Signs & Wonders Blog

One of the most popular nursery rhymes is “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” According to Wikipedia , it originated from a true story in early America. The rhyme was the first recording made by Thomas Edison on his newly invented phonograph in 1877. Lowell Mason composed the well-known melody for “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” Many of us learned how to play it on the piano because it’s so simple. I once heard a girl play the song on her push-button telephone on the radio. Paul McCartney had a hit with that title but composed an entirely new melody. Two days ago I posted this on my social media pages: “If Mary had Jesus, and Jesus is the Lamb of God, does that mean Mary had a little lamb?” A Facebook friend claimed the nursery rhyme was based on the Virgin Mary . That isn’t true but it reminded me of this poem heard at a Joyce Meyer meeting (read by her husband Dave)… Mary had a little Lamb, His fleece was as white as snow.  And everywhere that Mary went,  The Lamb was sure to go. He followed

An objection some people bring up regarding Christianity is there are different denominations. Splits have occurred in other religions. Nevertheless, many church groups claim theirs is the only “true church” such as this meme circulating on social media. I have friends who are Catholic. So my intent here is not taking potshots at their church. Still, I felt inspired to write this rebuttal: 1.  “The only Church founded by Jesus Christ.” Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” The “rock” is not Peter according to Catholic tradition but the revelation he had that Jesus Christ is the Son of God . It’s also worth noting churches couldn’t legally meet in the Roman Empire until Christianity was made the state religion three centuries after Christ’s ascension. 2.  “The only Church that gave the world the Bible.” Jeremiah 1:12 (ESV) says that God watches o

Whenever visiting the Washington, DC area, I usually stay with a friend who’s a retired government worker. Shortly after meeting Jim at Calvary Campground nearly thirteen years ago, he invited me to live at his home in Northern Virginia for a season. During that time, I got to lead him in receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Since then, we’ve gone to various church services and revival meetings together. Jim is still a member of an Anglican Church that’s more traditional than I prefer. Nevertheless, I’ve gone to a few of their bible studies and other gatherings. This past Tuesday, we went to an all-you-can-eat pancake dinner. On our way there, I noticed a sign in front of a Methodist church doing the same thing. Soon I learned this is a tradition with some denominations the day before Ash Wednesday, which signifies the start of Lent. The New Oxford American Dictionary defines Lent as “the period preceding Easter that in the Christian Church is devoted to fasting, abst

Mention the phrase “Hail Mary” and football fans think of a desperation pass usually thrown by a team trailing in the final seconds of a close game. The phrase became part of the football lexicon following a 1975 NFL playoff game in which (to my disappointment) the Minnesota Vikings lost to the Dallas Cowboys. Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach revealed he “closed my eyes and said a Hail Mary” before throwing the winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Drew Pearson. The traditional Hail Mary prayer recited by Catholics like Staubach goes like this… Hail Mary, full of grace. Our Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. When witnessing to Catholics, I’m sometimes asked about praying to the Virgin Mary. There are reasons why that is unscriptural… Mary did not remain a virgin after Jesus’ birth. Matthew 1:25 says Joseph “...did not

Statue of Peter in Madrid (2003) In our politically correct society, protests have arisen against certain statues. Among them are of Civil War general Robert E. Lee. Some argue leaving such statues intact celebrates slavery. On the other hand, monuments are erected to remind us of regrettable events like the Holocaust. There’s an old saying, “Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it.” Statues have a part of American history. Immigrants are excited to see the Statue of Liberty while passing by Ellis Island in New York City. The Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC honors the president who helped end slavery in the United States. Mount Rushmore in South Dakota features the face of Lincoln plus three other past presidents. Romans 13:7 says we are to give honor to whom honor is due. However, Exodus 20:4 in the New Living Translation says, “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea.” Statues b

Three days ago I took a road trip from Minneapolis to Sioux Falls, South Dakota with another evangelist. One of our pit stops was in St. Peter, Minnesota. The name of that city had me thinking about the proverbial belief of the apostle standing by the gates of heaven. This is based on some people’s interpretation of Matthew 16… 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Jesus was actually talking about kingdom authority

This past week Pope Francis declared the late Mother Teresa would be elevated to sainthood. It reminded me of a Yahoo video I watched in 2011 called “The Four Steps to Becoming a Saint”, which claimed the late Pope John Paul II was one step away from sainthood. Immediately I thought how unbiblical that was. Had the pontiff obeyed Romans 10:13 ( “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.” ) before he died, then he already took the only step needed. The Catholic Church teaches that for a person to be considered for sainthood, he or she must have been dead for at least five years. There are many Scriptures proving a person cannot become a saint after they die. Revelation 22:11 says, “He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.” Once a sinner passes through the gates of hell, he or she cannot become holy by the actions of another person inclu

Last month in Moorhead, Minnesota where I lived during most of my childhood, a Catholic schoolteacher named Trish Cameron (pictured here) lost her job because of expressing support for same-sex marriage.  Several letters to the editor have since appeared in the local newspaper calling the school’s action “bigotry.”  One letter writer questioned why some religious organizations continue calling homosexuality a sin when they have supposedly changed their views regarding other “abominations” such as wearing clothes of mixed fabric (which applied only to the children of Israel in Leviticus chapter 19) and slavery. There’s a clear difference between forced and voluntary servitude.  During Bible times, some individuals willingly became servants of others because they received provision and personal safety not available otherwise. Unlike other ancient cultures, the Law of Moses provided rights and privileges for slaves regardless of their ethnic background. While it’s unfortunate

It’s important to study the Bible for yourself and not blindly accept everything a minister says from the pulpit. Wrong religious traditions have developed over the years due to people not rightly dividing the word of truth. For example, Catholics believe Peter was the first pope because of what Jesus said in Matthew 16:18… “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” The name Peter comes from the Greek word petros meaning “rock.” Because the next verse refer to Jesus giving “…the keys of the kingdom of heaven” , some people believe “St. Peter” is at the Pearly Gates deciding who gets in and who doesn’t. It’s true that God used this fisherman as a leader in the early days of the church. But Peter himself wrote in 1 Peter 2:4-8… 4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built u