What Happens When Creativity Dies

Walt Disney - one of the greatest innovators of the 20th century - once said:

“I can never stand still. I must explore and experiment. I am never satisfied with my work. I resent the limitations of my own imagination.”

Innovation is the preamble of progress. Our world is riddled with systems and structures and that are designed to keep things in order.

And we’ve fallen in love with it. The ordinances. The programs. The "meat and potatoes” style of outreach. All have been wildly successful at one point or another, and we find it hard to move on to new methods.

But what about God, the greatest innovator of all time?

God is conventionally unconventional. He created humanity and almost erased them were it not for eight people. Look at of some of the ways He connected with people through the Old Testament:

Gen 3:8 - Adam and Eve hear God walking in the Garden of Eden

Gen 32:24 - Jacob wrestles with God in human form

Exo 13:21 - God leads the Israelites in a pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire at night

Num 22:28 - God uses a donkey to reach Balaam

1 Kings 19:12 - God speaks to Elijah in a gentle whisper

And we haven’t even reached the New Testament yet.

God is creative. If you’re reading this, then you’re an example of his creativity. God continues to “explore and experiment” with no limits to his imagination.

So why do we stop innovating after a good idea comes around? Why do we become prisoners of the moment after a successful event in our ministry? How can we find ways to be more creative in our evangelistic attempts?

When creativity dies, comfort creeps in and faith isn’t allowed to thrive. Creativity is needed in order to connect with new groups of individuals who aren’t receptive to moth-eaten approaches.

To be like Jesus is to be unconventional. It means giving credit to a system that doesn’t rest on man’s IQ but God’s EQ. It means we should never be “satisfied with our work.”

So let’s get to work. People have some falling in love with Jesus to do.

Do you have a creative idea for how to reach people who aren’t familiar with the gospel? If so, what’s your plan for getting started?