Men Only! Why Porn is So Alluring…

OK, this is a restricted post. Men only, means men only! We're probably all telling ourselves: "Yeah right, like THAT'S going to happen!" I think virtually every man is tempted by lust and pornography is just one possibility. But why does porn have such a strong influence on us?

Well here is the post. Al Mohler comments on a book he's just read called Wired for Intimacy: How Pornography Hijacks the Male Brain.

Here is a quote from the book that I found very helpful, because it was very true:

"The simplest explanation for why men view pornography (or solicit prostitutes) is that they are driven to seek out sexual intimacy," he explains. The urge for sexual intimacy is God-given and essential to the male, he acknowledges, but it is easily misdirected. Men are tempted to seek "a shortcut to sexual pleasure via pornography" and now find this shortcut easily accessed.

Here is the whole thing on Al Mohler's blog

How to Read Books You'll Never Read

This month's free book on Christianaudio is Fyodor Dostoevsky's classic: The Brothers Karamazov. I forgot to tell you about last months free book (it was a great one) and thought I'd get you to forgive me with this. Simple add the book to your basket, enter the discount code: DEC2009 and check out (create an account). Done! All you then need to do is download the book (divided into 16 mp3 files).


Audiobooks are a great way of listening to something good in all walks of life: driving, jogging, while attending class or spending quality time with family. OK, I know you know what are the right moments for this. Enjoy!


PS. This version is abridged… AHHHHHH!!!! Forgive me!

Mormons Love Rick Warren? Ha!

It's been awhile since I've last posted in English. But I thought I had to put this up for whoever is interested. I was looking through different lists of "Top 10 Mission Books" and came upon a Latter Day Saint (thats a Mormon for the non-initiate) web page.


In their top twelve, Rick Warren gets two of his books. Funny! But that doesn't mean Warren is a heretic (at least you won't catch me saying that), it just shows how cults and sects can use decent books to spread false gospels.

Manga Metamorphosis in French!

If you've been wondering what kind of job I have, here's a little something. We're impatiently waiting for the shipment to arrive from Japan with the second volume to Manga Messiah. Here are the first few pages that I'm putting here as a test. We're working on a version with more pages that could be put on all websites.

Manga Metamorphosis in French!

Open publication - Free publishing - More manga

Happy Father's Day! My Gift: A Little Book

Mars Hill Church is offering a free book to all fathers. In their usual manner, they've designed a cool website to distribute the book. It's called Pastor Dad: Scriptural Insight on Fatherhood.

Book Review of Vintage Jesus by Mark Driscoll and Gerry Bresheare

This isn't the indepth kind of book review. I don't have the time, nor the desire for that. Instead, I just wanted to mention reading this book and what I liked about it.


A quick review
If you haven't heard of Mark Driscoll, you must live in a log cabin somewhere in Russia (as I've been for the past three years). All I can say is that God is using this guy. He's still a bit young on the job (a church-planter), but he's gifted and he's working on the humility part.


If you haven't heard of Jesus, you really need to. I know, what an original book topic: Jesus. But you know what? Mark and Gerry really pull it off! This is a great book about the greatest and most controversial man who's ever lived. Now for those who like reading religious books, let me warn you, this isn't for you. This is a deep book, but written with everyday words and some of the better parts are occasionally (seemingly) irreverent.


For your information
I would love to see a book like this come out in France. Of course, the media coverage would be a hard thing to get. But what ran through my mind was all other. I haven't heard of a French equivalent of Driscoll. You need someone with charisma, broad shoulders and loads of talent to pull off a book like this. I'm praying for such men in France.

What other books about Jesus have you found remarkable?


Buy the book on Amazon

Books, Where and When I Read Them

As I was going through the routines common to all men, I had a laugh. I really have books everywhere. It's almost obsessive compulsive. I'm not sure what is the limit, but you can tell me.


Francis Schaeffer's Christian Manifesto in the bathroom. Alcorn's Purity Principle in my school bag. The Deliberate Church, The Power of Mentoring, Mornings and Evenings (Dever/Alexander, Martin Sanders and Charles Spurgeon) at my bedside.
A New Testament in my coat pocket, a cheap Bible (1€50) always at hand and various books by John Piper can be found everywhere (did I mention how much I loved God is the Gospel?). From my bedroom, to the top of the stairs, the door and everywhere in between (almost), you can find books. Then there are the newspapers and magazines.


