I found one – I finally found a scientific charismatic Christian – a bona fide STEM guy who not only believes in Jesus but is convinced He is still working through us to rescue and heal people, and has a systematic way of teaching how to be open to God’s power.
A person with all the healthy skepticism and sharp critical thinking of a PhD in quantum physics, who is also surrendered to God, prays for healing with visible results and has arranged his findings in a clear, practical manual.
This is gold because the two worlds of faith and intellectual credibility are often seen as far apart. In Putty Putman, they live in one person. Putty left a career in physics to teach people how to cooperate with the Spirit of God. This is not a common career path. He now lives with his wife and young children in Urbana Illinois, where he is a pastor at the Vineyard of Central Illinois and runs the School of Kingdom Ministry.
SoKM, as it is fondly called by its students, is the clearest and most practical instruction I have ever found in how to live like Jesus.
I don’t know Putty personally, but I have watched his cheerful face and listened to his lucid teaching and cool stories for over thirty hours – his videos provide most of the content for SoKM, which is happening at churches all over the country. After watching the videos, you practice whatever he taught – how to listen to God, how to pray for someone to be healed physically, how to speak encouraging words you believe may be from God – not your usual Sunday School curriculum.
Putty’s life took a sharp turn when his unsupernatural evangelical faith was challenged by not only witnessing, but being a channel for God’s power on a mission trip to China. He was put on the spot to pray for someone, and saw them healed in spite of the fact that he did not believe anything was going to happen. (Read here for more detail.)
What is inspiring about Putty is that when he observed realities that debunked his religious position, he had the courage to change his world view.
Then he went on to explore, document and explain the work of the Holy Spirit in a way that makes sense to his generation. He designed an experiential training that grounds people in God’s love and teaches them to live it out in a way that results in physical and emotional healing. He has manualized how to live out the Kingdom of God that Jesus described in the gospels.
I am so grateful to this guy! A few years ago, I prayed that if anyone was intelligently teaching how to move in the spiritual gifts described in the New Testament letters, that I would find them. The very next day, three different people told me about a church in Cincinnati that was offering the School of Kingdom Ministry. My journey following Jesus took a great leap forward.
You’ve piqued my interest, Colleen! Will have to check out his books. Keeping a nickname like Putty indicates a humble spirit, I’d say–no doubt another quality that inspires people.