALTOGETHER. If you want to learn more about that, you can download a free preview.
Here are a ton of awful names…
Breaking Open
Sharing Your Life
Show Yourself
Too Human (as in “we are all too human to try to live without vulnerability”)
Where Hope Finds Us
Honestly
Wrong, Weak, and Worried
Vulnerable Christianity
The Only Way Forward
Can I be Honest
The Lost Art of Weakness
All My Best Secrets
All Our Best Secrets
All Your Best Secrets
Off Limits
Crying is Cool
The Lost Art of Being Human
How to be Human
Give it all You’ve Got
All the Hidden Monsters
How to be Human
Give it all You’ve Got
All the Hidden Monsters
Can I be Honest?
Full of It
Running From Yourself
Wrapped in Words
Putting it all out there
Putting it out there
No Holding Back
Hello to all our secrets
What’s Left Unsaid
So much to say
Close Enough
Wasted Grace
In Defense of Staying Weak
In Defense of Staying Human
Don’t Go Alone
You’re Not Brave, You’re Stupid
Open
Weak
Bare
Known
Share
Bumbling
Because I’m self publishing my book I have to figure out all the ins and outs of formatting a manuscript for print. Right after I finished my 4th draft I put together a test copy with one of my incomplete drafts just to so what it would look like.
I did a livestream of myself unboxing it. It feels so crazy to say I wrote a book.