For those with a slightly twisted sense of humor

In 1986, Mkele Mbembe was on holiday in Kenya after graduating from Northwestern University. On a hike through the bush, he came across a young bull elephant standing with one leg raised in the air. The elephant seemed distressed, so Mbembe approached it very carefully. He got down on one knee and inspected the elephant's foot, and found a large piece of wood deeply embedded in it. As carefully and as gently as he could, Mbembe worked the wood out with his hunting knife, after which the elephant gingerly put down its foot.

The elephant turned to face the man, and with a rather curious look on its face, stared at him for several tense moments.

Mbembe stood frozen, thinking of nothing else but being trampled. Eventually the elephant trumpeted loudly, turned, and walked away.

Mbembe never forgot that elephant or the events of that day.

Twenty years later, Mbemb was walking through the Chicago Zoo with his teenage son. As they approached the elephant enclosure, one of the creatures turned and walked over to near where Mbembe and his son Tapu were standing. The large bull elephant stared at Mbembe, lifted its front foot off the ground, then put it down. The elephant did that several times then trumpeted loudly, all the while staring at the man.

Remembering the encounter in 1986, Mbembe couldn't help but wonder if this was the same elephant he had cared for those many years earlier.

Mbembe summoned up his courage, climbed over the railing and made his way into the enclosure. He slowly walked right up to the elephant and stared back in wonder.

The elephant trumpeted again, wrapped its trunk around one of Mbembe's legs and slammed him against the railing, killing him instantly.

Probably wasn't the same elephant.

(My very warped and fun friend, Dan Learned, passed this on to me.)

The Peoria Area Leadership Community

This is the new cohort group of aspiring Jesus-like disciplemakers in The Peoria Area Leadership Community—aka PALC.

PALC is a Disciplemaking Learning Community...

Disciplemaking...

Learning...

Community...

Aspiring to live a Jesus-like disciplmaking way of life... together....

Wrestling together what 1st century Jesus-like disciplemaking looks like in a 21st century Western world.

It's just one of the reasons we love being your Cadre missionaries of disciplemaking.

True Story: 11-year-old boy takes notes on my sermon

I got this email from a guy whose family recently heard me preach at their church:

Bill,

Our 11 yr old son feverishly took notes on your message yesterday... he filled a page. He's usually pretty detached from the Sunday morning teaching. I was so proud of him and of you.

As I looked at his note sheet, I turned it over and read these words written on the back, "I saw dust come out when he cut the cheese."

Hmmm... I guess he's still 11.

In the spirit of this note, I offer this ten second video clip:

If video doesn't show, go here.

Celebrating Our 10th Year of Cadre Ministries!

Click on any of the images below to enlarge for viewing and reading. To print the two page PDF, go here. Thank you for stopping by for a virtual Cup O' Joe with me.

We can't do Cadre without friends like you who love, pray, and give. For more information about how you can partner with God, the Allisons, and Cadre Ministries, go here. To make a secure online tax-deductible donation, go here.  Cadre Ministries is a recognized 501(c)3 ministry.

The Disciplemaking Genius of Jesus—Part 5

Which of the following quotes are from the Bible and which are not? Put a B next to those quotes you think are found in the Bible and put NB for those quotes you think are not in the Bible. This will be way funner if you dare to do it with some friends.

1. “That which God writes on thy forehead, thou wilt come to it.”

2. “Naked a man comes from his mother’s womb, and as he comes, so he departs.”

3. “He said, ‘The prayer of you both has been accepted, therefore continue in the right way and do not follow the path of those who do not know.’”

4. “A coward is much more exposed to quarrels than a man of spirit.”

5. “In the beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.”

6. “Life is but a walking shadow.”

7. “And now, behold, I speak unto the church. Thou shalt not kill; and he that kills shall not have forgiveness in this world, nor in the world to come.”

8. “Cleanliness is next to godliness.”

9. “Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, offer service to Me, bow down Me, and you shall certainly reach me.”

10. “You hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of Hell as you are.”


To check how you did, go here.

How many out of 10 did you get?  Let me know...

What does this have to do with The Disciplemaking Genius of Jesus?  Find out here.

Power of One Festival

I'm looking forward to speaking at Power of One Festival...

Complete details here.

Pray for Bubba: Last weekend in rural IL

I started Friday off by hobnobbing with the Mayor of Henry, IL, for lunch. We went to The Happy Hobo. Yeah, that's right. The muckety-mucks live large in rural IL.  Food was GREAT by the way.

While waiting for our food at The Happy Hobo, I saw this very hot news coming out of Bradford, IL.  We know how to party it down in Central IL baby.  Speaking of partying down...

After the high school football game on Friday, about 40 of us—mostly high school students—friends of our teenagers—gathered for a Fire Pit Friday. We even let some college kid types come.

Big news last Sunday in Streator, IL. Baby Ivy's first appearance at First Baptist Church. My three daughters pictured above—all middle children—wanted to know if their names have ever been put on a church sign. Answer: no.  A sad reality for middle children : (  If someone finds our home video collection years from now, they will think that we had two children... our oldest and youngest.

After church, we all went out to the country home of dear friends for a picnic. It was great getting more time with people we've loved so much over the years.  Our girls all went fishing in a private pond stocked with lots of fish.  Our Sadey caught a delicious bass.

The picnic was also a kind of reunion with students from my days as a youth pastor in Streator. Here's a pic of few "students" who made it to the picnic. It was great to reconnect with them.

Later that night, I went to my 30th class high school reunion.  It was held at Teke's Lounge.  My classmates invited me to pray before our meal. I was happy to do so.  This is not the first time I've prayed in a tavern : )  Speaking of prayer...

When I got home late Sunday night, I received a text with this picture above. The text read, "We'd like to give you and your family a pig. His name is Bubba. Before the end of the year, we'll bring all the meet to you. Pray for Bubba to get real big before then."

What can I say?  I love the people in rural IL. I thank God for the people in rural IL. I love my roots in rural IL.

Pray for Bubba indeed.  

Here's a video of Bubba... I kid you not.

Video of Bubba here!

Pastor Appreciation: A Radical Idea

[Note that when we speak of appreciating pastors, we mean any and all pastors at your church: senior pastor, associate pastor(s), youth pastor, children’s pastor, etc.]

Perhaps the greatest gift you could give your pastor for Pastor Appreciation this October is a congregation that is equipped with the seven biblical ways God wants them to encourage the pastor. (It sure beats a generic card signed by insincere trouble-making malcontents.) This 28-page study guide is great for Sunday school, small groups, and leadership gatherings. What are you waiting for? It’s time to get busy equipping the congregation with what God says about encouraging the pastor! (Okay, the aforementioned card is way easier and less expensive... but in the long run equipping the congregation to live out their biblical responsibility is way better for everyone.)

* For a FREE downloadable six-page PDF sample excerpt, GO HERE.

* To order this study guide (discounts for 3 or more), GO HERE.

* To order this study guide as a PDF download, GO HERE.