My sister shared this video with me on Facebook today. Here is a quote:

Although we are capable of great acts of kindness, history teaches us that we sometimes need saving from ourselves, from our recklessness or our greed. God sent into the world a unique person, neither a philosopher nor a general, important though they are; but a Savior with the power to forgive. Forgiveness lies at the heart of the Christian Faith. It can heal broken families, it can restore friendships, and it can reconcile divided communities. It is in forgiveness that we feel the power of God’s love.  — HM Queen Elizabeth II

To my American friends, bear with my love of Canada, my love of Great Britain and my admiration of the leader of the 53 nations that comprise the British Commonwealth. Her message poignant and heart-touching speaks truth in the airwaves of the world filled with Americanized political correctness and an ambivalent view of our common and great Judeo-Christian heritage.  And most of all (for this I show no hesitation) I love the One who came to a broken world full of pain, hatred, and fear to show the power of forgiveness. The One who audibly forgave those who sought to eradicate his very existence in the cruelest way possible on the Cross.

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)

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.

Here’s a LINK to what one of my favorite authors, Clives Staples Lewis had to say on Christmas…

And with that, I bid you all a Merry Christmas and a wonderful start to a new year… 2012!

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.

1.    Because it awakens and sustains faith.
2.    Because by it we receive the Holy Spirit who is infinitely valuable.
3.    Because it creates and sustains life.
4.    Because it gives us hope.
5.    Because it brings freedom.
6.    Because by it alone we can defeat the devil.
7.    Because it is the source of full and lasting joy.

John Piper: Keynote Address at Crossway Banquet, ICRS 2011 from Crossway on Vimeo.

REDEMPTIVE RELATIONSHIPS

For God so loved us, He sent His Son

To bridge the gap, sin's work had done.

We look in awe back at the cross

Such love, such wonder, His life was lost.

 

But in those three short years before

He touched ten thousand lives, and more

His works of love still live through time

In Christians' lives, in yours in mine.

 

And resurrected, He is King!

A risen Lord, to Him we sing

Our thanks, our sacrifice of praise,

Through lives poured out; Love's banner raised.

 

He calls us still, His hands and feet

To bring to Him the lost, His sheep.

God's love for us, to others shown

The "least of these" can be His own.

 

So give your time to neighbors, friends

Hand in hand with the One who sends

You to the world, yet of it not

Some life to win, a soul that's sought.

 

And when in glory Christ is known

His resurrection power shown;

The lives we've touched in Jesus' name

We'll know forever in His reign.

 

- J. R. C.  '11

 

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

Because of some recent conversations with various people, I have been re-studying the theory of “The Age of Accountability”.  I was intrigued to discover that in its various forms, it is indeed a theory and not a hard and fast Biblical doctrine.  However, the results of which version of the theory you believe in can have some pretty far reaching consequences and determine how you approach ministry, particularly children’s ministry as well as parenting.

During my studies I came across the following resources, which I’ve linked to for the next person who may have had some of the same questions that were stirring in my mind.

• What Is A Child’s Age Of Accountability? (a sermon followed by open discussion – Rick Leibee, Charity Christian Fellowship)
• The Nurture and Evangelism of Children (Mennonite Church, 1955 — Gameo Anabaptist Encyclopedia)
• The Age of Accountability (Well written article, Baptist theology)
• Where do I find the age of accountability in the Bible? (GotQuestions.org)
• The Age of Accountability (thorough study on the topic)
• Wikipedia Entry (Had to let the good ol’ Wikipedia weigh in on the topic. They’ve got every version from Catholic to LDS, so read discerningly)

Disclaimer: the links above are informational, but do contain a dose of opinion. Obviously our understandings and opinions must be lined up with inerrant Biblical truth to insure that we are on the right track in our understandings of this area of soteriology.

I have always been fascinated by the well-developed and thoroughly thought-through ideas taught by John D. Martin on the Kingdom of God. His teachings and the teachings of others like him are what first drew me to Anabaptism in general and to conservative Mennonites and the “Charity Movement” in particular. Of course, as with any other movement/denomination there were things I didn’t fully understand, some of them purely cultural oddities, but the radical ideas as delineated in the following blog post by Christian thinker Greg Boyd, are some of the touchstones that have aided me in my quest for a practical and intellectually satisfying Christian reality.

