October 14, 2009

$5 Million Bridge to Somewhere: Tie it to the Purpose

Church building campaigns can be hard for congregations to swallow. But how about building a $5 million bridge to ease parking congestion for a church? That's what North Point Community Church outside Atlanta, Ga., is doing with their Let's Build a Bridge campaign. When I first saw it I literally thought it was a joke. As the opening copy explained:

Are you tired of sitting in the parking lot for twenty minutes after church? Do you hesitate to invite friends to church because of the complexity of getting on and off our campus? Have you ever skipped the closing song to beat the crowds to lunch?

Therefore North Point needs a $5 million, three-lane bridge that spans 1,000 feet of floodplain and wetlands. It's no joke. As North Point pastor Andy Stanley explains, this has been nine years in the making.

Before anyone dumps all over North Point, complaining about $5 million going to a better use or pointing out the evils of megachurches or urging North Point to go multi-site (uh, they already are and also plant quite a few churches), it's worth letting Stanley explain it:

Is it worth it? It all depends. If our mission is to be a church thatʼs perfectly designed for the people who already attend, then we donʼt need a bridge. But if we want to continue to be a church unchurched people love to attend, then yes, itʼs worth it. From my perspective, this is not a “nice to have” option. Honestly, I donʼt want to raise money for, or give money to, something thatʼs not mission critical. I believe creating a second access point allows us to stay on mission. That is why weʼve been working on this for nine years.

Continue reading "$5 Million Bridge to Somewhere: Tie it to the Purpose"

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 2:35 PM
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September 14, 2009

Abercrombie & Church

The September 14 print edition of Fortune magazine had an article (no link) by Beth Kowitt on how mall owners have been thinking "outside of the (big) box" when it comes to finding traditional retailers to anchor and inhabit their monstrous consumer jungles.

For malls that are struggling to retain consistent tenants, they are looking to creative ways to fill their space and ultimately attract more crowds. The old idiom of a "rising tide floats all boats" is how malls live and breathe. One of their solutions?

Churches.

According to the article, at least 63 churches have moved into malls in the second quarter of 2009 alone, according to CoStar Group.

In general, I'm not a fan of churches building their own campuses, so this idea of tapping into real estate that already exists makes a lot of sense. It's not new. Churches meet in community centers, schools and theaters every week.

The idea of meeting in a shopping mall does add more dimension to the experience, both good and bad. On one hand, the association doesn't help the cause to distance consumerism from Christianity. On the other hand, it's a great way to make a church community very accessible (known location, parking, food court, etc.)

Posted by Brad Abare at 6:46 AM
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March 1, 2009

A Church Helping The Church

Uprising Church is uprooting itself from its current meeting space at YMCA and moving ... to Sunday nights only.

Now, honestly I think I'd miss church on Sunday morning and at first I thought the story was going to be about the fact that this church wasn't going to have a Sunday morning service.

And then I read on.

What I really like about this story, isn't the time they are moving to but where they will be having church: in another church. Bellevue Grace Assembly Church has offered their space to Uprising for no cost.

This is a good example of being willing to change and adjust in how we are doing church and a great reminder that a building is just a building.

Bravo church, bravo. Way to be the Church.

Posted by Michael Buckingham at 6:37 AM
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January 29, 2009

Friendly Reminder: Check Your Carbon Monoxide Detector

At a church in Atlanta, a dozen people had to be taken to the hospital recently due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

Now surely, no one meant for this to happen. But it's certainly some bad press and a step away from becoming an inviting church. "Oh yeah, aren't you that church where the 12 people were poisoned?" isn't the next phrase you want to hear after inviting someone to church.

So this is a friendly reminder to make sure your church has checked its smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors recently so you don't end up on the wrong side of a story like this.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:20 AM
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October 31, 2008

Building Momentum for Building a Church

If you've ever been in the midst of a building campaign for your church, you know that raising money for it sucks about 83% of the time. You have to do a sermon series on giving, have a crying child come on stage with broken crayons to talk about their old building and kick it up to two offerings a week (one with a cheesy name like "Miracle May" or "Generous January.")

