Appreciative inquiry

Appreciative inquiry: Lessons from a business model

Examining the assumptions supporting David L. Cooperrider's business model, we can focus on the good rather than the problems and thereby achieve a creative spirituality orientation.

William Loveless, PhD, is a professor in the Department of Educational Services, Loma Linda University School of Dentistry, Loma Linda, California, United States.

How should we view human nature and spirituality? The history of theology provides different answers, each one affecting in its own way how we minister. After a brief review of this historical background, this article aims to draw some lessons from a current model of the world of business.

Let us begin with Augustine. This early theologian (A.D. 354–430) taught that humans were created good and upright, possessed a free will, and were endowed with the possibility of obeying God’s will. From this positive state, free of discord, Adam and Eve fell into sin. The consequent loss of good plunged them and the entire human race into a state of total and helpless ruin, with the proper ending being eternal death. Thus, everyone—even the youngest infant—Augustine noted, “is a ‘mass of perdition,’ and as such deserves the wrath of God. From this hopeless state of original sin ‘no one, no, not one, has been delivered, or is being delivered, or ever will be delivered, except by the grace of the Redeemer.’ ”1 Augustine added that God, in His mercy, has determined the exact number of those whom He will save and those who will be lost and that the number of those receiving His grace remains certain and can neither increase nor diminish. Thus, convictions in Western Christianity arose regarding predestination, irresistible grace, the perseverance of the saints, and the decrees of God.

To this Augustinian negative spirituality (original sin spirituality), John Calvin (1509–1564) added a further impetus by asserting that God had decreed who would be lost and who would be saved. Further complicating the picture were seventeenth century European theologians who asserted that God, before the creation of the world, had already decreed who would be saved and lost (supralapsarianism).

Against this strong Augustinian-Calvinist influence that often perceives human nature in negative terms, an obscure Dutch theologian, Jacobus Arminius (1560–1609), took a bold step to proclaim many truths now espoused by a large section of Protestant theologians. He declared that Christ died for all people; salvation comes by faith: those who believe are saved, those who resist God’s grace are lost; God does not select (elect) particular individuals for either outcome; and God wishes that all humans be saved.

Adventist theology, in no sense, denies the effects of sin on human nature. However, to counteract the remaining vestiges of a negative, and even fatal, perspective on humankind, it’s time for another way of seeing or another emphasis more aligned with God’s gifts to humans and God’s positive redeeming love— a move from negative to creation spirituality. To be sure, human nature is fallen, but there remains a noble, helpful, and redeemable part of human nature that, in many ways, retains the assets of our Maker. We can give credence to the assertion that “[n]ot only intellectual but spiritual power, a perception of right, a desire for goodness, exists in every heart.”2 We are created in God’s image with the power to think, act, and create, and this has implications for the creative side of human nature.

Creation spirituality model

The contrast between original sin spirituality and creation spirituality in some ways can best be seen and controlled by the way we ask questions and conduct business in our families, churches, and institutions.

I use the term conduct business purposefully because of insights provided in a business model created by David L. Cooperrider3 who originated and applied the appreciative inquiry (AI) model in a business environment. Cooperrider perceived that all too often a business pursues a traditional approach by asking, What problems are you or your business having? The follow-up focuses on the problem: diagnosing it through surveys and interviews and suggesting a solution—usually a course of action designed to fi x the problem. By paying attention to problems, we emphasize and magnify them. This approach fits the original sin model that says, “People are broken; they are problems.” Looking at any organization or system for problems will provide them. You find what you are looking for in abundance, be it in a church, school, family, or institution.

The creation spirituality model, like Cooperrider’s business model, starts from a different place, using a different set of assumptions and questions. The key question is, What is working around here? The question assumes that something is working.

To understand creative spirituality, it is crucial to understand and accept its supporting assumptions, that is, the shared beliefs (sometimes unarticulated) that prompt a group’s actions and thinking. Examining the assumptions supporting Cooperrider’s process, we can focus on the good rather than the problems and thereby achieve a creative spirituality orientation.

Assumption 1. In every system, be it society, an organization, family, or another group, something works. Instead of looking for what is broken, look rather for what works (what creates good) and grow it.

Imagine how many consultant funds could be saved and how much stress could be eliminated if institutions, churches, and families were honestly searching for what works in their corporate life. Finding what works is not easy; it takes discipline. Moreover, this process does not mandate simply ignoring problems but treats problems in a different way—they are not given center stage. Finding what works has a way of placing problems in the proper context. As the apostle advised, “Say only what is good and helpful to those you are talking to, and what will give them a blessing” (Eph. 4:29, TLB).

Assumption 2. What we focus on becomes our reality. Negative questions and statements produce a negative reality.

Assumption 3. Reality becomes created in the moment. Humans are capable of holding multiple realities at the same time. The most important reality to us is the socially constructed reality, that is, the reality that grows and is nurtured by personal relationships.

