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Sorry to Break the News, but There Is No Middle Ground

I’ve been thinking about how to write this post for days. On October 20, I had the most horrifying prophetic dream I’ve ever had, and it concerned former President Donald Trump and his Christian followers. I am certain the dream was an urgent warning from God. But I also know that many of my readers come from traditions that dismiss or at least downplay the possibility of God speaking to us through dreams. I get that. That is why I am going to write this post from two angles: What I see and hear with my natural eyes and ears,

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Cracks in Our Christianity

Let the ballot counters do their job. It’s been a comfort to see images of these ordinary people of all ages and colors doing their painstaking work. They are the nuts and bolts of democracy, and I believe in them. To do otherwise would be to give up on America altogether. That’s why I’ll offer no view of who’s going to win the presidential election. I’m much more concerned about the divisions it’s laid bare—and how the Church is no better and possibly worse, reflecting the exact same polarities of race, geography, and socioeconomic status. Let’s take a look at

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Revisiting the Trump Prophecies

One of the more remarkable aspects of Donald Trump’s rise to the presidency is that at least two prominent Pentecostal-charismatic ministers publicly foretold it. Another individual, a retired fireman, also prophesied that Trump would become president, and his “word” circulated widely in Pentecostal circles. Since that time, we’ve seen many leading Pentecostal-charismatic figures become deeply entwined in Trump’s presidency. Preacher, pastor, and author Paula White; Robert Morris, pastor of Gateway Church, the biggest Pentecostal-charismatic church in the Dallas-Fort Worth area; Cindy Jacobs, who leads a Red Oak, Texas-based prophetic ministry with an international profile; and Lance Wallnau, a Dallas-based author

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Get Off the Fence

I was in the beautiful Northwoods of Wisconsin in July 2019, spending time with my family. I could tell you all about the crystal-clear lake, the dozens of whitetail deer, and the bald eagle perched in the tallest tree—oh, and the German food. But that isn’t my point. Before I drove to Wisconsin, I turned in a cover story to the Dallas Observer about a Christian racial reconciliation conference that had crashed and burned. The two white leaders of Sparrow Women had a mess on their hands, but they refused to discuss it publicly. Now a good journalist tries to

Guns, Ammo, and Gold

In the last couple of months a video titled “THREE Prophetic WARNING DREAMS!!! ‘BRACE YOURSELVES'” has been circulating in Pentecostal-charismatic circles. In it, a Kentucky pastor named Dana Coverstone recounts a dream he received in December 2019 that appears to foretell the COVID-19 pandemic. He also details two more recent dreams that prophesy a wave of violent unrest and terror coming to the United States in September through November 2020. As of today, the video has gained more than 500,000 views. I’m taking these dreams seriously for two reasons. First, they could be from God. I affirm the gift of