November 2011 Top Posts
We’ve reached the end of another month. November was another good month at Jon Stolpe Stretched. Traffic on the blog increased slightly since October! Comments continued to roll-in. And new people joined in the conversation and community. The blog added a four new subscribers, and the Jon Stolpe Stretched Facebook Page attracted several new followers in its third month. Here are the top 10 posts and top 3 commentors for the month:
Top 10 Posts
1. Paterno and Grace: Is There Any Chance They Go Together?
2. Ten Things Every Small Group Leader Should Know (#3 from last month)
3. Me and Grace: Is There Any Chance They Go Together?
4. Jimmy Buffett, Taffy, and Church Searches – Stretching Through Blogging Blunders by Larry Carter
6. Thanksgiving Marathon Recap
10. Ice Breaker – Encounters with Famous People
Top 3 Commentors (We blew by the 1,000th comment mark this month!)
1. Larry Carter
2. Arny Sanchez
3. Leah Adams
I now have 24 regular subscribers. If you’d like to become a subscriber, see the “Follow Blog” window on your right. It’s great to see this starting to take off.
Thank you to all of you for reading and contributing to the blog and to the reader community. I continue to grow a lot through this experience.
As always, I love to share your “stretching” stories on my blog, so leave me a comment if you’re interested in being a guest blogger on Jon Stolpe Stretched.
Finally, if you’re a blogger, how did your blog to this month? What was your top post? What was your favorite post?
Thanksgiving Saturday! Week In Review…
Another week went by with a blur. I worked on Monday, but I was off the rest of the week. My family visited NYC where we had a chance to see Ground Zero, Times Square, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, F.A.O. Schwartz, Mary Poppins, and The Hard Rock Cafe. I also ran a marathon on Thanksgiving Day. We’re back home now, and we’re getting ready to eat our turkey dinner.
It was a somewhat slower week on the blog which I’m attributing to the holiday week. Nonetheless, I’m thankful for all of you who stopped by and left a comment or just checked things out. Monday’s post was a tribute to our daughter, Hannah, who celebrated her 14th birthday last weekend. Tuesday was a quick post indicating that I needed a break. Wednesday’s post paralleled my upcoming marathon with life’s journey. Thursday, I shared our family’s Thanksgiving tradition of being thankful, and I gave a quick update on the marathon. Friday finished things off with a fun Ice Breaker about Black Friday. Check these posts out if you missed something this week.
Again, I just wanted to thank each of you for your contribution to the blog through comments. It’s a real blessing to get your ideas and thoughts through this Stretched Community! I just wanted to remind you all to take the take to Subscribe to the blog, so you can have Stretched delivered daily to your e-mail inbox. Also, don’t forget to stop by the Jon Stolpe Stretched Facebook fan page. Become a fan to keep up with some additional Stretched stuff. Thanks!
A few of my favorite posts from the rest of the blogging community this week:
- Top 9 Books of 2011 by Michael Perkins on The Handwritten
- Getting the perfect gift for the blogger you love by Ben Reed on Life & Theology
- Harvest Your Budget by Alex Humphrey on Entreprelife
As I look forward to this week, I’m sure I’ll be sharing some reflections on our recent trip to NYC. I’m looking forward to getting back into the swing of things. Until then, I’m enjoying time with my family. Happy Thanksgiving!
How about you? How was your week? If you’re a blogger what happened over your way this week? Did you read any great blog posts this week? Share with the rest of us!
Happy Thanksgiving!
I’m so thankful for today! There are so many reasons give thanks. Our family has a tradition of using a table-cloth every year for Thanksgiving. Each year, we trace our hand prints on the table-cloth, and we write something we’re thankful for in each finger. So here are my five things this year:
1. Leanne – I am so thankful for her restored health. I’m so thankful for her friendship and love. She’s such an incredible mom and wife.
2. Hannah – I blogged about her Monday. It’s amazing to see how she is growing up.
3. Isaac – I’m proud of him too! He is kind, sensitive, and extremely talented. He makes us laugh, and he keeps us on our toes.
4. Blogging – This has been a big year for me when it comes to blogging. I have really enjoyed this outlet. And I’m especially thankful for all the friends I’ve met through the blogging community.
5. Job – I don’t want to take this for granted. I love what I do (most days). I love the fact that I can help people succeed.