Well, Superstition Springs Community Church had a better idea for their "All In" campaign. They created a well-designed blog, made plans and information about their new building easily accessible and even included things like download-able wallpapers for your computer. That way, before you click "Buy it now" on that $700 juicer/meat grinder/espresso machine on eBay, you could think about how that $700 could be used for the church.

They make a good point with their campaign. Nothing is really groundbreaking. They still named their campaign, they just made it less cheesy. They still told stories to inspire people, they just did it with more clarity. They still let people know what the new building plans were like, they just did it with more openness.

They took all of the elements of traditional fundraising, and they thought, "How can we do this better?" And their output was great marketing that's already seeing big results.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 2:17 PM
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October 11, 2007

Moving Church Outside

Well, we've discussed whether church buildings suck before. We've talked about whether you put a little money or a lot of money into a building. Here's a new one: Don't have a building.

That's what Cornerstone Church is doing. They're a megachurch in Simi Valley, Calif., who hit a spiritual brick wall. As they prepared to build a $60 million 'Chan-ville' (the words of lead pastor Francis Chan), they were struck by something outside of themselves.

The long and short of it is that Pastor Chan was troubled to the point of taking a three-month sabbatical. At the end of that three months, he realized that there was more to life than having a totally sweet building. And that's how the Tierra Rejanda Building Project began and the idea of having church outside.

Continue reading "Moving Church Outside"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:04 AM
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June 19, 2007

Where Should A New Church Meet?

We've talked here on CMS before about church buildings.

Recently Drew Goodmanson referenced an article by Dr. Ed Stetzer called "Where Should A New Church Meet?"

Continue reading "Where Should A New Church Meet?"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:01 AM
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May 16, 2007

Church Building Sucks

Here's a post with no answer. I was browsing through a list posted by Andy at Think Christian, and he linked to Neatorama's post, 10 Divinely Designed Churches. This stirred up a question building in my mind for quite some time.

At last year's Catalyst Conference, Donald Miller talked about church design then and now. He discussed the differences in the geometry and architecture of Renaissance churches compared with contemporary churches. Essentially, with an illiterate society, churches had to present God through symmetry and beauty of design, and with our modern, corporate society, churches tend to look like businesses.

Continue reading "Church Building Sucks"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:30 AM
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January 10, 2007

Post-Holiday Linkfest

My post-holiday recovery never quite happened, thanks to the fact that my family is trying to sell our house. So I've got a pile of links I haven't had time to blog about. But lucky for you I'll take the lazy route and throw 'em all up here in one big list. Enjoy:

• Congregations Go High-Tech to Deliver Message - From PowerPoint and basic web sites (ooh, shiny!) to podcasting and blogs.
• Location Doesn't Matter for Most - Storefront churches are working despite locations: "I quickly discovered that the absence of typical church decorations doesn't matter a bit. What makes a church 'church' is what goes on inside the heart and soul of the pastor and the congregation."
• How Toyota Would Run a Church - Church Relevance speculates about how Toyota might run a church.
• The 25 Most Innovative Churches in America - Outreach put out the list with help from Tony Morgan, but we'll link to Church Relevance since they have the list in non-PDF format and show what other lists those churches have landed on.
• What Makes a Church Grow? - Growing churches are often multiracial, have more men than women, make an effort not to be reverent and use drums in worship (gasp!).
• New England Churches Shy From 'Baptist' Name - Even NPR is getting in on the church name change game. Dawn Nicole Baldwin is even planning a series on church name changes.
• God Bless the Bulletin - Wow, some newspapers still run bulletin bloopers?

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 11:16 AM
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May 23, 2006

Poddy Talk

Earlier this month, a colleague and I toured the facilities of a church in Los Angeles County. The church property was tucked away in a residential area, had decent parking, and had to be at least 40 years old. This church of 1,200 people also houses a small grade school and several large multi-purpose rooms for community events, regular conferences, and a thriving youth ministry. I learned that the building used to be an old Baptist church until this independent church bought it about 15 years ago.