Most evenings, as I crawl into bed, I'm too tired to even read the growing pile of books. On top of all that, there are many books that BLF asks me to evaluate (and I gladly do). I recently read Vintage Jesus AND Vintage Church by Mark Driscoll and Gerry Breshears. Both were good.

Making Books in France

I don't know if I spend my days making books or selling them. I'm split between editorial work and marketing. I like the tension, but wish more people were passionate book-lovers. In any case, since I'm not writing anymore (for the time being), enjoy this video:

This Book Looks Good and Unfashionable

Tullian Tchividjian. That sounds like a good name. Almost as great as my own name…

This short video presentation of his book, Unfashionable, makes me want to read it. I suppose its the subtitle that gets me. I mean, I know a lot of unfashionable people (including myself), but just because we don't know how to dress doesn't mean we'll make a difference. Tullian's subtitle is "Making a difference by being different". Yeah!

What Did You Think of The Shack by William Young?

Interview with William Young
You can listen to The Shack author William Young giving an interview. In it he flatly denies the substitutionary atonement (which was one of the questions many people had as they read the book).

Tim Challies

So Much to Write About

People tell me that a blog should limit itself to one or two topics. For example, if I want to do book reviews, I shouldn't do loads of theological topics, or talk about the persecuted church or random daily life. While I agree with the idea, it just isn't applicable for me (or I simply choose to ignore it). I will not do book reviews (in English). The blog world has several excellent readers that recommend great God-centered books. 

But just after today, I was reminded, that I would have to handle anywhere between 10-15 blogs if I were to be organized with my topics. I just can't bear that kind of strain. I'm just not THAT organized.

Today at school, I overheard (not engaged) a conversation about sex and all kinds of twisted ideas from the beauty of sex as God intends it. As I drove home, I saw a teenage girl fight with her boyfriends. My initial thought was, drop those jerks they're not for you. But then she gave them the finger and I just mourned for my generation. We are destroying ourselves. We go about not thinking, not wanting to think about the meaning of our life. Sleeping about, destroying the beauty of sexuality and of marriage and exchanging the satisfaction of God for worthless idols.

Then when I got home I glanced through the village paper. There was a schedule for the Family Planning section. On the same line were "contraceptives, abortion (in France they call it volontary interruption of pregnancy), and women's rights". I just wanted to burn the paper in sadness and in anger. If I wrote an article advertising my services to tell them about Jesus, it would be forbidden in our secular society. But to have feminists come and tell you what are the options available to kill your baby, that is welcomed!

Then of course I would also like to tell you about daily life in France and about daily Bible readings. There is also life in a small French church. There is so much to tell you about!

Great Spurgeon Quotes Later Today!

Having read the first Remarkable Spurgeon sermon, I just can't keep it for myself. I'll be posting the best quotes without commenting on them. If you think I should comment, I can... 

Remember to read them out loud. Spurgeon MUST be read out loud to get the beauty (and often the meaning!).

First quote: later today. As I've said before, have a great weekend and please be praying for me. Thanks!

50 Remarkable Sermons by Charles H. Spurgeon

While attending a gathering in Switzerland, I visited their second hand book section. I found it rather interesting, although it contained no French books worth reading. Instead, I found old books from authors that have gone to be with Jesus, many years ago.

In the end, I only bought one book (because I'd come by train), but I think it is a rare find, a treasure. A collection of 50 Remarkable Sermons by Charles Spurgeon, printed in 1908. I bought a hundred year-old book of Spurgeon for just over a dollar! I love second-hand books!

As I glanced through the book, I found a wonderful sermon. I'd been longing to read it again, ever since a friend onboard the Doulos read it out loud to me in his Irish accent. The title of the sermon is: High Doctrine and Broad Doctrine (sermon #1762 at the Metropolitan Tabernacle). It is a gem of Bible exposition. To hear the scriptures preached with such force and beauty was a memorable occasion. You'd have to read it for yourself, but until you find the book, you can read the Bible and be amazed for yourself.

"All that the Father giveth me shall come to me ; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out."
John 6:37 (KJV as quoted in High Doctrine and Broad Doctrine)

A good weekend to all. Enjoy the extra free time to read your Bibles and be with God!

John Calvin? Who's that?

2009 is the 500th birthday of John Calvin. What's cool is that he's a French dude and we're still talking about him 500 years later. Cooler still is the fact that he was a Christian and coolest of all is that this guy wrote amazing Christ-centered books of theology, in French. It takes a Frenchman to understand how cool that last statement was.

