When unlimited vision collides with a limited budget, creativity is spawned. So if you’re brimming over with goals for a new church building, but it’s not feasible to take it all on at once, we’ve got good news for you.
At Churches by Daniels, we understand the zeal pastors and church boards carry for expansion, and the common frustration limited funding can cause. We’ve helped churches nationwide with affordable church construction built in phases. Rome certainly wasn’t built in a day, and your church doesn’t have to be constructed all at once either. We work with your vision, honor your priorities, and develop incremental phases in which your new facility can be built. We partner with you to accomplish your vision.
Get Manageable, Low-Cost Church Design
Cornerstone Word of Life Church in Madison, Alabama built an 18,000 square foot facility with a 500-seat worship center, children’s area, gathering spaces, lobby, café and separate room design for special needs. This type of building is possible, and when built in phases, can be feasible.
Cornerstone Word of Life Church in Madison, Alabama
For Cost-Saving Church Construction, Build in Phases
When you build in phases, you can update one area at a time, or one building at a time. Word of Life Church in Flowood, MS, had a massive vision for their state-of-the-art facility and built in two phases.
Phase one included a sanctuary (where they held 3 consecutive services to accommodate attendance) with theater seats, a large café with a three-sided fireplace and an attached outdoor patio area. It also has a spacious lobby area, welcome station, nurseries, youth auditorium, offices, outdoor playground, a nursing mother’s room, and a children’s auditorium.
Word of Life Church in Flowood, MS – Phase 1
Word of Life Church in Flowood, MS – Phase 1Phase two included new construction and renovation, adding a 1900-seat sanctuary, gathering area, coffee bar, and bookstore. When this phase was completed, their previous sanctuary became the children’s wing.
Word of Life Church in Flowood, MS – Phase 2
Cost-Saving Church Construction
Perhaps you’re not ready for a large-scale building project at this time. The good news is that you can radically improve your facilities with modest remodeling such as:
1. Create a Multipurpose Space to Connect
If your church doesn’t have space in it where people can relax and connect, it’s time to get creative and find one. The great thing is that connection space can be converted to a place to have special events, or even a casual “classroom” for your youth.
Lobbies offer great prospects for creating connection. People love to hang out before and after service, so find a way to make them comfortable and give them the opportunity to linger. Declutter the space, and add some cozy (yet easy to move) chairs that make people feel welcome.
2. Brighten Up Your Children’s Area
Parents notice how much you value their children. The condition of your children’s ministry reflects your heart for them. Nothing says welcome to kids like bright colors, so take time to create a new color scheme, grab some cans of paint, and give your kids’ area a refreshing new look. Updating décor in your children’s ministry areas can add design elements that makes kids feel valued and welcome.
While updating your children’s area, make sure there are secure, designated drop-off and pick-up locations for kids. Every dollar spent upgrading security for children is well invested. Many churches use an electronic check-in system for safety and security.
3. Build an outdoor pavilion
If you’re not ready to build inside, consider building outside your current church facility. An outdoor pavilion can provide a refreshing space to gather and fellowship.
Another outdoor improvement could come in the form of an overhang above the entrance to your building. It’s a thoughtful courtesy that people will appreciate particularly on rainy and snowy days as they are dropped off or picked up in front of your facility’s entrance.
4. Update outdoor signs
It may take a building permit to do it, but getting an updated outdoor sign for your church can be a revitalizing upgrade. Your community will notice, and you may even have some first-time visitors as a result.
While upgrading your church building’s outdoor space, consider creating easy to spot, convenient parking for visitors, and signs directing them to the special parking.
5. Add indoor signs
Most first-time visitors don’t like to draw attention to themselves, and many don’t want to ask where things are in the building. Help visitors navigate their way around your church facility by giving them clear, easy to spot signs inside your church directing them to the main sanctuary, children’s area, rest rooms, youth facility, café, and church office.
6. Renovate your sanctuary
Many churches are exchanging their old pews for chairs. Interestingly enough, you can seat more people in chairs than you can in pews because people spread out more in pews. The beauty of using chairs in your main sanctuary is that you can now use the same space for multiple purposes: events, exercise classes, and more.
Flooring in your main sanctuary can be upgraded for a whole new look. Consider durable, low-maintenance flooring that can accommodate the many purposes of the space.
7. Boost stewardship
Take an objective look at your current church facility and evaluate if there are areas in which you can be an even better steward. To avoid walking by the same burnt out lightbulb for days before changing it, anticipate that lights will burn out, and plan ahead how they will be replaced. Create a systematic plan to be the best possible stewards of the building you have right now.
Exhibit excellence in every aspect of your church: the landscaping, parking lot, sidewalk, flooring, light bulbs, windows, bathrooms, and more. Decluttering everything from storage closets to your lobby’s information booth can give an overall refreshing feel to your church building.
Take a Step Toward Phase 1 of Your Church Construction Project
If you’re considering making plans to build a new church facility, understand that you can do it in phases. At Churches by Daniels, we build innovative churches and partner with you to see your ministry vision come to pass. Take a look at our portfolio and get inspired.