While the building itself is decent, it could certainly use some fixing and finishing here and there. Musty rooms, dimly lit hallways, and several areas in need of space maximization all pointed to a "to-do" list that must be collecting dust with a few deacons.

During the tour we were also shown the restrooms. As the pastor opened the door to the ladies room (it was empty), we stepped into an oasis. Plush walls and carpets, gorgeous faucets, changing rooms, and a spa-like atmosphere gave a new meaning to the word "rest-room." The men's room was almost as impressive, but with slightly less floral patterns.

The pastor said they chose to spend a significant amount of money on the restrooms instead of anywhere else in the building because they were convinced that the return on investment would be higher than anywhere else. He's probably right.

Posted by Brad Abare at 6:59 AM
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March 14, 2006

The History of the Church Pew

Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, Calif. just moved to a new building and they have a peculiar problem: Pews. Vintage Faith is an emergent church where pews and a central focus on a pulpit are not the norm.

Church leader Dan Kimball (I'd call him pastor, but their web site doesn't list job titles) has an interesting post exploring the history of the church pew. For him it's not strictly about comfort, but being able to have a communal worship experience.

It's kind of odd how ingrained pews are as part of the church experience, especially since pews as we know them weren't introduced until the 1500s. For more on church seating, check out our recent poll where the majority said seating only matters in that it shouldn't be a distraction.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 6:37 AM
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February 23, 2006

Church Sells Out to DaVinci

In other DaVinci Code news, there's the story of the Winchester Cathedral selling out. First the cathedral opened its doors to the film-makers for almost $35,000 after Westminster Abbey refused. Now Winchester Cathedral is considering charging tourists almost $7 each to tour the cathedral.

While it's easy to accuse the cathedral of selling out, the building does date back to 1079 and will need almost $7 million in repairs in the next decade, while facing a potential $1.75 million deficit in the next five years if they don't act.

It all gets rather complicated when a church building becomes more than a church building. Historic buildings become tourist attractions, and the church has to balance potential outreach to tourists and maintaining a piece of church history with a modern congregation. Do they leave the building behind and let a secular company run it as a tourist spot, or do they hang on and try to preserve the history and spiritual connection?

It's a unique problem--you just don't see many businesses trying to operate in a 1,000-year-old structure. It's also a problem fairly unique to Europe and its ancient cathedrals.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 8:26 AM
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February 7, 2006

Cup Holders in Church

It seems like everybody likes to rag on mega-churches, but I don't always get it. Often they're just making smart decisions. Take Eagle Brook, the largest church in Minnesota with a weekly attendance of 8,000. Their new building will feature cup holders, an amenity that will throw some into apocalyptic panic, but the rationale seems solid to me:

But church leaders figured it was difficult to stand, sit or praise the Lord with your hands in the air while worrying about dumping a hot latte onto fellow Christians. So they decided to add cup holders — anything to boost their reputation for putting people at ease.

It's all the reporter's lingo (assuming the person next to you is a Christian), but the rationale reminds me of last week's poll: It's only important in that it isn't a distraction (which 71% agreed with). A cup holder means you're not distracted by worrying about an overturned drink. And why even have a drink in church? A drink parches my thirst (or feeds my caffeine craving) and lets me focus on something more important. Is that really the tragedy some claim it is? I don't think so.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:48 AM
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August 9, 2005

Protesting Church Expansion

And I thought growing churches conflicting with their neighbors would be an isolated deal. Maybe not.

On Sunday neighbors were protesting the 4,000-member St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, Calif. and their plans to expand. The 58-year-old church hopes to add a youth center, classrooms and underground parking, a 21,000-square-foot addition to their 104,000-square-foot facility.

Neighbors complain about the added noise, traffic and parking problems.

"The bottom line is I don't think anyone wants the disruption," said Waverly Lassila, a Newport Heights resident who calls St. Andrew's a "King Kong Church."

Neighbors have suggested the church relocate, but that doesn't seem likely.

"We have no desire to be a megachurch," said St. Andrew's pastor John Huffman, who has served there for 28 years. "We're trying to serve the parish here. And no one is going to convince us we need to leave."

