Redeeming The Time - Free Indeed - Ep. 15

Summary

Barry Bennett teaches that waiting for God’s promises is meant to be active, not passive. Drawing on Hebrews 10:23, he says believers should hold firmly to their hope without wavering because God is faithful, even when fulfillment takes time. He connects this to “redeeming the time” in Ephesians 5:15–16: each day is an opportunity to strengthen faith and make room for God’s promises rather than becoming discouraged or inactive.

Bennett says believers can use the time of waiting to build habits that renew their outlook and help them remain focused on God. He shares that, even during a period of illness and hospitalization, he continued to pray, minister, write, and encourage others.

Seven Ways to Redeem the Time

1. Praise God

   • Praise God for His goodness, life, the promises in Scripture, Jesus’ blood, and the Holy Spirit.
   • Bennett says praise shifts a person’s focus toward God and creates an atmosphere for increase, while complaining and bitterness foster loss.
   • He points to Paul and Silas praising God in prison as an example.

2. Give thanks

   • Practice gratitude for what is already available, even when it seems insufficient.
   • Bennett uses Jesus giving thanks before distributing the loaves and fish as an example of thanksgiving preceding provision.
   • He encourages giving thanks for practical things such as food, shelter, clothing, relationships, and work.

3. Love, bless, and forgive

   • Show kindness, mercy, and forgiveness, including toward people who have caused harm.
   • Bennett recommends practical actions such as offering encouragement, apologizing, forgiving someone, praying for them, or contacting them with a kind message.
   • He cites Jesus’ instruction to love enemies and pray for persecutors.

4. Give

   • Be generous not only with money, but also with time, attention, encouragement, faith, wisdom, forgiveness, and practical help.
   • Bennett cites Luke 6:38 and presents giving as a broad way of being a blessing to others.
   • He says his own attitude toward giving changed when it became something he wanted to do rather than merely felt obligated to do.

5. Listen for God

   • Spend time with God and Scripture, remaining attentive to spiritual prompting, wisdom, and direction.
   • Bennett interprets “hearing God” as more than an audible voice: it can mean Scripture becoming vivid, receiving guidance, or sensing an opportunity to help someone.
   • He cites Jesus’ statements that people live by God’s word and that His sheep hear His voice.

6. Picture the future in light of God’s promises

   • Rather than fixating on visible difficulties, focus on the hoped-for outcome and what Bennett understands to be God’s will.
   • He describes imagining himself healed and returning to ministry while he was in the hospital.
   • Using 2 Corinthians 4:18, he encourages looking beyond temporary circumstances toward what is unseen and eternal.

7. Declare God’s Word

   • Speak words that express faith in God’s promises, such as declarations of healing, protection, strength, and spiritual blessing.
   • Bennett contrasts these with speech he considers discouraging or contrary to faith.
   • Citing 2 Corinthians 4:13 and Proverbs 18:20–21, he emphasizes the influence of speech and urges listeners to use words that express life, faith, love, and encouragement.

Bennett concludes that these practices are ways to wait proactively and maintain confidence while promises are still unfolding. He closes with a prayer that viewers will develop a daily vision for redeeming their time.

Speakers and Sources Featured

• Barry Bennett — Host and teacher; instructor at Charis Bible College, as identified in the program.
• Biblical passages cited or referenced: Hebrews 10:23; Ephesians 5:15–16; Psalm 67:5–6; John 6:11; Matthew 5:44–45; Luke 6:38; Matthew 4:4; John 10:27; 2 Corinthians 4:18; 2 Corinthians 4:13; Proverbs 18:20–21; and Deuteronomy, referenced as the source of Jesus’ quotation in Matthew 4:4.
• Organizations mentioned: Andrew Wommack Ministries and Charis Bible College.