The seventh BridgePointe value is Innovative Solutions.
This is how we define Innovative Solutions.
Jesus does not command us to go into the world and be righteous and naive. Rather, He commands us to be righteous and shrewd, cunning, sharp, and creative. He does not apologize for the danger of the World or the craftiness of the Evil One. He exhorts His disciples (read: us) to outwit our Enemy in pursuit of righteousness and seeing His Kingdom come on Earth.
The word, “Innovative” has the root, “Nov” or “Nova” meaning, “New.” Therefore we are not being Innovative if we look to see how someone else did it, if we look to maintain the status quo, or do not expect things to change in our pursuit of a solution.
“Solutions,” has the same root as, “solve, solute, dissolve, and solvent.” In housekeeping, if something, a solute (dirt, grease, a stain), is dissolved, then it has become a part of solution (water which washes it out) something else by the force of a third-party, a solvent (soap, and etc.). The solvent turns the solute into the solution. Similarly in mathematics, when we solve an equation, we are re-arranging the structure of the equation to reveal the desired information. In either case, the Solution to a problem must first become part of the problem itself.
If we are to have Innovative Solutions then we must find new ways to make the problems that we face part of the process that accelerate us toward our goals.
Every believer has at least one primary goal in their life- Christlikeness. Every believer has at least three enemies that oppose that goal- their own sin, the broken reality we live in, and Satan and his followers. Since we are commanded to pursue this purpose and guaranteed to face these enemies, we must then make a choice about how we will strive against our obstacles, enemies, or problems.
There is no apology for the fact that we are in a war if we are believers. Thankfully, God is referred to as a Man of War (Exodus 15:3) and His very Spirit flows through us. So then we are to assume that when we face problems, God- the Man of War- will work through us (and we must work with Him) to redeem those problems and use them to His own purposes and our good and glory (Romans 8:28).
When God works through us, He will not always rid us of the problems in our lives.
God WILL always make the problems in our lives accelerate His purposes.
Through the course of the Bible we see that God had a goal, problems, and a solution.
His goal- be all in all.
His problem- sin, broken world, Satan.
His solution- become a part of sinful humanity to reclaim legal authority over all creation.
Note that Jesus did not simply kill Satan and wipe out sinful humanity. Jesus was as shrewd as He commanded His disciples to be and brings us closer to The Father through all the things which used to keep us away.
God promises to use our problems, enemies, and even our sin to accomplish His purposes in and through us. However, that does not mean that we get to sin wantonly. Read Romans 6 to see how Paul addressed this exact line of thinking over 2,000 years ago.
Reflect on one problem area in your life that you need God’s supreme creativity and power to solve. Then pray that God would bring His creative power to the fore on that issue and use it to accomplish His goals.