Signs & Wonders Blog

It’s often been said the gospel is so simple it takes the mind of man to complicate it. While evangelizing with other Christians, I’ve seen some give too much information. One night, I hit the streets with a woman who preached a sermon to everyone she approached. That wasn’t necessary since some of these people were already saved. Another time before an outreach I led, the pastor’s wife (who didn’t even go out with us) suddenly showed up and insisted we hand out large flyers promoting the church plus “Our Daily Bread” devotionals. Although two people got saved during this outreach, we could have seen more if our focus hadn’t been diverted to handing out all the extra literature. We already had gospel tracts, mini-Bibles, and business cards from the church. I usually give out gospels of John or Bibles only to people who don’t have one.  Then there was the time a man who I had dinner with showed me booklets he hands out when witnessing. In response, I showed him the “ Good News ” ...

Some people have a problem with Christians reading the Bible electronically. One time while doing street ministry, I witnessed to a man who wanted to see for himself a Scripture quoted to him. I had a Gideon’s New Testament on me but opted to take out my smartphone to find the verse he wanted to see. This man immediately dismissed me as a “false evangelist” for not showing him God’s word on paper.  I’ve seen preachers claim “real Christians use real Bibles.” While I do have a Spirit-Filled Life Bible plus numerous New Testaments and Gospels of John (to give to those who don’t have a copy of God’s Word), I mostly read Scripture on my smartphone, iPad, or laptop. That allows me to quickly locate verses in different translations with larger fonts that are easier to see. The small printing in some Bibles almost requires a magnifying glass. At night, I often fall asleep to an audio Bible. Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” During Jesu...

How do you respond if a fellow believer proclaims something that’s in error? There are times we need to rebuke others . But no matter how you speak the truth in love, some people won’t receive correction. In those situations, it’s best to back off. God can send someone else who will possibly get through to them. You have to let God be God. A Christian writer I met a few years ago recently posted a quote on his Facebook page supporting his belief in universal reconciliation . First, I responded by reminding him of Revelation 20:15, “And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” Later, I posted a quote about the reality of eternal punishment for the unsaved and then added the comment: “Love warns.” This writer repeatedly defended himself by posting links to blog articles he wrote. I glanced at only one of them. I’m cautious not to absorb teachings that misinterpret the Bible. I could have posted more corrective comments but opted not to. I cannot be s...

Street evangelism is a continuing education as long as one remains teachable. We can always learn new ways to approach people and how to handle objections. When certain situations don’t turn out well, it’s good to examine ourselves in case we can do things better next time. A few days ago, I had one of my most challenging experiences as a soul winner. One afternoon while standing outside the missionary house I’ve been staying at, three boys were slowly walking by. Immediately, I thought of offering gospel tracts to the boys but had left them in the house. So I rushed inside to grab some tracts and then returned outside. As I started talking to the boys, four adults from across the street ran up to confront me. They were alarmed to see me running toward the boys. One man accused me of being a child molester. I replied, “I rebuke that false accusation in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth” and then walked away. I went inside the house but heard the four adults come onto the ...

The Internet has been flooded lately with articles and posts regarding the conversion of Kanye West. Last week the rapper’s new album “Jesus Is King” debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart. Two days ago, Kanye performed at men's and women's jails in Houston. He stated,  “This is a mission, not a show.” Still, many believers are questioning the legitimacy of Kanye’s faith. One Facebook friend commented that if Kanye becomes part of a particular megachurch, he’ll dismiss him as a false Christian. Who is he to judge where God wants His people to plug into the body of Christ? (1 Corinthians 12:18) We are to work out our own salvation (Philippians 2:12). A question I’m occasionally asked is if someone who prays with me to get saved means it. That issue was brought up one time by my former pastor after we attended a prayer meeting at the YMCA. There I saw a woman smoking outside and felt led to witness to her. Chelonda wasn’t sure of her eternal destiny but believed the...

