Innovation

The Myth of Creativity

“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9, NIV)

•    We can’t “create” anything; we can only “make” things out of what God has already made.

•     God “formed” (Hebrew: yâtsar) man in his own image; He didn’t truly “create” (Hebrew: bârâʼ) man in the biblical sense.

•     Man was “formed” (yâtsar) from the “dust of the ground” (Gen. 2:7).

•     It would be more biblically accurate to say “God formed man from the dust He created” than to say “God created man.”

•    We are makers, managers, formers, and reformers … not owners, masters, and creators.

 

 

“Innovation is when two old ideas shake hands for the first time.”

—Unknown

 

“Creativity is just connecting things. When you ask a creative person how they did something, they may feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after awhile. That’s because they were able to connect experiences they’ve had and synthesize new things. And the reason they were able to do that was that they’ve had more experiences or have thought more about their experiences than other people have. Unfortunately, that’s too rare a commodity. A lot of people in our industry haven’t had very diverse experiences. They don’t have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions, without a broad perspective on the problem.”

—Steve Jobs

 

 

 

Why a “disruptive” approach to innovation isn’t biblical.

•   Work and ideas that don’t seem “creative” are despised and often dismissed.

•   Disruption-focused innovators experience overwhelming fear of being “insignificant.”

•   Opportunities for collaboration are missed because the disruptor wants to take all the credit.

•   There is often a lack of massive action taken due to the disruptor feeling that his/her ideas are never significant enough.

•    Elvis didn’t set out to “disrupt” jazz; he wanted to create rock and roll.

•   Disruptors think less like “stewards” of God’s creation and more like sovereign “masters.”

 

Why a “restorative” approach to innovation is more biblical and Christ-like…

•     Jesus aimed to restore something ancient, timeless, and transcendent beyond the world’s systems.

•      Jesus declared that His mission was to “seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:10)

•     Not about promoting “the next big thing”

•     Restores what humanity is lacking or has lost altogether

•     May seem radical and revolutionary where there has been deviation from God’s original intent

•     Expresses the “kingly” aspect of our royal priesthood

Examples of Restorative Innovation

•     Providing remedies for human illnesses or illiteracy

•     Filling gaps in customer service or to help save precious time that people are wasting in their daily lives

•     Restoring human dignity where it seems to have been degraded

•     Promoting the opportunity to experience greater happiness and fulfillment in life