Growing churches can be stopped by the stress of deciding what to do next. Fortunately, there is a clear way to overcome these growing pains.

Christ Church is a rapidly growing denominational congregation in a suburban area of a midwestern city. The church has been around for 160 years and is on the National Register of Historic Places. People love the church's history, but they are more excited about their future of reaching the unchurched people in their community. Church members unanimously agreed that a building was needed to accommodate growth, not only in worship, but also in education and ministry activities. In fact, the church already had some money in the bank for a building program.

A church building project can challenge even the happiest of congregations, and Christ Church is no exception. Problems surfaced when the church needed to decide what to build, when, and how. Some wanted a basic, prefabricated, and inexpensive steel building that could be quickly built to meet immediate needs.

Others wanted a formal building, custom-designed to harmonize with the old church, but with modern features. Still others wanted to purchase adjacent property and start developing a church campus that would attract many people. Others simply could not make up their minds. The church was unable to come to a consensus on a facility that would accommodate church growth.

This situation is common to many churches. First, they recognize the need to build. Then they throw several building options out for discussion and find themselves deadlocked and unable to decide on a building plan. What starts as a response to growth becomes an issue that could split the church.

What can be done to help Christ Church and others in a similar situation? What can other churches learn from Christ Church to avoid these troubles? The key to answering both questions is an understanding of the root cause of the problem.

Vision and Mission Before Design
A disagreement about building design or project timing is really a symptom of a root problem. Church members argue about buildings because they don't agree on the church's vision, mission, and goals. Without a formal, understood vision and mission for the church, each member promotes his or her own individual vision. So even though everyone's heart is in the right place, conflict results that can tear a church apart.

Before any church moves forward on a building or expansion project, the entire congregation should understand and buy into the church's long-range vision. Then all design and build decisions can be held up against the vision, rather than against individual opinions.

Before planning for new construction, church leaders need to think through the congregation's mission and strategy over the next five to ten years - and even further out, given the cost of a building. The vision and plan for ministry will drive the need for a new building, as well as its design and cost. A ministry assessment and a strategic plan are essential to have in place before any design is finalized, and long before ground is broken for a new building. Mark Bushhouse of Williams Architects in Carol Stream, Illinois, sums it all up by saying, "We need to let the ministry design the building rather than let the building design the ministry."

After deciding their vision and mission, church leaders should seek out expert advice to guide them in their building plans. An excellent source of advice is an architect who specializes in churches - one who has many successful church projects in his or her portfolio. An experienced church architect will want to understand the church's vision and mission, and will ask church leaders and members challenging questions about congregational hopes and dreams.

Part of the architectural design process is to think through how ministries can be developed and the kind of space they'll need. The architect will help the church arrive at an effective, efficient building design that meets real and anticipated needs, conforms to municipal building requirements, and honors God.

No Place to Grow
Bradley-Epworth United Methodist Church in Peoria, Illinois, confronted a ministry challenge common to many urban-area churches: it is starting to outgrow the land-locked space it has occupied for the past 50 years. The church is located one block from Bradley University, and appeals to students, faculty, and residents in the neighborhood.

Church leaders weren't sure how they could meet the demands for more space at their current location. But moving to a growing part of the city, where more space is available, would result in losing much of their university ministry. What should they do?

The church got help from an experienced church architect. "Two years ago, before we called in the architect, we were filled with dissent," recalls Brian Pugh, administrative assistant and worship leader. The church called on Building God's Way, an Ogden, Utah-based church design and build company.

"Building God's Way helped us move through a process of unification," says Pugh, adding that the architects they worked with never pushed for a decision on the project. Instead, they encouraged the development of a common understanding. "With their help, we are in a better position to move forward with one mind."

In the meantime, the church continues to expand its outreach to Bradley students. They purchased a house next door to the church as the base for their college ministry. They also purchased two other nearby homes to develop into church ministry sites when the congregation is ready to expand its reach.

The architects helped the congregation focus on its vision, and now the church has several options for development near the university. The church will continue to evaluate its long-term options, no doubt calling once again on an architect to help with planning and design when the time for building is right.

Same Place, New Space
As churches progress over time, they may need to redesign their space to better meet changing ministry or worship goals. For example, Grace Episcopal Church in Traverse City, Michigan is a 19th-century, wood-frame Gothic church. The traditional seating arrangement had people in rows of pews that fostered a feeling of individuality and isolation, even though the worship service emphasized more and more connection between worshipers.

Moving to a new location or building a more contemporary facility did not appeal to church leaders, who preferred to remain in their city center location and retain the traditional feel of a sacred atmosphere. They worked with David Swanson of Swanson Design, an architect skilled in the integration of traditional and contemporary worship, to develop a new seating arrangement that surrounded the altar on three sides.

In addition, the baptismal font that sat off to the side of the sanctuary was replaced with a centrally located baptismal pool. More and more adults were being baptized, and this change made baptism a much more powerful event - everyone could see people being baptized.

That same sense of community was extended to fellowship space. Swanson says this project represents a trend toward a more holistic experience in church. "There has to be space to greet, talk, share - and to pray," he says.

Cost Control Starts Early
Even if the entire church is onboard with vision, mission, goals, and the need for a building project, problems can erupt about the cost of the project. It is very easy in the design planning stages to go overboard with features and options. The best way to keep your budget in check is to involve an experienced church builder/general contractor as you review potential plans with your architect.

The builder has more knowledge of current prices and actual construction costs than the architect, and will be able to provide good cost estimates early in the process. Without his help, you could spend a lot of time and money designing a facility you can't afford to build.

But Tim Roberts of Building God's Way warns that church leaders often think good stewardship means saving money at every phase of design and construction. With this mindset, standard, off-the-shelf designs of prefabricated steel structures represent the lowest overall cost. On occasion this could be the best approach, but even small changes to a standard design could put the project cost on par with custom-designed solutions.

Another challenge with standard building designs is that they often fail to incorporate the latest technologies, especially for the sanctuary. On the other hand, an experienced church architect can work with the church to make sure all the appropriate technology is integrated into the design.

Another potential trap in trying to save on design and construction costs is to simply add more space to current ministries. Without a long-range plan, there is a good chance the added space will not meet ministry needs as the church continues to grow, and more money will need to be spent. In the worst possible case, the new construction becomes a hindrance to future ministry needs, and might need to be replaced.

Christ Church's Solution
Remember Christ Church? Fortunately, they recognized their stalemate and agreed to identify their hopes, dreams, and plans for the church before moving ahead with the expansion. The church asked an experienced church architect to help them with their planning process. From that point on, their design and construction decisions were based on their agreed-upon vision for the entire church.

One last point: church leaders benefit from working with architects who share their faith. Throughout the project they can be involved together in the dynamics of prayer, vision, and study needed to be successful. Roberts reminds us that the building is a means to an end. It needs to be designed with purpose—God's purpose.

This article originally appeared in Your Church magazine.