Signs & Wonders Blog

Three days before Christmas, President Obama signed into law a bill repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” This action now paves the way for outspoken homosexuals to serve in America’s military. Shortly after the bill was signed, I logged onto the White House’s YouTube channel expecting to see a video about that. Instead, the featured clip was called “It Gets Better” in which “several LGBT [Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender] White House staffers share their messages of hope and support for LGBT youth who are struggling with being bullied.” As a Christian and as someone who was severely picked on as a child, I certainly don’t approve of bullying anyone. Jesus told us to turn the other cheek and to “love your enemies.” (Matthew 5:44) Every human being is created in the image and likeness of God. Every person deserves to be treated with love and respect even if we don’t agree with his or her behavior. But while homosexual activists campaign for “equal rights”, many of them threa...

Three years ago on the day after Christmas, I went to a grocery store with a friend of mine. The store was still running holiday advertisements on their loudspeaker. Not once did I hear the announcer mention the word “Christmas.” When I was a kid, I often heard people say "Merry Christmas" to each other. Since then the world has gradually removed "Christ" from Christmas. In our politically correct society, Christmas trees are now often called “holiday trees.” School districts refer to Christmas vacation as “Winter Break.” They also prohibit religious songs from their music programs such as “Silent Night” in favor of ditties like “Frosty the Snowman.” 2,000 years ago, the apostles were commanded by authorities “...not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.” (Acts 4:18) Today there are businesses requiring their employees to say "Happy Holidays" to customers instead of "Merry Christmas." Some city governments forbid N...

It’s no secret that the sanctity of marriage has decreased in our society. U.S. Census data released two months ago showed that marriages hit an all-time low of 52 percent for adults 18 and over. Among the reasons for this are a higher number of divorces and the increasing number of unmarried couples cohabitating. Last week, a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center revealed that 39 percent of its respondents now believe marriage is “obsolete." Yet Hebrews 13:4 says, "Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge." Once while riding a train in Florida, I sat next to a divorced man who vowed never to marry again because of the pain he experienced from his ex-wife. I can relate as I’ve gone through two short marriages with women who weren’t faithful to me. Still I haven’t given up hope of finding a godly woman to spend the rest of my life with. One thing that I find annoying is when people suggest I can ...

Yesterday afternoon I went evangelizing on the streets of Haverhill, Massachusetts (just north of Boston) and saw 19 people pray to receive salvation. One of them was a young man who once had another preacher tell him smoking sends people to hell and even showed him Scripture supposedly supporting that belief. I responded by making a comment I’ve told many other smokers; “Smoking won’t send you to hell but it will make you smell like you’ve been there…and if you don’t know Jesus, smoking can help send you to hell much quicker.” Some Christians believe if a person really gets saved, he or she would stop smoking immediately. I have seen instances (including one yesterday) when people tossed their lit cigarettes before praying to get born again. Then again, there was another man who asked me to pray for him and then lit up a cigarette while receiving salvation. This man thanked me for the prayer afterward even though he continued smoking. Romans 10:13 says, “Whoever calls...

As I flew into New York’s LaGuardia Airport last night, I remembered that one of the other nicknames for the Big Apple is “the city that never sleeps.” But by the time I arrived at the house I’m staying at, I was ready for some shut-eye. I also recalled famous people such as Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein and John F. Kennedy who functioned on as little as 2-4 hours of sleep. Most everyone else needs more especially infants. However, there is one person that never sleeps at all. Although God created humans to sleep, Psalm 121:4 says, “Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.” There’s no need to lose sleep worrying over life’s problems. Psalm 3:5 says, “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the LORD sustained me.” In Scripture, the word sleep is also used to signify death. 1 Thessalonians 4:14 talks about deceased believers “…who sleep in Jesus.” The Bible also gives warnings to people who are asleep spiritually. Ephesians 5:14 in the New Living Transl...

A phrase that some people use that I'm starting to find annoying is “you never know.” Occasionally I hear believers say something like, “You never know what God will do.” It must grieve the Holy Spirit to hear His people say clichés like that. The truth is we can know what God is doing if we are sensitive to His leading. Jesus said in John 16:13 that the Spirit of God “will guide you into all truth” and “will tell you things to come.” Another often-used phrase similar to this is “God moves in mysterious ways.” Some believers quote this like it came out of the Bible. This saying actually originated from an 18th-century hymn written by William Cowper. The promises of God are not mysterious but His methods of bringing them to pass can be. As Isaiah 55:8-9 says, “‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the LORD. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.’” It’s true that so...

I figured this would happen sooner or later. The Kansas City-based ministry IHOP (International House of Prayer) has been sued by the other IHOP…the International House of Pancakes for trademark dilution and infringement. The California-based restaurant chain claims it made several attempts to persuade the ministry to change their name to avoid confusing the public. The lawsuit was prompted by the ministry’s expansion plans plus some of their branches are now serving food (it’s actually a coffee shop called Higher Grounds that sells coffee and bagels…no pancakes). In one way, I'm a little more supportive of the restaurant. After all, they trademarked the initials IHOP 26 years before Mike Bickle founded International House of Prayer. Mike could settle this matter out of court by renaming the ministry to something like Worldwide House of Prayer. Other ministries have changed their names for various reasons. For example, Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship was originally cal...