Signs & Wonders Blog

Back in 2012, I spent a few weeks ministering in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. During that time, I got to know a man who was one of the most passionate believers I’ve ever encountered. Surprisingly, this man insisted he wasn’t zealous enough. Many times when I talked to him on the phone, he asked me to pray that he would have more zeal. I thought he was more zealous for God than me! The dictionary defines zeal as “great energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause or an objective.” Worldly people think it’s wrong to be zealous about the things of God (I’ve often been labeled a “religious fanatic” when taking a public stand against sinful activities). Yet many of these individuals have no problem acting fanatical at a sporting event. Keep in mind the word “fan” is short for fanatic. Charles Spurgeon once said, “Be ye still men of might and vigour, men who serve their God with diligence and zeal.” Several verses in the Bible encourage zealousness. Here are a few of them: “Do not let your...

Rick, me, and Lee in 2014 Except for believers who are alive when the Lord raptures His church, every person will experience death. It’s sad when it happens to someone we know. Fortunately, there is comfort knowing we will see them again in heaven if they were saved. Last Sunday, a fellow evangelist who I worked with passed away. Back in 1998, I met Rick Keenan through Living Word Christian Center ’s evangelism ministry. Around that time, I started witnessing more on my own in addition to planned outreaches through the church. That included meeting Rick and others at the Mall of America. He advised us not to close our eyes while we prayed as a group to avoid attracting attention from security guards. During 1999, I made six trips to the Brownsville Revival in Pensacola, Florida. A couple of times, Rick invited me to live in his house while I made brief returns to Minnesota. Differences developed during my second stay there. Partially due to my missionary travels, we became estrang...

Over the last few days, controversial billboards have appeared in California and other states claiming: “THE BIBLE SAYS…JESUS IS NOT GOD.” The billboards were paid for by World’s Last Chance. This organization promotes other heretical ideas, including the belief in a flat earth . One man in Los Angeles responded by covering the “NOT” on one billboard with black paint, so it read: “THE BIBLE SAYS…JESUS IS GOD.” Many Christians have applauded what some label “evandalism.”  I certainly don’t agree with the billboard’s original message. However, defacing them will likely lead to vandals doing the same to billboards advertising churches and evangelistic crusades. A better response would be to display counter billboards proclaiming the truth about Jesus. During my recent seasonal stay in the Tampa Bay area, I briefly ministered with another street preacher who frequently pasted Christian stickers on various surfaces, including road signs, light poles, public toilets, and other propert...

Back in December 2016 after flying into Florida for my annual stay at Alcance Misionero (a missionary house in Tampa), I noticed a highway sign from Chick-fil-A stating: “Feed our herd or we’ll give yer number to telemarketers.” The next day, I answered three phone calls to the house landline. All I heard were prerecorded sales pitches. I hung up on all of them. Calls from telemarketers can be annoying when you’re trying to relax at home or about to eat dinner. Years ago, I worked a few jobs like that (including one for  Billy Graham ). The rejection rate can be discouraging, especially when people respond with  profanity  and other rude remarks. After becoming an evangelist, I started looking forward to sales calls on my landline. Instead of reacting to them as inconveniences, they became witnessing opportunities.  One day I got a call from a telemarketer named Michael. After he gave me his sales pitch, I asked Michael to take part in a “survey.” Michael eventually ...

A well-known preacher was once asked who was the most important person he led to the Lord. His response was that all salvations are precious to God. While I certainly agree with that statement, I’ve played a part in a few that were significant to me personally. Probably the most famous person I led in the prayer of salvation was the man credited with discovering Prince . A transplanted Englishman named Chris Moon owned a Minneapolis recording studio during the 1970s. A demo tape of songs he co-wrote with Prince resulted in the first recording contract for the rock star. In 1995, I met Chris during a business opportunity presentation. Two years after that, he invited me over to his house to listen to a demo tape of songs I put together. In his living room, Chris prayed with me to get saved. I’ve also handed gospel tracts to two men well known to Minnesota sports fans. One was Sid Hartman, a local sportswriter who I saw in 2013 at a Perkins restaurant. The other was Bud Grant, the Hal...

While in elementary school, I developed an interest in learning Spanish. That was triggered by watching “Sesame Street” during the early 1970s when they went bilingual. Later, I watched another show on PBS called “Villa Alegre” (“Happy Village”). Around that time, my fifth grade English teacher taught us some Spanish. I could’ve taken Spanish classes in high school and college, but my interests drifted toward computers and music. After becoming a street evangelist, I wish I had learned more Spanish. Nowadays, there are many Hispanics in America who don’t speak English. Most of them come from Catholic backgrounds. Therefore, a majority believe the gospel but haven’t yet made a decision to be born again.  Up until a few years ago, I simply gave Hispanics gospel tracts in Spanish. If I encountered one that knew some English, I'd witness to them by speaking simple words but mixed in a few Spanish words I knew to build rapport. That resulted in a few salvations. Then I started using...

Every October I see many social media posts advising Christians not to have anything to do with Halloween. Certainly, I don’t celebrate the holiday, but I look at trick-or-treaters as a mission field . Two years ago, I took part in a Halloween outreach at a church in Buffalo, New York. A few of us spent time praying in the sanctuary before the doors opened. Trick-or-treaters and their parents walked in to receive free candy, hot dogs, popcorn, and apple cider. More importantly, they were offered prayer and the gift of eternal life. I got to lead 29 people to receive salvation that night. Another time while living in the Washington, DC area, I dressed up as Jesus and gave out bags of candy with mini-Bibles my then-girlfriend put together. I also witnessed to kids who stayed at my girlfriend’s door long enough to listen. Three of them prayed to get saved. Other years on Halloween night, I simply walked the streets handing out gospel tracts. Still, some Christians prefer hiding in t...

October is Pastor Appreciation Month. This tribute is for one who went home to be with the Lord last Sunday. Al Best oversaw Light in Anoka Church in a northern suburb of Minneapolis. Originally from Florida, Al first gave his life to the Lord at 17 but then backslid. Meanwhile, he served 21 years in the Navy and worked various jobs. That included selling Rainbow vacuum cleaners. I would eventually get to know his sales manager. Eric Gonyon became an associate pastor at Rodney Howard-Browne ’s church (I usually attend services there when in Tampa).  A few years after recommitting his life to the Lord, Al became a pastor. In 2007, the Lord directed him to head north to Minnesota, where his wife Jean is from. First, they ministered in the small town of Dassel. What started as a youth mission transitioned into regular services for all ages. Then in 2016, Al and Jean moved to Anoka to take on a church originally called New Day Fellowship. To counter the city’s motto as the “Hallowee...

Even before committing my life to the Lord, I knew homosexuality was wrong. The thought of same-sex couples having intimate relations repulsed me. Nevertheless, I grew up around at least two guys who I discovered years later were homosexuals. One was a neighbor who lived two houses away from   my childhood home   in Moorhead, Minnesota. David was a bit eccentric. He had tall plants growing in his front yard that looked like a jungle. A year after I moved to Minneapolis, David died of AIDS. My parents told me he had admitted to them of being gay. Another was a junior high classmate whose locker was next to mine. Thomas seemed popular with the girls and even became class president. So it surprised me when I eventually learned of him becoming a homosexual. In 2011, Thomas died unexpectedly of a heart attack at 46. Although he wasn’t friendly toward me at school, I still hate to think of this guy being in hell. Three years before his death, Thomas got “married” to his long-time pa...