Update on Innovative Church List
I had an email exchange today with Lindy Lowry, the editor of Outreach Magazine. We were discussing tomorrow’s big blog announcement. (Lindy knows. Aren’t you jealous?) During the dialogue, I asked Lindy if she would share her reaction to the most recent issue of Outreach that included the list of America’s Most Innovative Churches. Here’s what she had to say:
The January/February issue of Outreach featuring America’s Most Innovative Churches has generated almost as much response as our annual Top 100 issue. Thanks for partnering with us. Numerous churches both on the list and not on the list have requested multiple copies for their staffs, as well as congregations. One pastor requested 50 copies to give to his small congregation so that they could “study together what it means to be a church that innovates for the Gospel.” We’ve also shipped multiple copies of the issue to seminary professors who plan to use it in their classes. And it’s been pretty amazing to see the number of people discussing the list (both positively and negatively) in the blogosphere.
When you and Outreach set out to do this article and this list, the purpose was to elevate the importance of creativity in the Church. And what better way to do that in our soundbyte-driven culture than with a list of America’s Most Innovative Churches. I’m really encouraged to know that’s what we’ve done. Hopefully, the list–whether or not someone agrees with it—will prompt church leaders to really evaluate their current ministries and talk about what they will need to do to reach an ever-changing world.
One quick note about some of the blog posts that have bashed Saddleback and Willow, saying they’re not innovating today. Chat with Randy Frazee at Willow about the new neighborhood connection strategy this church is implementing—a strategy that isn’t about growing Willow, but the Kingdom (look for this story in 2008 in Outreach). Or take a look at the Internet evangelism network Saddleback has committed to (read about it in Outreach’s Jan/Feb article, The Long Range Forecast,”) or check out the 10-part series the Orange County Register ran on Saddleback. And then tell me these churches aren’t currently innovative.
Anyway, just wanted you and others to know how excited we are about the response to this issue. Can’t wait to work with you on the second annual list and article in 2008.
I agree with Lindy. I really enjoyed working on this project, and I’m glad to see the dialogue it has created in the blog world. It’s going to be even more fun the second time around.
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