Signs & Wonders Blog

Social media is a powerful tool I use for ministry. It has also been a distraction. Many of us will admit to spending hours scrolling through our news feeds. I enjoy the occasional humor and cute pet photos. Still, a lot of frivolous things appear I don’t care to see and read. A few are insulting, such as saying I’m “old” if I recognize a particular item. I don’t mean to be critical of what people post on their social media pages. That’s their business. Fortunately, there’s a way to stay connected with select individuals without unfriending them and having their posts appear in my news feed. I’ve been unfollowing Facebook friends who repeatedly do the following: Make too many posts. I’ve seen as much as forty a day by some folks (rarely do I exceed two or three). I don’t need the same individuals overwhelming my news feed. There are other friends I want to hear from. Post chain letters , hoaxes, and memes that contain profanity . Make requests for money. Some ministers send me fr...

It’s sad how some Christians freak out when hearing ministers teach on prosperity. Not too long ago, I saw this comment in response to a meeting streamed from Rodney Howard-Browne ’s church: “This is some prosperity gospel. Heresy! Frightening that people are so unaware of what this is. Prayers that those involved see the truth.” I replied, “I’d rather hear a ‘ prosperity gospel ’ than a ‘poverty gospel’” plus referred to 3 John 2,  “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.”  I also pointed out he had watched a Kingdom Business Fellowship meeting the church has every other Tuesday night. Its purpose is to help Christians generate more finances to get the gospel out. The world is not impressed with believers who are broke. The critic then wrote “1 Timothy 6:10” without quoting the verse ( “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil…” ). I replied, “Money is not evil as long as you don’t love it more than peopl...

At the time of this writing, most mainstream media outlets have declared Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 U. S. Presidential election . However, all the votes haven’t been accounted for yet. There have been reports of illegal voting on behalf of the dead and underaged. I’ve also heard of individuals voting more than once despite that being a federal crime. Nevertheless, there are Christians already labeling ministers “false prophets” who predicted a Trump victory.  Jesus did warn in Matthew 7:15, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” However, the term “false prophet” is used too loosely amongst the body of Christ. Critics often apply that to ministers they don’t like. One example is Joel Osteen , a pastor who (to the best of my knowledge) has never called himself a prophet. So how can one identify a false prophet? It’s more than calling someone out for making a wrong prediction. Even a broken clock...

Shortly after the Kansas City Chiefs won the AFC Championship Game two weeks ago, Facebook friends posted a meme about the late Bob Jones who died in 2014. This prophet had ( according to Shawn Bolz ) predicted revival would come when the Chiefs win the Super Bowl. At first, I was skeptical of this prophecy. I recalled a similar one that surfaced four years earlier regarding the Carolina Panthers . They lost Super Bowl 50 to the Denver Broncos. Critics may look at all this and dismiss Bob Jones as a false prophet. However, I know of other prophecies given by him that were accurate. During the late 1980s, Bob prophesied: “The black panthers are coming to the lumberyard of Charlotte.” This was years before the Carolina Panthers entered the NFL as an expansion team. Their home stadium was ultimately built on land that used to be a lumberyard. 1 Corinthians 13:9 says, “For we know in part and we prophesy in part.” It’s possible for someone to receive a word from the Lord but then h...

One of my favorite preachers is Kenneth Copeland. Every morning I read “ From Faith to Faith ”, a powerful devotional written by him and his wife Gloria. In addition to seeing them on TV, I’ve heard the Copelands many times at my home church in Minnesota plus attended some of their Victory Campaigns. This past January, I visited Eagle Mountain International Church near Fort Worth, Texas pastored by Kenneth’s daughter Terri and her husband George Pearsons. Kenneth often speaks there. As a baby Christian, I wasn’t fond of Kenneth Copeland when first hearing him as well as a few other Charismatic preachers. Eventually, I learned to overlook a minister’s personality and focus more on the content of their messages. I’ve since grown to appreciate Brother Copeland’s boldness, skillful knowledge of Scripture and his sense of humor. Kenneth Copeland is often lambasted by religious folk who don’t like his teachings and him owning an airplane . It should be mentioned that Brother Copel...

John Gray and Jomo Johnson One pastor in Washington, DC has gained national attention for issuing what he calls “the Jesus Challenge.” Jomo Johnson is exhorting believers to sacrifice one item per day, per week, or per month for a year. Johnson stated in a YouTube video, “Jesus told the rich young ruler, sell all you have, give it to the poor, then you’ll have riches in heaven…We want to be able to follow Jesus in this lifestyle of minimalism.”  As a missionary, I’ve lived minimally for over two decades. In 1998, the Lord directed me to give away many of my belongings since I would be doing a lot of traveling. Four years later, the Lord told me to downsize even more so that everything I own would fit into three bags. Soon after I got blessed with a new luggage set...three suitcases on wheels. Since then, I’ve often had to bring all my belongings with me because of not having a permanent place to live. In recent years, I’ve sought out panhandlers by offering snacks to th...

During the late 1990s, I worked for World Wide Pictures, the film ministry of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.   My job there was calling pastors throughout the United States scheduling evangelistic films to be shown in their churches as part of an outreach event.   Although telemarketing work can get tedious, my job at World Wide Pictures was quite enjoyable.   Most of the time, I talked with pastors and church secretaries who treated me courteously even if they weren’t interested in booking a film. Occasionally I spoke with individuals who were critical of Dr. Graham (some of my co-workers labeled them “Billy bashers”).   One objection that regularly came up was that Billy is “too ecumenical.”   The New Oxford American Dictionary defines ecumenical as “promoting or relating to unity among the world's Christian churches.”   One can aim to unify the body of Christ without compromising the integrity of the gospel.   Jesus Hims...

This past Tuesday, a young man from the Netherlands sent me an email requesting permission to post a video I made with John Crowder on his own YouTube page (for personal reasons I had removed the video from public view). When I examined this Dutchman’s account, I noticed it only contained videos critical of other ministers. This man believes his purpose in life is to warn people of “false prophets.”  During an ensuing exchange of emails, this man suggested I look up two passages of Scripture. One of which was 2 Timothy 4:1-5. I noticed verse 2 says, “Preach the word!” Verse 5 exhorts us to “do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” Constantly criticizing other preachers is not a ministry nor does it advance the kingdom of God. It only brings division amongst the body of Christ. Certainly I agree rebuke is necessary when a fellow believer is living in blatant sin or preaching false doctrine (in my July newsletter I wrote against those proclaiming "universal rec...