So on my To Read list for 2009 is a landmark book, The Institutes of Christian Religion. I hear so much about Calvin and by my protestant roots deeply indebted to the work of the man, but I realize I don't know him yet. I intend to remedy that before the year is over.

If you want to know more about a dead guy that is still famous (500 years later), you can start here.

Happy New Year in the Bible! Let's Start Reading!

I won't comment on the year gone by. I haven't been writing simply because I've had better things to do. My habit has been to read through the Bible every year and every time several facts hit me in the face:


-My lack of discipline. I start so strong and finish having to read huge portions because I was unable to be regular and read EVERY day.
-My incoherence. I say the Bible is marvelous, what I read in it is marvelous and yet I struggle to read every day!
-God's greatness. That the very words of God could be put in a book so that I could know Him is simply unbelievable.
-God's plan of salvation for His children is clear throughout all the Bible.
-That the 66 books that make up the Bible have only one author. There is so much similarity despite the 2000 years that separate the first book and the last book, yet they are coherent with themselves and compliment each other in a way that must be divine.


I have many other facts about myself and about God that I observe every time I open the Bible, but it would form a very long list. My purpose was not to make a list, but to encourage each and everyone of us to pick up a Bible reading schedule/plan and resolve to read through the Bible again this year in a regular and ravenous manner. If you don't have a reading plan, there are hundreds on the web. Also you can click here and email me . Give me your address and your name and I'll send you the reading plan I'll be using this year.

An Example of a Day's Work in the Publishing World

I love my job. I've been meaning to post these photos weeks ago, but am only doing so now. In November, the small evangelical population of France gathers together for three days of conferences and fellowship. We each set up tables where we present our work (in my case, BLF Europe's book publishing) and have a great time connecting and reconnecting.

It was very exciting for me as I hadn't ever been involved in a professional way. On top of which we had a killer product, Manga Messiah in French! So talk talk talk all day for three days. At the end the whole team was haggard, but so happy with the turnout.

Sorry for the very selfish photos. Yes there are others presenting their work, but really, have you ever seen anything as beautiful as BLF Europe? OK, you're right, Messiah beats it by far... Oh wait! We have that too!

All means are good to save some, that includes Manga-Messiah

Most of my French friends have grown accustomed if not annoyed with my enthusiasm for Manga - Messiah. Manga - Le Messie, is the french name of gospel in manga comics that BLF Europe has just completed. A japanese team of Christians are drawing the entire Bible in manga style. We simply did the French translation and some of the cover graphics. It is a tremendous gospel tool.

We must give credit to God for all of this. The project just fell in our lap and we took it up and went with up. We didn't have finances for the first print, but that was provided and Manga - Le Messie has been on the shelves since November 15th. In those short weeks, more than 3,000 copies have been sold and its only the beginning. I've been praying nearly everyday for all those that will be reading the book in the coming weeks. I have rarely seen such beautiful drawings and it presents the gospel with gorgeous simplicity. May God reveal Himself to many this Christmas!

Book Review: Out of the Black Shadows by Stephen Lungu

As is my habit whenever I read a captivating story, I must finish it in one reading. I have never learned anything about delayed gratification. It is no wonder then that I struggle so to fight sin with the future joy of heaven. However, with books I find it no fault, it only means that I sleep little and must fight sloth the next days.

This book is an account of the life of Stephen Lungu who grew up in what is present-day Zimbabwe. Abandoned by his father as a toddler, his mother also abandons him by the age of eight. Stephen is the eldest of three and must provide for them. Early on, he escapes his aunts who resentfully have been putting up with the three children. Stephen grows up on the streets, forming a gang in his early teens and eventually getting involved with the revolutionary party who is attempting to destabilize the government all forms of unrest, riots, petrol bombs, attacks etc...

On way to bomb a Christian gathering, God reveals himself to young Stephen, who repents and gives his life to God. From that day onward, Stephen Lungu is a different person and goes on to become an evangelist with a great heart of compassion for the lost people around him, as he himself was saved from a life of misery.

That is a very short summary of the book. There are good twists and some profound insights into God. While I would have liked to know more about his reading of the Bible, I appreciated the description of the men that shaped Stephen Lungu's life, especially Patrick Johnstone, the author of Operation World. I also benefitted from Lungu's humble account of the events in his life. I've never met him, but I'm led to believe that it isn't false modesty. Because of his childhood, Stephen was brought up to believe that he had no worth and that it was his fault that his parents abandoned the family. Only God's miraculous hand is able to heal his view of himself.

