Innovation is Easier/Harder Than You Think

"It cracks me up when I see a blog or a magazine list "the most innovative churches" in America. The list reads like a high school yearbook where the same homecoming king gets crowned every year because he looks like a Ken doll and stars on the football team.

"Somehow, we've changed the meaning of innovation to popularity. We're not measuring innovation as much as we're rewarding impression. The same mondo churches win every year because they've erected something close to Space Mountain in their children's wing." [more...]

Comments

[Terrace Crawford]

You just said captured in words what I've been thinking for a while. Its the same churches every time. One just moves up a spot while another might move down. Great article in Collide.

[anne jackson]

my heart just pitter pattered.

[Jonathan Brink]

Very well said.

[Justin Dean]

I think if we would have started our internet campus a little sooner we just might have made the list, haha.

My pastor just got a mac so that has to count for something.

It seems that Innovation means, "The churches that get the most press."

I'm not being negative here, I love many of these churches and check them out online regularly, but c'mon how on earth could you really have the balls to say that they are the most innovative churches in america?

Biggest Budgets, Most Technology, coolest sets... Maybe.

But innovation in a church is represented through doing the work of Christ in new ways to serve our culture to the best of our abilities.

How do you measure that? What about the little guy who is going door to door meeting his neighbors needs? The guys and gals, youth churches, and ministries that are willing to do anything to reach their friends and families for Christ, how do you measure their innovation?

Maybe this should rightly be called "America's most tech-savvy churches", or maybe I'm arguing semantics.

[daniel d]

love this. a personal innovation and creativity secret weapon i love is that of DISRUPTION.

doing something totally different that takes people by surprise to convey a point. most of the time it takes no money to do but can have major impact. might not really be innovation but it's at least innovating.

at my church we are about to do a small disruption where we have the weekly bulletin exterior the same but have NOTHING on the inside except a small image of a Bible that says "Read me this week" underneath. Pastor will say from stage, "Now you may notice that all the regular bulletin announcements are missing this week. There's a reason. While we have great programs and great ministries around here that we want you to get plugged into... what's most important is for you to be in His word daily. You can't live it if you don't know it so go read it."

[Steve Bradley]

Great post -- got me thinking...

If necessity is the mother of invention, perhaps scarcity is the mother of innovation?

[Nick Poole]

Awesome article Ben!!