If all goes well, I’m running the Thanksgiving Marathon today (I’ll report more on that later). Honestly, running could probably be another thankful point, but I’d have to grow a sixth finger on my hand. I’m looking forward to returning home tomorrow and enjoying our Thanksgiving feast on Saturday.
Happy Thanksgiving!
What are you thankful for this year?
It’s The Weekend! And What A Week It Was!
Wow! That seemed like one crazy and busy week. In real life, I literally had something going on every night of the week. Monday was my wife’s birthday which we celebrated at On The Border. Tuesday night, we volunteered with our H.O.P.E. group at our local nursing home. Wednesday night, I met with my M.E.A.T. group. Thursday night was an Awards Dinner for work. And last night was Isaac’s first basketball practice and Hannah’s sleepover birthday party. The weekend has several things going on, but I’m still hoping to catch some relaxation time.
It was also an exciting week for the blog. Monday’s post finished off the blog spotlight with the letters T through Z. Tuesday was an inspiring post about the Black and White notebooks that my daughter’s friends keep. Wednesday’s post examined some of my thoughts about Joe Paterno and grace. And I continued on Thursday by thinking out loud about grace and me. Friday finished things off with a fun Ice Breaker about our encounters with famous people.
I just wanted to thank each of you for your contribution to the blog through comments. It’s a real blessing to get your ideas and thoughts through this Stretched Community! I just wanted to remind you all to take the take to Subscribe to the blog, so you can have Stretched delivered daily to your e-mail inbox. Also, don’t forget to stop by the Jon Stolpe Stretched Facebook fan page. Become a fan to keep up with some additional Stretched stuff. Thanks!
How about you? How was your week? If you’re a blogger what happened over your way this week? Did you read any great blog posts this week? Share with the rest of us!
Black and White
The other night, my wife and I work driving our daughter and three of her friends to a girls only event at our church. As we picked up each girl, it was funny how the car became more noisy. As we made our way to our destination, my wife and I listened as the four girls laughed, giggled, and discussed things from hair to birthday parties to the school play. We couldn’t help but eavesdrop when one of our daughter’s friends started sharing about The Black Notebook and The White Notebook. I didn’t catch all the “rules” about these two notebooks, but I did catch the general idea.
Each year, you start with two notebooks – one is white, and the other is black. In the white book, you write all the good things – things that happened to you that were good, good thoughts or ideas, and things you want to remember. And in the black book, you write all the bad things – things that didn’t go your way, bad thoughts or ideas, and things you don’t necessarily want to remember. As the year goes on, the pages of each notebook fills up with good and bad stuff. Throughout the year, you refer to the white notebook when you’re having a bad day – when you need a lift. And you generally keep the black notebook closed unless you’re adding something to it. At the end of the year, you burn the black notebook, and you keep the white notebook for future reference. And of course, you get two new notebooks to start the next year!
Seems kind of interesting. I think this is part of the reason that I blog and journal. I want to record my thoughts and ideas – especially the good ones. I think it’s helpful to see how God is working in my life. I think it’s an interesting exercise to burn the “black” books in our lives. I think it can be very healthy to put aside the things that drag us down and to focus on the future and the things that uplift us.
It’s amazing what you pick up when you listen to your kids and their friends!
What you have your kids taught you? How do you handle your thoughts and ideas? Do you journal or blog about the good and the bad?
Blog Spotlight T-Z
Okay! I’m hoping today that I can finish up the blog spotlight thing that I started last week. Last Wednesday, I highlighted blogs from my Google Reader that started with the letters A through J. On Thursday, I highlighted blogs that started with the letters K through S. Let’s see how it goes! Check these out!
Tech Pastor by Frank Chiapperino
Tent Blogger by John Saddington
The Analogous Truth by Arny Sanchez
The Compelling Parade by Ryan Tate
The Emerging Scholars Blog by various authors (including my friend, Tom Grosh)
The Handwritten by Michael Perkins
The Hole on the End of the Bible Belt by Jonathan Byrd
The Journey by T. Neal Tarver
The Scenic Route by Eileen Knowles
The Seeking Pastor by Matt Cannon
Tony J Alicea (Expect the Exceptional) by Tony Alicea
Will Johnston Mind Muse by Will Johnston
Writing Workshop by Norm Stolpe (my dad)
Wow! What a great list. Please check out these blogs and the lists shared last week. Consider adding some of these to your regular reading and maybe even connecting with the authors on Twitter. This is part of the blogging community that I love – the chance to share great stuff with others.