If you’re a parent and your children do something worthwhile, wouldn’t you want to reward them? Our heavenly Father is the same way. While doing the work of an evangelist, I’ve seen unexpected blessings manifest. Back in 1994 when I first committed to being part of my church’s evangelism ministry, the pastor gave me clothes he no longer needed. A woman who was a leader in that ministry often offered to buy me dinner. The day after Christmas, one of the other evangelism leaders offered to give me his Chrysler Laser. This was the exact type of car I had been praying for! Years later, I was at a library in Tampa, Florida and perceived it was time for me to leave. I started walking home but suddenly felt led to stop and turn around. Eventually, I ministered salvation to a young woman at a bus stop. Then I approached a man standing at the bus stop directly across the street. Aaron was already saved and wanted to give me an offering. He then handed me a $20 bill. At the time I was...

Fans of the comic strip “Peanuts” might recall today being Beethoven’s birthday. The German composer born on this day in 1770 was heavily admired by the toy piano playing Schroeder. Beethoven is perhaps best known for his Fifth Symphony (a disco adaptation of that piece became a #1 song over 40 years ago). He wrote prodigiously despite increasing deafness. A few people suspect I have a hearing problem when I ask them to repeat something they said. Sometimes I heard them accurately the first time but want to make sure I did so. Other times it’s more of a listening problem on my part. I made the mistake of letting my mind wander while other people are speaking to me. Another bad habit we need to avoid is thinking more about how to respond to someone while they are still talking to us. Proverbs 18:2 says, “A fool has no delight in understanding, but in expressing his own heart.” It’s often been said that God gave us two ears and only one mouth because it’s more important to lis...

Among the greatest tools for spreading the gospel is the printed page. I praise God for organizations like The Gideons who distribute Bibles throughout the world. Sometimes I give away their New Testaments to people who don’t have a copy of God’s word. Other times I give out gospels of John produced by the Pocket Testament League . Still, I believe the greatest evangelism tool is a simple gospel tract. This handy “little preacher” is able to do what many of us often fail or are unable to do.  Consider the following advantages of using gospel tracts… The gospel tract never stumbles over words or forgets important Scriptures. The gospel tract can be given during extremely brief encounters (when making a purchase, passing someone on the street, etc.). The gospel tract never gets sidetracked or caught up in an argument. It just gives the message of salvation, plainly and clearly. The gospel tract is never intimidated or fearful. The gospel tract is never tempted to comp...

God often uses secular songs to minister to me. This past Wednesday I had a dream in which I was watching a revised music video of the 1989 Tears For Fears hit “Sowing the Seeds of Love.” One of the lyrics had been changed by mentioning the Lord. When I woke up, I perceived this dream was direction to go evangelizing that day (I had stayed home the previous two days fasting and praying). Later that evening, I got blessed with a huge amount of gospel tracts. I also recalled a prophetic word I received five years ago in which I was compared to Johnny Appleseed. This 19th Century missionary lived a nomadic lifestyle planting apple orchards in Pennsylvania, Ontario, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, as well as the northern counties of present-day West Virginia. A popular legend is that Johnny randomly planted apple seeds without seeing the fruits of his labor. Although I’ve prayed with thousands of people to receive salvation, I’ve also planted countless seeds through gospel tracts. ...

A Canadian pastor named Oswald Smith was famous for saying, “No one has the right to hear the gospel twice, while there remains someone who has not heard it once.” Certainly, I agree everyone should have the opportunity to get saved. God is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9) Still, there are multitudes that need to hear the Good News numerous times before they will respond favorably to the call for salvation. Four years ago while ministering at a church in Illinois, I took a survey during the morning and evening services. I asked the congregation how many times they heard the gospel before they got born again. Most people didn’t raise their hands until I counted up to five or six times. I’m also a living testimony of this truth. While attending Sunday school and going through confirmation at a Lutheran church, I was never taught I must be born again. It wasn’t until I was sixteen when I first truly heard the gospel. In ...

Back in 2000 while visiting Calvary Campground for the first time, I discussed evangelism methods with another man staying there.   He compared my survey technique to Ray Comfort, an evangelist who later became known for co-hosting “The Way of the Master” television series with Kirk Cameron.   At the time I didn’t know who Ray was.   I had simply adopted a witnessing approach that quickly helps me determine someone’s spiritual beliefs. Some Christians don’t like The Way of the Master evangelism method because they see that as too condemning.   In almost every video I’ve seen of Ray or Kirk ministering to others, people are asked if they ever lied, stolen, taken God’s name in vain, and lusted after someone.   One Scripture often quoted to support this type of witnessing is Galatians 3:24: “Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” One minister in Florida didn’t want me handing out cards fr...

