Last week I was part of the team that represented Salem Church Products at The Resurgence Conference in Orange County. I know – Southern California is rotten and terrible, but someone had to do it.
We had the opportunity to hear some really great speakers like Miles McPherson, Greg Laurie, Rick Warren and Craig Groeschel (to name a few). Craig Groeschel’s talk was on Innovation, and I think his outline is worth sharing here.
Pastor Craig is the lead pastor at LifeChurch.tv, and if that name doesn’t ring a bell, you probably know (and love) their smartphone Bible app, YouVersion. They get a lot of funny looks when people find out that a church (gasp) would be the ones to create a Bible app – as if the church is never that innovative or forward-thinking. He argued that the local church should be at the fore of innovation, and gave an outline of the best environment for innovation:
Limited Resources + Willingness to Fail + Increasing Passion = Exponential Innovation
Limited Resources: People often like to use their scarce resources as an excuse for why they’re not doing X. Craig argues, however, that it’s always in that space of limited resources that true innovation happens. God gives you exactly what you need for the task He has for you: never more, never less. Take what God has given you and create.
Willingness to Fail: We’re really scared to fail. The last thing we want is to show up to our staff meeting or appear before our Elders with mud on our face after an epic failure. It’s paralyzing. But it’s always out of failure that God shows up in big ways. When we know something doesn’t work, we get up, learn from the mistake or misstep, and try again, often much better equipped. Most successes come from a long string of failures, and you won’t get there if you don’t go through them.
Increasing Passion: True innovation comes out of real and growing passion. Olympians become incredible athletes because they want it – more than anything else. They’re singularly focused on achievement in their sport, and they pursue it relentlessly. Before innovation can explode in your church or ministry, you have to identify what drives you and chase it with an increasing passion.
Exponential Innovation: When you have exactly what God has given you for what He’s called you to, when you are willing to fall on your face, and when you have identified your passion, the field is ripe for innovation.
I’m not near the communicator that Craig Groeschel is, but I hope that his thoughts are encouraging to you as you pursue innovation and creativity in your context.