Who would you add to this list? If you’re a blogger, add your link in the comments. Thanks!
Blog Spotlight K-S
The blog world is pretty amazing. I’ve met some pretty amazing people through blogging. I thought it might be time to share a few of them with you. Yesterday, I highlighted blogs from my Google Reader list alphabetically from A through J. Today, I’ll share highlights from my Google Reader list alphabetically from K through S. (I thought I could finish off the alphabet today, but the list was longer than I realized.) Monday, I’ll share the rest of the alphabet. Check these out!
Leanne Stolpe by Leanne Stolpe (my wife)
Let Me Be Frank by Frank Chiapperino
Life of a Steward by Loren Pinilis
Looking for Purpose by Dylan Dodson
Love God Love People by AJ LeVan
Mark Batterson by Mark Batterson
Mark Howell Live by Mark Howell
Michael Hyatt by Michael Hyatt
Pop Parables by Keri
Ragamuffin Soul by Carlos Whittaker
Ryan Haack Does Stuff by Ryan Haack
Simple Small Groups by Bill Search
Small Group Books by Ryan Knight
Small Group Pastors by various
Stuff Christians Like by Jon Acuff
Who would you add to this list? If you’re a blogger, add your link in the comments. Thanks!
Blog Spotlight A-J
The blog world is pretty amazing. I’ve met some pretty amazing people through blogging. I thought it might be time to share a few of them with you. Today, I’ll share highlights from my Google Reader list alphabetically from A through J. Tomorrow, I’ll share the rest of the alphabet. Check these out!
Abraham Chronicles by Dustin Valencia
Beck Far From Home by Beck Gambill
Big B by Brandon
Chewing the Fat on Skinny by Tara Watson
Dustn not “I”, but Christ in me by Dustin Stout
eFlections on Doing Life by Randy Kinnick
Jeff Goins Writer by Jeff Goins
Jeff Randleman by Jeff Randleman
Confessions of a Legalist by Jeremy Statton
JPearson Refocus Reshape by Jonathan Pearson
Who would you add to this list? If you’re a blogger, add your link in the comments. Thanks!
October 2011 Top Posts
It’s hard to believe that we’ve reached the end of another month. October was a good month at . Traffic on the blog decreased slightly since September; however, October traffic levels were higher than every other month! Comments continued to roll-in. And new people joined in the conversation and community. The blog added a couple of new subscribers, and the Jon Stolpe Stretched Facebook Page attracted several new followers in its second month. The blog Jon Stolpe Stretched experienced its single biggest day of traffic on October 21st when Arny Sanchez helped Jon Stolpe Stretched celebrate its 500th post. Here are the top 10 posts and top 3 commentors for the month:
Top 10 Posts
1. Field of Changed Dreams? Guest Post by Arny Sanchez
2. Ice Breaker – Lunch Time Meet-Ups
3. Ten Things Every Small Group Leader Should Know
4. Ice Breaker – What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up
7. Top 10 Things To Do At Grove City College
9. How I Spend My Time Is A Moral Issue
10. A Rock Is A Good Place To Kiss
Top 3 Commentors (We are on target to see our 1,000th comment in the next day or two!)
1. Arny Sanchez
2. Larry Carter
3. Ryan Knight
I now have 20 regular subscribers. If you’d like to become a subscriber, see the “Follow Blog” window on your right. It’s great to see this starting to take off.
Thank you to all of you for reading and contributing to the blog and to the reader community. I’ve continue to grow a lot through this experience.
As always, I love to share other’s “stretching” stories on my blog, so leave me a comment if you’re interested in being a guest blogger on Jon Stolpe Stretched.
Finally, if you’re a blogger, how did your blog to this month? What was your top post? What was your favorite post?
What’s Your Story?
I used to think that my story was fairly boring. I lived a fairly normal, uneventful life. I don’t have an amazing, dramatic conversion story. I don’t have a crazy past of drugs, alcohol, running with gangs, or getting in trouble with the law. I used to believe that others had so much more to share that was interesting and attractive.
The more life happens the more I realize that I have a story to share just like everyone else. In many ways, this is part of my blogging experience. I’m always amazed and encouraged by the connection that seems to happen when I share a bit of my life here on the blog and in person.
How about you? What’s your story? How are you sharing it? Did you ever stop to realize that you have a story? Share it today!