A 1-3 year facilitated group process using innovation & discernment practices to overcome barriers to the gospel.
For us, innovation in mission is about the process of transformation as God shifts our ministry paradigms, focuses our vision, and calls us into new expressions of His kingdom we might not have imagined before. We are not only seeking new ideas, but expect that God will reshape us in the process. This type of discernment happens in the context of worshipping and praying communities that are committed to walking together with God and one another.
Through this collaborative process you will:
Form a community of discernment through several team gatherings.
Seek understanding around your complex Gospel problem through prayer, research, and experiential learning.
Prayerfully reflect on emerging insights and sense where God might be leading.
Discern new ways forward by designing creative prototype experiments that lead to further innovative insights and breakthroughs.
Possible Outcomes
Shareable insights to help mobilize others around your Gospel problem
Collaborative networks that transform and empower communities.
Transformation of t.co.lab participants’ lives to more holistically and
contextually express the Good News.Discerned leading from God resulting in the formation of
new ministry initiatives.Practical contributions like new funding models, educational
programs, or tech solutions.
Innovation & Discernment: the Iterative Process
Three Key Postures
Open Mind
Suspending pre-conceived ideas to remain open to observing new and contradictory data. This creates space for God to show us something new. It is reflected in prayer for God to give us grace to see, hear, and understand afresh what He is doing in our midst.
Open Heart
A posture of empathy that redirects our perspectives from ourselves to those of other stakeholders impacted by the complex problem being addressed. This includes consideration of God’s perspective through prayer and reflection on Scripture.
Open Will
Enables us to let go of control to be open to unforeseen possibilities that could lead toward sustainable innovation. It is reflected in honestly coming before God, asking him to lead us toward new expressions of His blessing in the world.
Discernment is about seeing rightly so that we might become wise and faithful in all our being, living, and doing.
Team Structure: how we work together
Catalytic Leader
The first step is to work with a leader to gather a core team around a complex challenge facing the gospel today and form a community of discernment.
Core Team
A core team is a diverse and experienced group, interested in addressing a specific challenge in mission together as a community of discernment.
Focus Teams (pink)
Focus teams are recruited from networks & relationships of the core team members.
They help sub-teams research, reflect, and prototype. They may work directly with a sub-team (A), or meet and work as a separate team (B).
Sub-Teams (of the core team)
The core team will divide into a few smaller sub-teams to explore specific areas of research and discernment or create and test prototypes.
Diverse Voices (yellow)
Diverse voices come from people connected to the core team and focus teams. They are consulted in the process to add their perspectives. They provide additional input through interviews, brainstorming ideas, and giving feedback on prototypes.
Winter Launch Lab Facilitators
The Frontier Ventures Winter Launch Lab will commit to walking alongside the core team to help guide the innovation discernment process. We will help the team to make decisions about the best path for exploring a problem, seeking the input of diverse stakeholders, and discerning new ways forward. We will also provide training in methods of social innovation and spiritual discernment.
Our Experience
Through the Transformation Collaborative process, we have walked alongside workers, agencies, and networks at the frontiers of mission in Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist contexts. Please let us know and we would gladly share some of our stories and learning along the way with you.