Interesting videos from Desiring God’s upcoming Conference for Pastors:

Here are five videos on manhood and ministry from some of our conference speakers:

1. Discipling Men in the Local Church (Doug Wilson)
2. The Resurgence of Complementarianism (John Piper)
3. Dads, Your Leadership Role Is Inescapable (Doug Wilson)
4. A Culture of Hope for the Men of the Church (Darrin Patrick)
5. Masculinity Is the Glad Assumption of Responsibility (Doug Wilson)

Posted on January 12th, 2012 by Josh Champagne
Filed under: Research & Learning, Thinking Aloud, Video | No Comments »

Nobody likes it. Most people get it at some point in their life. So what  is it?

“Sinusitis is a condition consisting of infection or inflammation of the paranasal sinuses, which may or may not be as a result of infection, from bacterial, fungal, viral, allergic or autoimmune issues. Newer classifications of sinusitis refer to it as rhinosinusitis, taking into account the thought that inflammation of the sinuses cannot occur without some inflammation of the nose as well (rhinitis). It is highly contagious. Sinusitis may be passed from person to person by direct contact with an infected surface. Or it may be transmitted through the air. There is no cure.”
–Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinus_infection

So there are many causes and the one most people are familiar with is the viral, bacterial or fungal infection we get in the winter time usually following a bout with the common cold or the flu. Just when you think you’re done with all that nose blowing and aches and pains, along comes a sinus infection to gross you out with its thick multicolored discharge and accompanying pounding headache. So what’s the cure? Is there a cure? Wikipedia doesn’t think so.

Here are the ways I have successfully beat sinus infections:

• Visit the doctor and get a seven day dose of Amoxicillin.  3 days to wellness and4 day for good measure and to avoid antibiotic resistance issues in the future. Then deal with the side-effects of antibiotics.
• Visit the doctor and get a three day dose of Azithromycin a cocktail of antibiotics that’ll really kick down that bacterial infection.  Then deal with the side-effects of antibiotics.

So what about if you want to go the natural route and avoid those nasty side effects of antibiotic drugs (not to mention the doctor’s bill)? Here are a few things that have worked for me usually in combination with each other:

• Garlic: Chew raw garlic three times a day (garlic is a natural antibiotic of sorts). Just don’t go to any social events or try to kiss anyone
• Neti Pot: Irrigate your nasal passages with a lukewarm saline solution using a Neti Pot. I bought one for $8 on Amazon HERE and by the purified refined salt HERE.  I use Amazon Prime, so I get free shipping, also.  At first this method seems a little disgusting pouring water in one nostril and letting it run through and out the other, but the almost immediate relief you get from this method is well worth the slight discomfort.
• Apple Cider Vinegar: Put 2 Tablespoons full of organic raw apple cider vinegar in 8 ounces of water and drink it at the first sign of a cold or flu. You can find it online HERE. What it does is simply thin the mucous in your nasal passageways which helps to keep the flow going as your body’s natural defense system eliminates the germs. This goes almost without saying, “drink LOTS of water” when you have a cold or flu. Your body needs that extra H2O to cleanse your system.
• Grapefruit Seed Extract: Who knew? The fluid from crushed grapefruit seeds is also a natural antibiotic (without all those side effects of course). You can find it online HERE. When I feel a cold coming on, I mix 20 drops in about 6 ounces of orange juice and gulp it down three times a day. The flavor is pungently… well, unfavorable.  But, I’ve found orange juice to provide the most flavor ‘cover-up’, reducing the shock to your palate.

There are a handful of other ‘fixes’ for sinusitis such as cayenne snorting, oregano oil, steam inhalation etc., but I find the foursome listed above to have the best results in my experience.  What have you found helpful?  Feel free to add your comments below.

Posted on January 5th, 2012 by Josh Champagne
Filed under: Health, Product Reviews, Research & Learning, Thinking Aloud | 3 Comments »

This is a great documentary by John Piper.  I’m the 2nd individual in my entire multi-generational, “white”, Western-European descended, family to marry “inter-racially”.  I have always loved the way the Gospel of Jesus Christ tears down barriers and stone-faced ideologies, whether religious or otherwise.