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 4:37 PM
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August 4, 2005

Turning Buildings into Churches

We're not exactly a church building blog, but I think this article about churches converting old buildings instead of building new ones is pretty cool. The main motivation is that churches can get a lot more bang for their buck. Spending money wisely is usually a good idea.

But I also love the symbolism of churches taking old, empty buildings that have been discarded by commercial interests and breathing new life into them. You couldn't ask for a better metaphor.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:02 PM
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August 3, 2005

The Neighborhood Church

Growing churches can quickly draw the ire of surrounding neighbors, especially if churches neglect to be good neighbors—something that should be obvious for Christians. Church expansion plans can change the shape of a community, upsetting neighbors in the process. And don't discount all the noise, traffic and litter that come with large groups of congregating people.

First Church of the Nazarene in Salem, Ore. faced these issues as it considered expansion, and quickly learned the importance of being a good neighbor. Hosting neighborhood outreach events and block parties has helped them improve relations with their community.

Another Salem church, Court Street Christian Church, has ended up in court over plans to build a 500-seat sanctuary. Now the Salem City Council will hold a public hearing over the issue.

Bottom line: How a church gets along with its neighbors can make quite an impression—for good or bad.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 5:21 AM
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May 24, 2005

Flowers in the Churchyard

This isn't strictly church marketing, but I think it eventually gets around to marketing implications. Pat Kahnke, the pastor of St. Paul Fellowship Church in St. Paul, Minn., blogged about how a few members of his congregation and their kids turned a weedy section of grass in the church's yard into a flower garden.

Now obviously there are implications to creating a pleasing environment and planting flowers can go a long way towards achieving that. But what I like about this example is that it's not a building committee deciding the church needs to be spruced up and hiring some random florist to come in and plant a few annuals. It's a some random church members banding together and deciding to beautify their church. Not only that, but they also had a positive interaction with their church's neighbor.

There's nothing wrong with having the building committee hire a florist, but if I had to pick between the two options, I'd go with what happened at St. Paul Fellowship. That's cool.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 6:53 PM
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April 7, 2005

Smells Like Church

Among other things, Westwinds Community Church in Jackson, Mich. has a committee that decides what the church should smell like, according to an Audio Collective podcast. That may sound a little fruity, but as pastor Ron Martoia says, "The facility defines the experience." Paying attention to the little things, like the lighting or the tile or even the smell, has a big payoff when it comes to how people experience your church.

Read an interview with Martoia about their building and check out the photos (and a few more photos).

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 6:24 AM
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January 18, 2005

Sanctuary or Jet Hanger?

Idlewild Baptist Church in Tampa, Fla. is building a new $73-million facility with a sanctuary large enough to hold Air Force One. The new 400,000 square foot building sits on a 143-acre campus and will house the church’s 66 full-time staff members—all to serve the church’s 9,000 members.

A gigantic building project like this certainly makes a statement. I can only hope that statement is heard outside the $73-million facility.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 8:42 AM
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November 2, 2004

Green Steeples

St. Mark's Presbyterian Church in New Port Beach, Calif. is finishing a new construction project and trying to get their church classified with the U.S. Green Building Council.

"It's a basic stewardship matter for us, caring for creation, and in our corner of the world we do what we can," St. Mark pastor Gary Collins said. "We clearly have an opportunity with this project to leave as gentle an imprint on the ground and the land as we can."

The $8 million building project will leave an impact of a different kind on the community, showing a concern for the environment that's sadly a rare sight in many churches.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 10:50 AM
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August 2, 2004

Lessons from Apple & Victoria's Secret

When you walk into a retail store everything has a purpose. Someone thought about every design element, from the racks, to the lighting, to the location of the cash register. Good interior design will evoke positive feelings for the retailer, facilitate shopping, and encourage buying. While those aren't exactly the goals of the church, we can learn a lot about interior design from the approach of two upscale retailers, Apple and Victoria's Secret (Lingerie!? Gasp!).

You can't compare computers and panties to Jesus and the Bible, but we can get some insights that might influence what the inside of your church looks like.

Continue reading "Lessons from Apple & Victoria's Secret"

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 8:25 AM
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