Value #5: Thoughtful Innovation
A Word to Our Congregation from Our Senior Pastor
The values of a church are more than words printed on a page. They describe the kind of people we are prayerfully becoming together. The five devotionals I’ve written for this week invite every member of St. Andrew United Methodist Church to reflect on the convictions that guide our shared ministry.
These values of our church are:
Excellence in Ministry
Primacy of Scripture
Generous Outreach
Warm Hospitality
Thoughtful Innovation
Each new day should begin with Scripture, draw wisdom from history, and then turn our efforts toward fulfilling our shared calling at St. Andrew UMC to grow our church. Our shared purpose is not simply to admire these values but to put them into practice. As we offer God our best, root ourselves in the Bible, give of ourselves generously, welcome others warmly, and remain open to faithful new approaches to ministry, we make room for Christ to work through us and grow God’s kingdom here on earth.
May these devotionals strengthen our unity, enlarge our vision, and inspire each of us to take a faithful step forward. God has already blessed St. Andrew UMC with a rich heritage and many devoted people. Together, by God’s grace, we can build upon that foundation and move confidently into the future God is preparing for us.
Blessings,
Pastor Geoff
Value #5: Thoughtful Innovation
Faithful Enough to Try Something New
Scripture: “I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” Isaiah 43:19, NRSV
God is unchanging in character, but God is never inactive. Throughout Scripture, God calls people to move, grow, learn, and follow. Abraham leaves home. Moses returns to Egypt. The disciples leave their nets. The early church crosses cultural boundaries. Again and again, faithfulness requires people to trust God enough to take a step they have never taken before.
Through Isaiah, God speaks hope to people who can see only wilderness and loss. God promises a new way and living water in places that appear barren. The new thing does not erase God’s former faithfulness. It grows out of it. Because God has been faithful before, God’s people can face the future with courage.
Early American Methodists understood that the gospel’s unchanging message sometimes required new methods. Circuit riders traveled enormous territories on horseback, preaching in log cabins, courthouses, meetinghouses, and outdoor clearings. By 1844, Methodist records counted more than one million members and roughly four thousand ministers riding circuits in the United States. These preachers did not wait for every community to construct a church building. They carried the ministry to where people already lived. That was innovation in service to mission. The circuit riders did not change the good news of Jesus Christ; they changed how and where people could hear it. Their example helped Methodism reach towns, farms, and frontier communities, establishing patterns of ministry that were often overlooked.
St. Andrew UMC needs that same faithful openness. Innovation does not mean chasing every trend or discarding traditions that have formed us. It means asking whether our present methods are helping us fulfill our enduring mission. It means being willing to test a new idea, use a new tool, communicate in a new way, or create a new doorway through which people can encounter Christ. Some new efforts will succeed immediately. Others will need adjustment. A few may teach us what not to do. We should not confuse every unsuccessful experiment with failure. Sometimes learning is part of faithful progress. A church that never risks a mistake may also miss opportunities God has placed before it.
As your pastor, I want us to honor the faithful ministry that brought St. Andrew UMC to this moment while also listening carefully for God’s next invitation. Our traditions are roots, not chains. Healthy roots nourish new growth. We can preserve what is essential, improve what is ineffective, and welcome ideas that help people grow in faith and help our church reach its community. God’s new thing may begin quietly in you. Our task is to remain prayerful enough to discern it and courageous enough to act on it.
Action for Today
Identify one constructive new idea that could help St. Andrew UMC reach people or deepen discipleship. Write it down, pray over it, and share it with someone who can help you explore it.
