The Vacation Bible School team was tearing down the set from a great week of ministry and high-octane fun. The church had been transformed into Jerusalem during New Testament times, complete with an entrance to the temple courts. A set constructor innocently asked, "Where can we store this to use sometime in the future?"

"I don't know. All the storage rooms are already full."

The adrenaline rush stopped dead. "Do you mean we have to just throw all this away?"

Like most people's houses, churches rarely have enough storage space. While it's true that churches should build adequate storage space into their overall design plans, spending limited funds on closets may not be the best use of financial resources.

As Parkview Christian Church in Orland Park, Illinois, began to max out its suburban Chicago facilities, leaders discussed construction of a larger worship center. But before fundraising began, a shift in the expectations of the congregation and early signs of a downturn in the economy caused the team to ask bigger—and deeper—questions.

Until recently, churches responded to growing attendance by building larger facilities. But the faltering economy makes raising large sums for building projects harder to accomplish. And combined with the aversion of younger churchgoers to the bigger-is-better ministry philosophy, these tight-money days are demanding imaginative alternatives. For some churches, the question has become, "Should we build at all?"

"We have told many clients in the last couple years, 'You're not ready to build, because you aren't sure what your ministry is,'" said Ed Bahler of the Aspen Group, a church design firm. "So what once took a few weeks has become a six- to twelve-month process: determining what their vision is and what they really need to do that ministry." The firm now focuses on guiding church leaders through the vision process.

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