Pastoring a rapidly growing church is a rewarding and challenging job. While it’s exciting to have new members in your congregation, it’s also daunting to find enough space in your sanctuary to accommodate everyone comfortably.
Even though remodeling your existing church building or moving to a larger location should be the ultimate plan for expanding your ministry, you can still make the most of your current space with a few simple, budget-friendly solutions.
Here are nine tips you can implement right now to make the most of your church facility.
1. Use Other Buildings
If your church campus has a building that’s rarely used, like a gymnasium or auditorium, you can utilize this space for other purposes.
If your sanctuary can’t accommodate any more people during your service times, consider using this building as a second worship space by adding chairs and technology to live stream your service.
During the week, you can also rent out this building to community sports leagues, theatre groups, or other recreational classes as an extra source of income to fund your new construction project.
2. Add Flexible Seating
Does your sanctuary have church pews? If so, a great way to expand your worship space is to remove these bulky benches and add flexible seating, like chairs, instead.
Chairs tend to seat a greater number of people per row than pews. These rows can also be situated closer together, so you can typically fit more rows in the sanctuary.
Plus, if you plan to use your worship space for other events, like weddings or community outreach, flexible seating allows the group to reorganize or remove the chairs.
3. Utilize Your Lobby
Is your church foyer simply a room that your congregation walks through to get to the sanctuary? Or is it a place they like to gather and fellowship?
When you make your church lobby inviting, you open up room for people in your congregation to connect. This space can also help with capacity and the flow of foot traffic since many people may remain in this room during worship.
Consider adding a coffee shop or café in your foyer, equipped with plenty of seating and gathering spaces. If you don’t already, add screens in your entryway that show the service, so people can choose to watch church from the lobby.
4. Offer Outdoor Gathering Spaces
Utilizing the outdoors is a fantastic way to make the most of your church campus while you’re waiting for your new facility. Gazebos, canopies, shade structures, gardens, and benches are all great places for your church members to congregate before or after worship.
If you have a spacious lawn, you can even host weekly worship services outside to accommodate a larger number of people.
5. Remove the Clutter
Chances are, your church can find some extra storage space by removing clutter and outdated items.
Recruit a team of trusted volunteers for a “spring cleaning” day at the church. Together, you can decide what you need to keep and what you can sell, donate, or toss.
Not only can you sell unneeded furniture, technology, and equipment for some extra cash to fund your new building, but you will gain tons of storage space that you can use to reorganize the things you need until you move or renovate.
6. Invest in Technology
Adding new technology to your facilities is a great way to improve the worship experience for your congregation. Media upgrades in the sanctuary, like audio, video, and lighting systems, will make your service more engaging.
Plus, incorporating technology in the foyer, ministry spaces, children’s rooms, and multipurpose facilities makes it easier to utilize these spaces during your service times.
7. Add New Paint
It’s amazing how a fresh coat of paint can transform a room. If your interior paint is faded, dingy, or outdated, a paint job will significantly improve the look of your church.
Also, if your church is painted a dark color, like grey or brown, it’s wise to re-paint using a light color, like white. Lighter paint colors make rooms look larger, so even though your sanctuary won’t grow in size, it will give the impression the building is bigger than it was before.
8. Install New Lighting
Like fresh paint, new lighting can significantly impact how your church building looks and feels. Dim lighting or flickering, burnt-out lightbulbs can make your room feel dark, and therefore, crowded.
Invest in bright lights to make your facility feel larger. Also, ensure none of your windows or natural light sources are obstructed so that sunlight can flow into your church building.
9. Share Worship Space
Although it may not be your first option, sharing worship space with a larger church may be the best option before remodeling or moving to a new location.
Sharing space gives you two options. You can sell your church and use the money to purchase a larger property, or you can remodel your current building without worrying about coordinating meeting times around the construction schedule.
If this seems like the best option for you, negotiate meeting times with other large churches in your area for a fixed amount of time until your worship space has expanded.
Envision Your New Church Building with Churches by Daniels
Although these helpful solutions can provide temporary relief for your growing church, they won’t serve as a reliable long-term fix.
Remodeling your current facilities or building a new church campus are the best methods to create a comfortable, inviting space for your expanding congregation. However, unlike building a home, church construction is a complex process that can take years to complete, so it is vital not to postpone this decision for too long.
At Churches by Daniels, we specialize in helping pastors build church facilities that support their ministry. Our experienced, trustworthy team can help you begin the planning process for your beautiful new church expansion.
Learn our unique process for making the most out of the churches we build for pastors across the country, just like you!
