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Showing posts from April, 2012

Monday Funday: If you have a twisted sense of humor...

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NOTE: This bumper sticker is NOT on my car! (Just in case my mother-in-law reads my blog!) Get blog posts from Cup O' Joe in your email inbox! You'll hear from me about 1-2x a week. Email addresses are never shared with anyone and you can unsubscribe at anytime.  Subscribe to Cup O' Joe with Bill by Email . Thanks for letting us keep in touch with you. 

The pictures tell the story...

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In the last couple of months… here's what we've been up to.  The pictures tell the story.  Click any image below to enlarge for viewing… and thanks for stopping by for a Cup O' Joe with me. Last month's road trip with Jarrod Briggs . Three days. Three different Wisconsin locations.   Disciplemaking Is Relationships training . Disciplemaking Is Relationships training with youth leaders from the Forrest Lakes District (WI) of the Evangelical Free Church of America. First stop: Rice Lake, WI.  It's not Canada, but you can see it from there… eh? Disciplemaking Is Relationships training in Madison, WI. Here's a picture of young man risking his life. Yes, that's my daughter Josey. Two words: Milkshake Monday.  An Allison family tradition. Why do a major mailing when you can do a major mailing par-tay? Thanks to the Whites and the Bartz families for all the fun and help with our Spring ministry update letter !

On being old and still having babies...

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(Picture taken at Chuck E. Cheese.) I think the words of Homer, that immortal and wise philosopher, are fitting at this time: "I used to rock and roll all night and party every day. Then it was every other day. Now I'm lucky if I can find half an hour a week in which to get funky." -- Homer J. Simpson Let's face it people. I'm getting old. Here's the good news: I'm not using a cane to walk. Instead, I'm leaning on my baby's stroller .   Now THAT'S funny . God has a great sense of humor… and I love Him deeply for it. I think I'm the richest man in the world… only it's the kind of richness that really counts. Thank you God. "Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green ." —Psalms 92:14

Top Ten Worst Small Group Discussion Questions

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10. Share the worst sin you’ve ever committed. 9. If you were God, who would you punish first? 8. Which person in this group do you think needs to find Jesus the most? 7. Which people at your church do you wish would find a different church, and why? 6. If you could erase any verse out of the Bible, which one would it be? 5. Share the juiciest piece of gossip you know so we can pray about it. 4. If you could have anything from your neighbor’s house, what would it be? 3. What’s your favorite of The 10 Commandments to break? 2. If you could change anything about your spouse, what would it be? 1. If you could commit any sin and get away with it, what would it be? Looking for some great small group questions? Here you go . * To the best of my knowledge, the top 10 came from Eric Metcalf . You, Me, and Coffee Monday...   Let me encourage you and and make you think 1 stinking time a week (usually Monday morning) with a virtual  Cup O' Joe with Bill  in your ema

Leading when you want to quit...

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I was twenty-two years old and in my last year of Bible college when I got a phone call from a senior pastor telling me that the vote to hire me as a church youth pastor was 35 to 5. I liked the 35 part—but was more than a little concerned about the 5 people who voted against the idea of me taking the position. When I told the senior pastor that I was a little worried about the 5 no votes, he said, “You have less no votes than I had when I accepted the call to be the senior pastor of this church!” So, with some apprehension and assurance from my senior pastor, I accepted the position. During the very first week I served in that church as youth pastor, each of the people who voted against my coming to the church decided to drop in and visit me. They came into my office one at a time and said the most hurtful things—doing their absolute best to discourage me. (Have you ever noticed that some people in church seem to believe that discouragement and criticism are their spiritual gifts—

Monday Funday: Twitter tweets to make you smile

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Below are a few of my Twitter tweets from the last week or so. Hope these at least make you smile… even just a little. That would be pretty good... for a Monday. On April 1st I tweeted this: "I'm giving up coffee." #aprilfools After reflecting on all the women in my life and family. I tweeted this: "Sometimes I ask Siri to do stuff that I could do without her just so I can feel like I'm in charge." #finallyawomanwhodoeswhatisay #jokinghoney #justincasemywifeisreadingthis After reflecting more about having six daughters and my need for money to pay for weddings, I tweeted this: "With 6 daughters, I believe in biblical dating... aka parentaly arranged marriages (including a very steep bride price). If you're a young man and interested, contact me at iwishfordeath@cadreministries.com" #lifetimememberofthenra While sitting in a packed theater with my teenagers and some of their friends, I tweeted this: "At the Hunger Game

Why Real Friendship Matters...

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God has called us to a personal relationship with Him, not a private one. If we ever begin to get the friendship that comes from  following Jesus together , accountability will take care of itself . "When we get together, I want to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours." —Paul, Romans 1:12 You, Me, and Coffee Monday...   Let me encourage you and and make you think 1 stinking time a week (usually Monday morning) with a virtual  Cup O' Joe with Bill  in your email inbox.  Two  Simple Steps... 1.  Go here and submit your email . 2.  Go to your email and click the Feedburner confirmation link . You can unsubscribe at any time with no questions asked simply by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email you receive from  Cup O' Joe with Bill . Honest. You got nothing to lose. Try it.

FREE audio on disciplemaking...

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What's a Jesus-like disciplemaking way of life look like for regular people?  What happens if we disciple someone who doesn't make more disciples?  Why must disciplemaking start with our own families?  What's the difference between discipleship and disciplemaking?  Are you ever too old to invest your life in disciplemaking with the next generations?  If you've ever wondered about any of the above, then you'd probably enjoy this FREE, brief, free flowing, and substantive audio conversation. Go here to download the mp3 for your iPod and sharing freely with others . * If you want more on Jesus-like disciplemaking and Disciplemaking Learning Communities, go here .