In our previous post, we discussed the trend away from mega-sized church buildings, to smaller worship centers. Churches doing this can easily accommodate growth through a multiple-venue approach.

Multi-venue worship is itself a growing trend, providing a number of advantages that are well worth exploring in further detail.

Meeting Many Needs at Once

One important reason to grow your church through multiple venues is that you can have different types of worship going on at the same time. Remember, too, that this can be accomplished not only by using different venues on different sites, but also by building multiple venues at the same site.

To this end, we have been seeing more church leaders design a church building with multiple auditoriums. Such a facility enhances your options. For example, it can allow you to conduct services in different languages or use different styles of music in each worship center while using joint staff and volunteers in support places such as nurseries and children’s ministries.

Maximizing Church Building Flexibility

Another reason for having multiple venues is to create options for how the spaces are used. With more than one venue to work with, one area can, for example, become a dedicated youth center during the week, while another can be set aside as, say, a wedding chapel.

That points to another advantage as well. When you have a single large auditorium, that size can be too big for some purposes. A venue with less capacity can, instead, help ensure that a small wedding actually feels intimate and welcoming.

Church Designs That Keep an Intimate Feel

You may be asking yourself what size of a space works for more “intimate” gatherings. We’ve designed church building facilities in recent years that have multiple auditoriums seating about 500 people. With a well-planned church design, this size allows for that intimate feel on Sunday mornings, where everyone can see the speaker without the need for screens and image magnification.

More Multi-Venue Factors to Keep in Mind

There are other things to consider when developing a multi-venue ministry. First, branding is key. The look and feel of each worship center should reflect a common ministry vision from location to location. Social media should use similar, related logos, so that guests and members all know they’re part of the same broader community. That way, if people decide to worship in a different venue on any given Sunday, they will know they’re still worshiping in your church.

Multi-venue ministry also offers an excellent way to keep costs under control as your church community grows. You can begin by renting appropriate buildings in suitable locations, rather than committing to the expense of a new church design project before you are sure which venues will see the most growth. Then, when it’s clear which new venue has the most potential, you can invest in a church design that will meet the needs and vision of that new ministry location.

Find Out More

To learn more about church building trends and which factors you should keep in mind during the church design and construction process, join us for our free i3 webinars. Go to the bottom of our home page, and register. The webinars are live, interactive, and free. We look forward to hearing from you.