Which building material lasts longest? Which will build fastest? For churches with hectic event calendars and limited budgets, metal buildings provide an alternate solution to expensive and time-consuming construction involving wood, stone or brick.
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For each church, educational spaces will be quite varied: some small, some large, some flexible, some very specific. For a design to facilitate the varied forms of religious education, it must be based on an understanding of the specific needs and goals for a particular ministry.
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Ergonomics isn’t just for scientists and designers — it’s an integral part of choosing the right seats for your worship space.
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Preschool and children’s spaces are the most unique of all worship spaces, in my opinion. They must capture these special worshippers and hold their attention while also supporting the worship leaders. Even with younger ages in attendance and shorter “sermons,” these services are no less significant.
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I’m a firm believer that everything on earth belongs to God. Our money. Our houses. Our cars. The word of God. Our families. The people we encounter — and the facilities in which we worship. God has entrusted us with the stewarding of all these items.
For me, stewardship is less about what we give and more about taking care of what we have been given — of all that’s entrusted to us.
So, how do we define “entrusted”?
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In the world of church facility construction, renovation and development, there are several integral roles and responsibilities that are required for every project. They might or might not be paid professionals for each role, but they are present and the responsibilities to the project are no less important. Here are the basics that virtually every project must have as part of the church’s team.
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Churches relocate more than you think. In fact, your own church might be moving. Or, maybe you’re wondering how to relocate successfully sometime in the future. In either scenario, you’ll face some primary challenges:
• Communicating the church move to your members and regular attendees
(the congregation)
• Communicating the church move to your neighbors (the community)
That’s why you need a communications strategy before you make the move.
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As the business administrator of a religious institution, you don’t need to be an experienced commercial developer to get a construction loan — you just need an expert ministry bank.
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Many student worship spaces use design elements that promote ministry and embody many of the same elements we find in all worship spaces. However, student worship spaces typically take it to a different level. While the ultimate goal is to worship Jesus, there’s also a practical goal: to maintain a connection with the student, who’s bombarded with all the trappings of today’s culture and crowd. To be successful on both fronts, the architecture and the design of the space must uniquely “speak” to the student population.
Read More >When I started my career in church facility development in 19XX (you venture a guess), the foyer/lobby/narthex (for my liturgical friends) was generally sized to be 1- to 2-square-feet per seat in the main worship space. In those days, this space was intended to be used as a place to funnel people from the worship space to the outside or down a series of narrow corridors that led to the education, administration or fellowship areas. There was often a small table for giving / tithing envelopes or general information, along with one or two uncomfortable high-back chairs … usually not ones you would enjoy sitting in for any length of time, nor were they arranged in a manner to encourage conversation or community.
For all practicality, the foyer was nothing more than a well-appointed cattle chute. (MOO)
Not any more.
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