Signs & Wonders Blog

When the Lord allows me to, I head down to Tampa, Florida for the winter to avoid the colder weather up north. Usually, I stay at a missionary house in a low-income neighborhood referred to by locals as “Suitcase City” because of numerous transients that live there (someone once left a suitcase pictured here by the fence surrounding the property). The area has become a mission field for me.  The first time I resided in this neighborhood of mostly Hispanics and African-Americans, quite a few of the latter approached me asking, “Hey, man! You straight?” Suspecting they were drug dealers, I always replied, “Yeah, I’m going straight to heaven. How about you? If you died right now, where would you go…heaven or hell?” Usually, they walked (or in some cases ran) away from me.  Two days ago I was asked again by a stranger, “You straight? ” After I turned the conversation into a witnessing opportunity, this man swore and walked toward a bar. Minutes later when arriving at B...

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 ...

Back in February 2007, a fellow missionary I was traveling with started talking about “smoking the weed from heaven.”   He would pretend to have a joint of marijuana between his fingers and have “smoke breaks with Jesus.”   He also encouraged other believers to take “hits.”   I was a bit uncomfortable with this idea but didn't contest it. Then in October of that year, I heard John Crowder preach on “toking the Ghost” at a church in my hometown of Fargo, North Dakota.   I was inspired to make a video with John to share with my missionary friend.   During the filming, I experienced much laughter. I decided to make the video public figuring other people might enjoy it also. Two weeks later at a church in Minnesota, I heard Benjamin Dunn share testimonies of people getting healed from “toking the Ghost.”   This was just before he and John Crowder started ministering together.   I believed this was God confirming His word in the mouth of ...