John talks about the human family and adoption and race in a powerful, thought-provoking way and I hope you are as blessed as I was in watching this film.  Check out his book as well, Bloodlines: Race, Cross, and the Christian.

Posted on October 13th, 2011 by Josh Champagne
Filed under: Audio / Video, Family, Thinking Aloud | 2 Comments »

Leaving Amish Paradise, the sequel to Trouble in Amish Paradise is now airing in the UK.  In it, we follow the continuing saga of Ephraim and Amanda Stoltzfus as well as another couple who have left the Amish, Jesse and Elsie Miller.  Spoiler Alert: click the links at the bottom of this post if you want to see it for yourself first before reading my comments.

To quote the caption from BBC2′s website this is a:

“Documentary following the lives of two Amish families leaving the only world they’ve ever known and trying to get to grips with the modern world. The Amish travel by horse and buggy, and dress exactly as their forebears did when they first arrived in America almost 300 years ago. They have countless rules which keep them separate from the modern world, with electric lights, mobile phones, television and radio all forbidden. For those born into this culture, leaving is the biggest decision they’ll ever make.”

And here are a few quotes from the film itself.

“All around the packed church (Charity Christian Fellowship), I see Amish in transition to the modern world. Most of the women have replaced the Amish head covering with simple scarves. Some of the men still dress and shave in the Amish way, while others are in the process of shedding the look. It is full of people just like Elsie and Jesse.”

“See I didn’t need a set of rules anymore to guide my life when I became a Christian… I now have living inside of me God himself who knows right from wrong, and so I don’t need rules.” –Ephraim

“Jesse wants to buy a car, but he’s having trouble selling his buggy. While only Amish would want it, no Amish would buy it off him….  ‘They don’t want to help us to something different than what we were brought up from’.”

“The Amish are taught to obey without question and to conform. At first glance, the congregation of Charity Church doesn’t appear to be all that different to the Amish church that so many of them have come from. Although Charity claims not to have rules like the Amish, they’re lives are governed by what they read in the Bible, and they too, keep their distance from the modern world. But although it might not seem much of a difference, coming to this church is probably the biggest change they’ll ever make in their lives.”

And the ending words from the film:

“But still, the Amish elders see him (Ephraim) as a threat; and not without reason. If this move towards Evangelical Christianity takes hold, it could be the end of the Amish as they are now. But, it could also be the beginning of something new. (credits roll).”

The documentary has been posted on youtube and can be viewed at the links below.

Leaving Amish Paradise:
1 of 4 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TU3AYgYlW4
2 of 4 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tn7OwBUEypA
3 of 4 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlIQFoUZfOs
4 of 4 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k32HbZkdNkc

Posted on March 21st, 2011 by Josh Champagne
Filed under: Uncategorized | 4 Comments »

Amy Carmichael is one of those people that have inspired me greatly in my search to be totally abandoned to God. Here is a poem I’ve been thinking about lately. For some reason, every time I read this poem, I can almost hear Ravi Zacharias’ East Indian accent as he quotes this poem from memory in one of his sermons. Weighty words:

From prayer that asks that I may be
Sheltered from winds that beat on Thee,
From fearing when I should aspire,
From faltering when I should climb higher

From silken self, O Captain, free
Thy soldier who would follow Thee.
From subtle love of softening things,
From easy choices, weakenings,

(Not thus are spirits fortified,
Not this way went the Crucified)
From all that dims Thy Calvary
O Lamb of God, deliver me.

Give me the love that leads the way,
The faith that nothing can dismay
The hope no disappointments tire,
The passion that will burn like fire;
Let me not sink to be a clod;
Make me Thy fuel, Flame of God.

——— Amy Wilson Carmichael

Posted on March 4th, 2011 by Josh Champagne
Filed under: Thinking Aloud | 2 Comments »