Bobby Gruenewald serves as innovation leader for LifeChurch.tv, which is a congregation of nearly 30,000 who meet at 14 campuses throughout the United States. In this role he “oversees the Digerati, Media Design, and Communications teams as well as the LifeChurch.tv Open, Network and United operations.” His innovative leadership, especially with the YouVersion Bible (more on that here), earned him a spot on the FastCompany‘s list of the top 100 creative people in business.
Gruenewald, now age 35, is featured in the “Who’s Next – People You Should Know” feature in the November edition of Christianity Today. In that piece he responded to a question about what is next for LifeChurch.tv with these words:
. . . if we push into the future, we’ll see a global church that is more unified because of better communication technology, much more focused on a common understanding of who Jesus is and why he matters (p.104).
So What?
After re-reading this quote several times (on its own and in context) I am left with more questions than answers. I appreciate the incredible innovation of tools like YouVersion, and believe that technology is making communication – especially between people who are not physically present in the same space – far easier than at any point in history. I also anticipate the trend will continue both as reduced cost allows more of the world’s population to access the tools and as the tools themselves improve. I do not, however, understand the connection between the first and second halves of Gruenewald’s quote. More specifically, why and/or how does easier and improved communication on a global scale necessarily result in a common understanding of who Jesus is and why Jesus matters rather than an increased awareness of the rich diversity within the Christian tradition?