Creating Something New
As I contemplated what to write in this blog I was listening to Youtube videos of Jacob Collier, a London-based 29 year old music prodigy. He is a musician, singer, composer, and producer extraordinaire. His performances are like no other. After listening to numerous clips it came to mind that we, those lucky enough to be part of this reimagining church process can use Jacob as a role model of sorts. Jacob creates something new, extraordinary, and joyful from familiar notes. He reimagines music without constraint. His concerts fill auditoriums. He is sought out by other musicians and education groups. He emits joy and brings inclusion to his audience.
So it is with the reimagining church mission. We are a group of people from an existing church body with years of binding history and with well-known stories which come together to joyfully discover a new way to use the church body to express God’s love, and to do His will in serving the community harmoniously.
What does it mean to find a new way forward in joy? I went to the internet to explore these words:
New - The Oxford dictionary defines New as not only something not existing before, but also as something already existing but something seen, experienced, or acquired for the first time.
Way - synonyms for this word include action, approach, course, idea, move, process, plan. Biblically, Way is the course of life for followers of Jesus.
Joy - The Collins dictionary defines it as the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying. Biblically, Joy is a fruit of the spirit when living the Christian faith. It’s a mindset independent of emotion and life circumstances.
Though Jacob Collier’s talent makes the creation process look effortless, for the rest of us it can be challenging and intimidating. The reimagining journey does not provide an easy path forward but it is with the joy of discovery. Like Jacob, we are creating something new from something familiar that will provide a path forward and touch the lives of others in joyous ways.
Honestly, I am intimidated by the responsibility of our task but I am excited for the process. It feels difficult to think of new ways to use existing, familiar resources. But I trust we too can create a beautiful new way forward if we can joyfully think beyond the old, real or imagined constraints. This makes me think of the verse found in Matthew 9:17, “Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins”. One meaning of this metaphor might be that we can’t try to fit new things into old structures.
We as a group are learning about the new ways others have successfully found to serve their community through prayerful contemplation. Their harvest has been blessed. How will we re-image our church for the future? What new service or offering will we imagine for our church? What new sweet wine will we create?
Image | Melissa Askew on Unsplash