In 1985, I moved away from the Fargo, North Dakota area where I was born and raised.   After a brief stint in the army, I relocated to Minneapolis originally to pursue a secular music career.   Six years later I committed my life to the Lord Jesus Christ. Ironically, that happened in Fargo while visiting my sister and her husband.   In recent years, God has sent me back to Fargo for lengthy visits.   A few times it appeared He wanted me to resettle there.   I wasn’t fond of the idea for I hate the colder winters up north.   Another reason was Jesus’ statement in Mark 6:4, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house."  One day I talked about this with a pastor friend in Fargo.   He responded by asking me, “Are you a prophet?”   I answered “no” because I’m primarily called to be an evangelist.   Even so, God has continued sending me to other cities. Many...

One afternoon as I got a ride to the Charlotte airport for a flight to New York City, my driver (who’s a student at MorningStar Ministries) admitted that she wasn’t too comfortable sharing her faith.   I can understand where she’s coming from.   As I often say, the hardest part about evangelism is simply getting started.   But once you get used to asking people questions about their eternal destiny, you will look to turn various situations into soul-winning opportunities.   How many times have you walked into a store and the clerk asked, “How are you doing today?”   My usual reply is, “I’m saved and on my way to heaven.   How about you?”   If the clerk responds with a comment like “I don’t know” or “I hope so”, then that indicates they are giving serious thought about eternity.   At the very least you can offer them a gospel tract.   If the clerk doesn’t seem too busy, you can take time to share the gospel and offer to pray wit...

Long bus rides are not my preferred form of transportation.  Still they provide evangelism opportunities.  On one such trip from Rockford, Illinois to Minneapolis, I got to minister to a fellow passenger who was going to Rochester, Minnesota.  Originally I approached Ross while he was smoking during a meal stop in Mauston, Wisconsin.  I handed Ross a tract and asked a few questions regarding his eternal destiny but he wasn’t receptive to the gospel. Later during our bus ride, Ross moved up and sat across from me to initiate what became a lengthy conversation.  I found out Ross grew up Jewish but had since become a pagan.  Although he was still resistant to committing his life to Jesus, Ross thanked me for listening to him and not being pushy like other “religious people” he previously encountered (specifically mentioning Jehovah’s Witnesses).  A final seed was planted when I gave Ross a Mark Cahill book explaining the difference between Christi...

Two years ago I started using million-dollar tracts after a fellow evangelist gave me some. These tracts look like real money but contain a gospel message printed on the back. I can honestly say they are effective conversation starters.  Before receiving a recent order of million-dollar bills, I briefly used tracts that definitely looked like Christian literature. They had crosses and words such as “saved” clearly printed on the front. While many people still took these tracts, a large percentage didn’t. I believe some of the latter would have at least engaged in a conversation with me had I offered tracts that didn’t look so “religious.” Unlike most other tracts I’ve used in the past, people frequently walk up and ask me for a million-dollar bill. Often they will ask for another one to give to a friend. Nevertheless, I’ve had Christians and non-Christians comment that using million-dollar tracts is deceptive because it’s not real money. I beg to differ. Evangelism is o...

This past Sunday I presented the following question to a congregation in Illinois, “How many of you got saved after hearing the gospel for the very first time?” No one raised their hands. I counted upward but very few hands went up until I got to “five times.” Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Some people need to hear the gospel several times before they recognize their need for salvation. One person who will attest to this is Nick Kinn, the evangelism pastor at Living Word Christian Center in suburban Minneapolis. Nick had five different people witness to him before he got born again the day after his 25th birthday. For over 30 years now, Nick has shared the gospel on the streets of numerous cities and countries. I have a similar testimony. Although I originally asked Jesus into my heart at a Young Life meeting in 1981, I quickly drifted away from Christianity. During the next ten years, God used several people to reach ...