I recommend the book to everyone that enjoys a well written and exciting biography.

What Am I Doing You Ask? Ask No More!

Upon arrival in France (July 15th), I was convinced I would be in the USA by January 2009 to study in a Bible School. Funny how things can change so quickly. I still love the Bible. I cannot believe that I've not taken the time earlier to know this book God gave.

But as I began to enquire about applying to Wheaton College, I was informed that I would not be able to apply for a January semester as I didn't have any transfer credits. I would have to wait until the August semester. Moody Bible Institute had already accepted me, but I hadn't paid my earnest money, so couldn't just show up. They also require transfer credits to join in January.

So I decided to take a two year diploma here in France. The course is well appreciated by companies and is pretty much just what I've been doing on Line Up with the Doulos... So yup, the studies are pretty easy so far. They take six months to teach what OM does in 2 weeks! :-)

So it is no surprise that I was relieved to be able to take the class while being interned with a company. I applied with BLF Europe (I know I know, my dad works there too), a small French Christian publishing company. I'm back in the book world and am loving it!

Books I've Read And Recommend

A while back a friend asked me for a list of books I recommended. I
wrote up this list for him and thought that I could include it to the
blog. I cannot encourage reading enough. It has changed my life. The
Bible is the one book that has had the great influence in my life and
I didn't include it into the list, because my friend and I both
consider the Bible to be a class of its own. The books on the list
are written by human authors, about the Divine Author.

Books I Recommend

I tend to favor authors, rather than the books themselves. So in the
list I'll mention Authors and their key books. Please don't take this
as the only good authors. I cannot recommend books I have not read,
so there isn't a big list. There are many other others I plan on
reading, but just haven't gotten around to yet. Also, if I liked a
book, that doesn't mean you won't like the others, we read books with
different needs at different times of our lives.

CS Lewis
Anything by him is good. God gifted him with words like I could only
dream. No one says it quite like Lewis. I would recommend starting
with Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters or A Grief Observed.
They are all amazing!

John Piper
I love Piper, but he is a better preacher than writer. His books are
heavy, full of Bible and therefore you must read them slowly. Start
with Don't Waste Your Life, an excellent book! Everything else is
excellent so start wherever you feel like it. His first and perhaps
most famous book is Desiring God.

Louie Giglio
I read The Air I Breathe: Worship As A Way of Life and absolutely
loved it! His other book is I Am Not, But I Know I AM, I've just
begun it.

Francis Schaeffer
This man is brilliant, but really deep! I didn't understand more than
5% the first time I read his book, The God Who Is There, but it
changed my life and gave me a heart for evangelism in a post modern
world. I recommend He Is There And He Is Not Silent as his greatest
and most accessible book. Start there.

Randy Alcorn
Great author. Read The Purity Principle and The Treasure Principle,
they are both great. I've not read the book Heaven yet, but I was
told it is excellent (One of Akira's favourites).

Spurgeon
I've only read sermons by him, but everything is good. I think Mark
B. would best recommend where to start with the best.

Stu Weber
He's written a few books, they're all right, but one is a modern
classic, Tender Warrior is a must read on Biblical Manhood.

Philip Yancey
I'm a biased reader. My favourite of his is Disappointment With God,
mostly because I read it at the perfect time in my life. God used it
a lot. However, several other of his books are good: The Jesus I
Never Knew and What is So Amazing About Grace? I appreciate his very
open and honest writing style. However it can get introspective to a
fault.

Joshua Harris
I love this guy's writing, but I understand that he is a bit too
radical for many. I think he stays away from legalism so that is why
I recommend him without any hesitation. I Kissed Dating Goodbye is
his first and famous one. Excellent! Boy Meets Girl is also great,
but my favorite is Not Even A Hint (it has a new name in the book
shop: Sex Is Not The Problem, Lust Is). It is an excellent book and
both men and women should read it. It is brilliant!

John Bunyan
The Pilgrim's Progress. A must read!

Those are the ones that come to mind first. Of course there are many
more, but there is no end to writing books, therefore there is no end
to reading them.

Enjoy your reading,

Stéphane Kapitaniuk

(Photo credit: Yi-An Neoh)