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...

A spiritual truth known to Christians and non-Christians is often called the Golden Rule. Jesus said in Matthew 7:12 (NIV), “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” That Scripture came to my remembrance during a recent visit to North Dakota. A former pastor I know was in the area for business reasons. He had suggested I ride with him back to the Twin Cities (instead of waiting a few days for another prearranged ride) and would leave within the next 48 hours. I figured he would give me some advance notice. One evening this minister sent me a text asking, “You ready?” He wanted to go right away! After I hurriedly packed up my stuff and arranged a ride to meet him where he was at, this minister said he wouldn’t drive me home, which was about ten miles from his house. That would have caused me to be stranded in his town at 2:00 in the morning. He refused my request to sleep on his couch and then find a ride home. I th...

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...

Recently while hanging out at Panera Bread, I heard a variety of songs playing on their sound system. One of them was the 1980 hit “Wondering Where the Lions Are” by Canadian singer-songwriter Bruce Cockburn. For the next few days, that song kept going through my mind. Soon I got to thinking about lions in Scripture. The lion is often called “The King of the Beasts.” Its furious roar can be heard for up to five miles causing other creatures to freeze in their tracks. Contrary to popular belief, lions abide in the woods or fields, not in jungles. Nor will you usually find them walking around in cities and towns. That’s why it’s ridiculous for the lazy man to claim in Proverbs 22:13, “There is a lion outside! I shall be slain in the streets!” Lions are mentioned in prophecy. In Ezekiel 38, the “young lions” refer to countries birthed from the U. K. including the United States. The first of the four living creatures in Revelation 4:7 is “like a lion.” Revelation 5:5 refers...

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...

In the period preceding and during the American Revolution, there were colonials who volunteered to fight the British at a minute’s notice. That’s why they were called Minutemen. During a State of the Union message nine days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks of 2001, President George W. Bush told the U. S. military “Be ready.” As soldiers in the army of the Lord, we should always be prepared for sudden opportunities to fulfill the Great Commission. A large percentage of the people I’ve led to Christ occurred in the marketplace as opposed to planned outreaches. For example, I was walking home one night and saw five boys playing touch football in a church parking lot. A thought crossed my mind that when their football landed by me, that would be a signal for me to witness to them. Seconds later, the football bounced my way when one of the boys made a bad punt. However, I continued walking wanting time to myself. When I got home, God kept telling me to “go back.” So I put my shoes o...

I’ve been faithfully doing evangelism now for twenty-three years. During that time I’ve used a variety of gospel tracts but prefer ones that include a salvation prayer at the end. Sometimes the Lord will lead you to approach people who don’t have time to talk but are willing to read something later. One day I stopped at a convenience store in Virginia and gave a tract to a young Russian woman working behind the counter. When I happened to stop by there again the next day, this woman thanked me for the tract. I found out she prayed a prayer like the one pictured here and gotten saved! Nevertheless, there are Christians opposed to leading people in a “sinner’s prayer.” One reason often cited is “it’s not in the Bible.” Yet we have other generally accepted traditions not specifically mentioned in Scripture. Sunday schools cannot be found in the Bible yet many churches have them. The same thing could be said about altar calls for salvation.  “Sinner’s prayer” critics seem to...

Mention the phrase “first love” and people often think of a significant other. During grade school, there were numerous girls I liked. One who I consider my first real girlfriend was named Kathy. We were first-grade classmates at Riverside Elementary School in Moorhead, Minnesota. Then I got transferred to a different school but came back to Riverside for sixth grade. Once again, Kathy and I were in the same class. We started exchanging notes and calling each other. On February 14th of that school year, I received two valentines from Kathy. I also received valentines from kids that made fun of our relationship or discouraged it. Nevertheless, Kathy remained an off and on girlfriend throughout my junior high years before she broke up with me for good. We remained friends during high school. Kathy always smiled at me whenever we passed each other in the hallway.  The last time I saw Kathy was in 1983 when I was 19. My dad sent me to Godfather’s Pizza one night to pick up d...

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 ...