How do you know when it’s time for your church to build? Here are four things to consider when you’re thinking about building.
1. Finances – Obviously, money matters when you’re building a new facility. Here is blog I wrote specifically on Church Construction and Money.
2. Max Facility Use – Do you have a document that outlines how your facility is currently being used for ministry? The least expensive ministry space you’ll ever have is what you have right now. Before you think about building or renovating a thing, you want to make sure you’ve thought through every square foot of the current facility. How many services do you have right now? Could you add another one? Could you do a video venue? My church uses the same space on Sunday mornings for middle school and Sunday afternoon for high school. Do you really need all that Sunday school space or could it be repurposed for a more effective use? (Touchy subject, I know.)
3. R U Ready? – This is the one thing most pastors I work with fail to realize. This process will take more of your energy than you think. It will take more of your time than you think. It takes longer than you think, and it will require you to spend more of your influence than you think.
Being ready means you’ve got your hands wrapped tightly around the vision God has given you and hold onto it. You’ll constantly need that vision to re-center you when the difficulty arises. It means you don’t have secrets. (I trust you know what I’m talking about.) Secrets often find a way not to be so secretive when you are trying to make a big impact for the Kingdom. Being ready means you’ve weighed the cost, and you are personally ready to pay it.
If the Leader isn’t ready… the church isn’t ready!
4. The “Great Deal” – Stumbling on great deal for land or a building does not mean it’s time for your church to build. I met with a church a couple years back that bought 11 acres for their church because the price had dropped so much. Now they are trying to sell 11 acres in a down market because they realized, because of location, they would benefit more by renovating an existing building than from building a new one. There is a difference between a “great deal” and a “great deal for your church”.
Facilities must move you in the direction of the vision.
So, are you ready?
