Jim Putman joins us for the next episode of the Find Your Calling Podcast. In this thoughtful interview, Jim shares his personal story of finding God and the Church (after years of bitterness and resentment toward both), as well as how he found his unique calling as a “coach of unique coaches.”

A former All-American wrestler, high school teacher and coach, and now leader of the Relational Discipleship Network, Jim urges churches to think relationally about discipleship. In the podcast excerpt below, Jim identifies what he believes is one of the greatest culprits of Christians forsaking their calling and how helping others find and follow their calling is essential to discipleship.

“One of the problems I think most Christians have is that they don’t understand calling. They think they’re going to get some sort of personal call from God. They’ve never gotten that, so they think they must not be called. But we all are a holy nation and a royal priesthood. Part of disciple making is to help people understand how to see their calling, how you, as a leader, got your calling—so they don’t just assume you got yours from on high. You share with them how people played a part in helping you find your calling, and how you want to play a part in theirs.”

“So it’s not just introducing people to Jesus, giving them a Bible and sending them on their way. Discipleship is about helping people understand what a relationship with Jesus and other people looks like; helping them understand that God has saved them for a purpose; and then helping them figure out their calling, the gifts they’ve been given, and how those gifts fit into the mission of God.”

Jim Putman is the founder and senior pastor of 17-year-old Real Life Ministries in Post Falls, Idaho, and the founding leader of the Relational Discipleship Network, committed to equipping church leaders to follow the model of discipleship Jesus practiced. He is also the author of Church Is a Team Sport, Real Life Discipleship, and DiscipleShift (with Bobby Harrington and Robert Coleman). He, his wife and three sons live in scenic northern Idaho.

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