January 31, 2012
"The gospel, applied to our hearts every day, frees us to be brutally honest with ourselves and with God. The assurance of His total forgiveness of our sins through the blood of Christ means we don't have to play defensive games anymore. We don't have to rationalize and excuse our sins. We can say we told a lie instead of saying we exaggerated a bit. We can admit an unforgiving spirit instead of continuing to blame our parents for our emotional distress. We can call sin exactly what it is, regardless of how ugly and shameful it may be, because we know that Jesus bore that sin in His body on the cross. With the assurance of total forgiveness through Christ, we have no reason to hide from our sins anymore."...
January 6, 2012
I'm at a season of life where it seems like it's time to slow down. Nothing is working quite right anymore. I need glasses for aging eyes and anti-inflammtories for aging joints. I forget names and what commonly used household gadgets are called. Solitude invites me to steal away (which I enjoy doing at times!) while a growing family and new church lovingly require me to get even busier than ever. The commercials say Benny and I should be anticipating retirement after all the years of being in the throes of parenting and pastoring. Sometimes I envy those who can....
August 31, 2017 | Tags: Suffering, counseling, trials, friendship, counseling in the church
When Hurting People Don't Need Words: Part One Editors note: Sheree is married to our Senior Pastor, Benny, and has been involved in caring for hurting people for over 40 years. She also has 7 kids who have needed care through many personal and family struggles. 4 years ago she decided to get some counseling training from CCEF (Christian Counseling and Education Foundatio...
Keep ReadingAugust 31, 2017 | Tags: Suffering, counseling, trials, friendship, counseling in the church, helping hurting people, same-sex attraction
When Hurting People Don't Need Words: Button Two Last Friday I talked about how caring for a suffering person makes the discerning person aware of how their pain results in pain in us. Even as we want to lovingly minister to others, we are affected by their suffering and often don't realize the urge to quickly talk is partly motivated by the urge to dispel the growing pai...
Keep ReadingAugust 24, 2017 | Category: Friendship: Caring for One Another | Tags: Suffering, counseling, friendship, depression, counseling in the church, caring for hurting people
When People Who are Hurting Need Questions: Button Three Editor's Note: This is part three of a series on how to care for suffering people. If you haven't yet read the first two parts I encourage you to do so before reading this post. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Grace, a woman who I had just met the day before, was describing through tears the horror of stand...
Keep ReadingJuly 29, 2015 | Category: Christian Living | Tags: friendship, Living in community, Loving others, counseling
Cory ran onto the court beaming from ear to ear. It was his moment. He knew he was the least valuable player but his team was up by a lot and it didn't seem he minded only going in when his mistakes wouldn't result in a a loss. He was more interested in winning than in playing, because even though he hadn't scored a single point all season the guys still welcomed him into ...
Keep ReadingMarch 3, 2015 | Category: Gospel Substitutes | Tags: lake Nona, Lake Nona Church, Redeemer Church, Redeemer Church at Lake Nona, Gospel substitutes, relationships, friendship, Facebook, Socialism, Sanctification, Jesus, cross, friends, social media
Part 5 of our "Gospel Substitutes" series focuses on Socialism. Is sanctification the goal of our relationships and friendships? If not, there is a danger that we are succumbing to the temptation of a gospel substitute. ...
Keep ReadingFebruary 4, 2015 | Category: Musings of a Pastor's Wife | Tags: Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, Redeemer Church at Lake Nona, relationships, unplugged, friendship, technology, communication, bitterness, miscommunication
Sheree Phillips writes about relationships and the potential for misunderstanding. Like texting with a smart phone, miscommunication is inevitable. But relationships are worth the potential for misunderstanding....
Keep ReadingJanuary 27, 2015 by Bob Putman | Category: Sermon Review | Tags: Redeemer Church, Lake Nona Church, lake Nona, Orlando Church, sermon review, sermon, Redeemer Church at Lake Nona, unplugged, series, social media, Friending, friendship, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, technology, Black Mirror, David and Jonathan
Bob reviews Joey's sermon from this past Sunday, "Friendship in the Age of Friending." It's the latest in our series entitled "Unplugged: Peace in the Digital Age." Joey explored what it means to have true, biblical friendships and fellowship in the age of artificial connections. ...
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