Made to Flourish–a network of pastors who seek to integrate faith and work–recently shared a story of the early days of Innové, written by Amy Sherman.
Here’s the money quote:
One of the things about the Innové model that Harrell was most excited about was that it would provide practical opportunities for the white-collar professionals in the congregation to be personally engaged in mission, deploying their skills as executives, graphic designers, finance experts, lawyers, and accountants. Testimonies like that of Jeff Siemon, were music to Harrell’s ears. Siemon, who holds a senior position in finance at General Mills, served as the navigator for Anna Brelje and her team, which was interested in offering an alternative to payday lending. “Since I work in finance, Anna’s project felt like it would be a good fit,” Siemon says. “And I just really loved the idea. Payday lending is a huge problem in the community and a really big thing to wrestle with. I was excited by the challenge.”
For Siemon, The Innové Project was a huge success in terms of really mobilizing and deploying the talents of congregants. And he loved how it made missions so personal and participatory.
Click below to read the whole article, and thank you to Amy and Made to Flourish for continuing to share positive stories of God’s work in the world through the Church.