Love the Lord your God
With all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. Everything else grows out of this.
Hello, I'm Don Putnam
Training believers to find their place in the body of Christ.
For more than 40 years I have served the Lord, and my focus has always been teaching. I help believers understand the doctrine of the Bible and grow into disciplined followers of Jesus Christ.
About
A teacher first.
Most people come to know the church through a pastor. A pastor is a shepherd. He watches over the flock, protects them, cares for people, and helps with the problems of daily life. That work matters, and I have deep respect for it.
My calling is a little different. I am a teacher. My job is to make the doctrine of the Bible clear to the believer, and to show them how to make a disciple. A disciple is a disciplined follower of Jesus Christ.
That is what this site is for. It is the teaching and equipping side of the work, the place where believers can grow up in their faith and find their place in the body of Christ.
“A disciple is a disciplined follower of Jesus Christ.”
The Journey
Growing up in the faith.
Spiritual growth follows a path. Most believers move through five stages as they mature, much the same way we grow up in life.
- 1Newborn
Newborn in faith
Brand new to the spiritual life, taking the very first steps.
- 2Grade school
Learning who you are
Discovering your identity in Christ.
- 3High school
Growing in calling
Gaining confidence and a sense of what you are made for.
- 4College
Maturing
Settling into who God made you to be.
- 5Launch
Stepping into leadership
Starting a ministry or a church and serving in public by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Credentials
Four decades in the work.
- 40+ years
- Serving the Lord, 30 of them in full-time ministry
- Graduate degrees
- Theology and biblical studies
- Senior overseer
- Pastor of several churches
“I would prefer that people would actually hear my heart.”
Don Putnam
Teaching
Four pillars of walking with the Lord.
All of my teaching comes back to four commands. As the sermon library comes online, each message will be grouped under one of these four pillars so you can study by theme.
Love your neighbor as yourself
Faith that shows up in how you treat the people around you.
Go into all the world
Preach the gospel to all creation, well past our own four walls.
Make disciples of all men
Not just converts. Disciplined followers of Jesus Christ.
Teaching library coming soon.
Three threads run through it all
Biblical faith
What it really means to believe God and take Him at His word.
Knowing the Holy Spirit
A deep, personal, day-to-day relationship with the person of the Holy Spirit.
New creation realities
Learning to see yourself the way God sees you once you belong to Him.
“Every time you are in the presence of another believer, there is an opportunity, even a design by the Creator, to share these truths and encourage them to follow Christ.”
Ask Don
Have a question? Ask it.
Answering questions is one of the main ways Don teaches. It is how he communicates best. Send him what is on your mind.
Connect
Where to go from here.
Don is specific about this. Before a big teaching environment, find a small place where faith gets real.
Start here
Find a lighthouse group
Join a small group of about 3 to 12 people, alongside a local church that teaches the scriptures accurately. It is the best place to start.
Reach Don
Reach Don directly
- Ask a question in the Q&A on his live stream, his preferred way to connect
- Arrange to meet him through the Harbor office
“A place where you can experience authentic Christianity and community.”