| When we communicate the ministries of the church, we want to inspire people to follow Someone beyond themselves as they submit their lives to God in a profoundly radical and wholehearted way. The spark of imagination can often help accomplish this inspirational form of communication.
Communication is made original through imagination. Sharing kernals of thought that gather into useful ideas is both art and science. Organizing imagination I believe is a key function of a church's communications leadership. Though a constant flow of original ideas are not required for the church to function, a healthy imagination resource, and a channel through which to realize the incorporation of developed ideas, is a powerful tool for both ministry and communication.
An idea by itself has little real value. Only by gathering, sharing, discussing and melding these kernals of original thought do we fully realize an original concept that can be implemented or acted upon. Originality is sometimes helpful in a given application, but should never be considered an operational goal. That is, if you are able to accomplish something "new", that's wonderful, but no less useful than doing something unoriginal if in both cases you are acting in obedience to God and His Word.
As a side note regarding "divine inspiration," I certainly believe that God inspires men with ideas as He pleases. However, ideas that are inconsistent with God's Word are never inspired by God.
There are basically two schools of thought concerning creativity. The first and most widely held is that creativity is the domain of a privileged few who were born with a special gift. They wield its power behind closed doors in secret, and most people who have any imagination work for either Apple or Disney.
The second (and much more accurate) view is that creativity is an integral part of every person, and that the secrets behind it can be learned like any other skill.
Creativity is defined as "the ability to confront and deal resourcefully with the problems, issues and opportunities of reality by using the creative power of the mind." In other words, creativity is the process of generating alternatives--choices--to pick from. In a general sense I would call this creative skill resourcefulness. I rely on this brand of practical creativity every day to develop choices that leaders and others can use to be more effective.
In summary, remember when it comes to dreaming:
- Imagination is a both a talent and a skill. The skill of imagination can be learned and used as a tool by anyone.
- Creativity involves generating and developing useful choices, which is a pratical skill. A resourceful person is one who develops his or her abilities in original thinking and organizing these various thoughts.
- Imagination, though useful, is not absolutely necessary for the church to function as God intended. An idea is just a thought and must be developed into a useful concept before it can be acted upon.
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