Signs & Wonders Blog

Two days ago while waiting for a friend to pick me up at the Minneapolis Public Library, a man with a beard walked in wearing open-toed high heels plus short denim shorts. The latter in itself was bizarre considering the temperature outside was at the freezing mark. This man ended up causing a ruckus at the library. A couple of times I heard him defiantly challenge people to touch him. Because he refused to leave on his own accord, three security guards tackled the man to the floor and hauled him away in handcuffs. I recall at least one incident when witnessing to a crossdresser. Again this happened in Minneapolis. While  walking towards the downtown area, I encountered a homeless person sitting outside. He claimed to know Jesus but wasn't going to church anywhere because of not being accepted dressed as a woman. This man even claimed God told him it was okay to be transgender. If that was true, God would be contradicting His own commandment in  Deuteronomy 22:5... “...

Three pastors met privately one day to share their major weaknesses and to pray for one another. The first pastor confessed he had a serious lust problem and many times found himself in compromising situations.  The second pastor, encouraged by this display of candor, admitted that he had stolen money from the church and needed help in managing his finances.  The third pastor then said, “My weakness is gossip…and I can hardly wait to get out of here!” While the above story is meant to be humorous, it’s unfortunate some ministers don’t tame their tongues. Once I sought counsel from a pastor regarding a personal matter and assumed he would keep  the   details  of our conversation confidential. A couple of weeks later, a woman who attended this pastor’s church called me asking questions about my situation. The pastor had told his whole church about it!  From that point on, I avoided contact with this pastor. Proverbs 20:19 says, “He who goes abou...

This past Monday I initially woke up just after midnight. Unable to fall back to sleep, I went online for a couple of hours. Through Facebook friends, I found out a well-known preacher went home to be with the Lord hours before. Steve Hill, best remembered as the evangelist God used to spark the Brownsville Revival, died after a long battle with cancer. He was 60 years old. Born in Ankara, Turkey to a military family but raised in Alabama, Steve Hill got caught up in a lifestyle of drugs, alcohol, and crime. On October 28, 1975, Steve’s life changed when a Lutheran minister stopped by his house. Steve got born again not by going through the Four Spiritual Laws, the Romans Road, or some other popular witnessing method. The minister simply encouraged Steve to repeatedly call on the name of Jesus and was instantly delivered from drug addiction. Romans 10:13 says, “For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” A few weeks later, Steve was arrested due to unlawful ac...

A few days ago I talked with two ministers going through marital issues. One of them had been married for almost twenty years. His wife (a worship leader) recently divorced him because she felt he wasn’t providing for her. Although I respect this minister accepting responsibility for the marital failure, I thought he was being too hard on himself. For one thing, there was infidelity on his wife’s part. Nevertheless, this man had taken on a secular job but knows he is supposed to be in full-time ministry. I reminded him of Romans 11:29, “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” I went through a similar situation fourteen years ago. One morning after we had been married for only a couple of weeks, my then-wife insisted on us finding “stupid jobs” because we ran out of money. I reminded her we agreed to work for God and trust Him to meet our needs. Later that day I was offered a job at the Christian campground we were staying at. Unfortunately my wife stirred up addit...

Debates are going on right now in the U. S. regarding the legalization of marijuana. In recent years, a few states have decriminalized pot to varying degrees. Some allow only small quantities for medical usage. Others such as Colorado and Washington permit recreational usage of cannabis if purchased from authorized dealers. While in high school I heard this saying: “Man made booze, God made grass. Who do you trust? God.” Even some Christians try to justify marijuana usage because of what God said in Genesis 1:29, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food.” Keep in mind this statement was made before the Fall of Man. Not every plant is beneficial if taken internally. Poison ivy, poison oak, and poisonous mushrooms are also plants. The latter is good for breaking down dead wood but certainly bad for eating. Even cocaine originates from green leaves. Hemp is ...