Original post | About Greg Boyd

A Word to my Mennonite Friends

Hello friends,

I plan on getting back to the problem of violence in the Old Testament soon, but today I want to share a marvelous experience I had last week.

About eight months ago I spoke at a conference at Hesston college (a Mennonite college) on faith and politics (I posted on it here). While at this conference I sensed very strongly God telling me there was some sort of relationship I (and possibly the church I pastor) was to have with the Mennonites. More specifically, at the end of the conference I received a very clear and burning message I knew I was to share with the Mennonites. Whatever else this “relationship” entailed, I knew it included sharing this message. Yet, I had no idea when or how this message was to be shared.

Then about two months ago I received an invitation to speak at a historic gathering of Mennonite leaders in Columbus, Ohio. When the Executive Director of the Mennonite denomination (Jim Schrag) explained to me what he hoped my talk would accomplish I got goose bumps because it was exactly what God had put on my heart at Hesston seven months earlier. I have rarely been part of something that was so obviously providential. I was humbled and delighted to be given this important assignment. My message was — and is — basically this.

There is a beautiful and powerful grassroots Kingdom movement arising all over the globe that Mennonites in particular need to notice. Millions of people are abandoning the Christendom paradigm of the traditional Christian faith in order to become more authentic followers of Jesus. From the Emergent Church movement to the Urban Monastic Movement to a thousand other independent groups and movements, people are waking up to the truth that the Kingdom of God looks like Jesus and that the heart of Christianity is simply imitating him. Millions are waking up to the truth that followers of Jesus are called to love the unlovable, serve the oppressed, live in solidarity with the poor, proclaim Good News to the lost and be willing to lay down our life for our enemies. Multitudes are waking up to the truth that the distinctive mark of the Kingdom is the complete rejection of all hatred and violence and the complete reliance on love and service of others, including our worst enemies. Masses of people are waking up to the truth that followers of Jesus aren’t called to try to win the world by acquiring power over others but by exercising power under others — the power of self-sacrificial love.

What many who are being caught up in this movement lack is a sense of tribal identity and historical rooting, and many are looking for his. A central feature of post-modernity is the longing to “live in a story” that’s bigger than oneself. Many, therefore, are looking for a tradition they can align with.

The only tradition that embodies what this rising breed of Kingdom radicals is looking for is the Anabaptist tradition (which the Mennonites are heir to). This is the only tradition that consistently refused political power and violence. This is the only tradition that made humble, self-sacrificial love the centerpiece of what it means to follow Jesus. It’s the only tradition that isn’t soaked in blood and the only tradition that looks remotely like Jesus. Many (in fact, most) of the early leaders of this movement in the 16th century paid for their non-compliance with the Christendom paradigm by being martyred. This tradition is a treasure to be cherished. And it’s a tradition whose time may have come, for this is precisely the vision of the Kingdom that millions today are waking up to.

The irony is that, just as millions like myself are running toward this treasure, many Mennonites are running away from it. In the name of becoming culturally relevant, the distinctive, radical aspects of the Anabaptist tradition are being downplayed by some as they become “mainstream” American Christians. For example, some Mennonite churches now allow national flags on their premises — even in their sanctuaries! This was always taboo among Mennonites, for they have always (wisely) been keenly aware of the danger of mixing the Kingdom with nationalism. So too, some churches are now letting their Kingdom message get co-opted by politics — some on “the right” and others on “the left,” which in turn is beginning to create tensions in the church. And some churches have even begun to back off the centrality of their stance against violence.

So, my message to the Mennonites, in a nutshell, was (and is) this: Cherish Your Treasure! Not in a prideful way, of course, but simply as a precious gift God has given you and that God wants to give the world through you. Be daringly flexible on all matters that aren’t central to the Kingdom (e.g. worship styles, dress, etc.), but be utterly uncompromising on all matters that are central to the Kingdom (viz. everything that pertains to living a Jesus-looking life). My Mennonite sisters and brothers, you have what multitudes in the rising Kingdom movement are longing for. You can provide a home to so many who right now are looking for one. If you hold fast to the faith you’ve been entrusted with (Jude 3), you may just find your fellowship exploding in the years to come. For, I believe, the Anabaptist vision of the Kingdom is a vision whose time has come.

I am deeply humbled and honored to have been invited to share this word with the leaders of the Mennonite Church last week. My prayer is that God uses it to prepare them to fulfill the vital role God has for them in the Kingdom movement he’s inspiring in our day.

Blessings

Greg