Assumption 4. The art of asking questions of an organization or group influences that group in some way.

Assumption 5. People have more confidence and comfort about journeying to the future (the unknown) when they can carry forward parts of the past (the known). “We have nothing to fear for the future except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us.”4 We should always carry the best of the past forward. Something works. Find it and grow it.

Assumption 6. To value differences of opinion, differences of interpretation, and differences that arise from many kinds of diversity is important. Sometimes, a discussion of difference can purify an idea, a concept, or the identity of what is working.

Working the model

These key assumptions in appreciative inquiry (AI) lead to a summary of the operational parts of the model. Although these concepts are not difficult to understand, like all tools used in organizational work, they need to be experienced several times before they can be mastered. The following steps can help.

1. Identify what works. Through the use of well-designed questions, what is working in any organization can, in time, be identified. Most successful AI questioning arises when as many concerned people as possible are working in triads asking the right questions to identify what is working. In a church setting, the inquiry best includes every member who can be mustered to the task. Limiting the inquiry groups to triads ensures valuable input even from the more timid participants. Experience has shown that groups are greatly energized by this phase of the inquiry. It’s just plain fun to ask, “What’s working? Our Pathfinders? Our 12-Step program? Our liaison with the child-support agency? An avidly discussing Sabbath School class? Our landscaping? Our nursery supervision during church?”

2. Create a challenging future.

The heart of the AI process is the creation of a desired and compelling image of the future based on the positive answers the group produces in step one—where imagination comes to the front. Crafting the future for a church group or institution requires the freedom to imagine. The future must be challenging, exciting, and barely possible. Fear and doubt have no place here. For example, “We have excellent church school teachers. Suppose we were providing tuition for every eligible student in our congregation to be exposed to a Christian education.” “At least half of our members are active and mobile; imagine their impact on the other half if they called or visited them.”

3. Build some bold positions.

The picture of the future can now be transformed into what AI calls “provocative propositions,” describing an ideal state of what will be in the future. To write a provocative proposition, we apply “what if” to all the themes that emerge and provide a picture of the preferred future created in steps one and two. Some provocative propositions might be, “All of the members of the church are acquainted with and participate as individuals in accomplishing the mission of the church in the community”; “At our church there is a high tolerance for and welcoming of diversity”; “We have an attractive church facility as well as able members who can attract community residents to health-related workshops.”

4. Create an action plan. The final step in AI includes taking the provocative statements of step three and creating an action plan: Who will do what? By what time? What steps must be taken to accomplish this identified and preferred future?

Once the goals of the provocative proposition are determined, the nuts and bolts of planning must define the near future. Planning grows to be grounded in hope. In every system, institution, and church, something works. Find it and grow it.

1. Williston Walker, A History of the Christian Church (New
York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1918), 181, 182.

2. Ellen G. White, Education (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press,
1952), 29.

3. David L. Cooperrider, Peter F. Sorensen Jr., Diane Whitney,
and Theresa F. Yaeger, eds., Appreciative Inquiry: Rethinking
Human Organization Toward a Positive Theory of Change

(Champaign, IL: Stipes Publishing, 2000).

4. Ellen G. White, Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers
(Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press, 1962), 31.


Ministry reserves the right to approve, disapprove, and delete comments at our discretion and will not be able to respond to inquiries about these comments. Please ensure that your words are respectful, courteous, and relevant.

comments powered by Disqus
William Loveless, PhD, is a professor in the Department of Educational Services, Loma Linda University School of Dentistry, Loma Linda, California, United States.

November 2009

Download PDF
Ministry Cover

More Articles In This Issue

Measuring ministry effectiveness objectively

How do pastors determine success? How should they?

Experiencing the power of God

David marveled at the vastness of the heavens as he took time to study them (Ps. 8:3, 4).

Welcoming and retaining your visitors

An experienced pastor shares five steps to creating an atmosphere for first-time guests to his church. They'll work in your church too.

The pastor's guide to resource materials on church history

Must-have information for the serious student who wishes to research the historical development of the church.

The pastoral counselor as prophet and priest

While not necessarily acting in a mediatory way, pastoral counselors find themselves in a unique position where they can act in both priestly and prophetic roles with church members.

Creative Celebrations: Involving children in your special services

What would change if we worked out our worship, mission, and service from the perspective of the children in our congregations? Here are some ideas to start you thinking about involving children in the special events of your church. Churches are in different places along the journey of child inclusiveness, and various cultures find some things unacceptable or have different local meanings for actions and symbols. So, a wide range of ideas has been included, not as prescriptions, but as ideas to stimulate thoughtfulness and creativity.

View All Issue Contents

Digital delivery

If you're a print subscriber, we'll complement your print copy of Ministry with an electronic version.

Sign up
Advertisement - RevivalandReformation 300x250

Recent issues

See All
Advertisement - SermonView - WideSkyscraper (160x600)