Anybody here have any experience with modular church buildings?
What is the most economical way to build/relocate?
From what I've seen in looking now in this climate, they are considerably more expensive per square foot than renovating or converting an existing building. (at least in Houston)
There are also issues with finance charges on actual church buildings from my understanding. I will, however, be interested in the responses and insight on this thread. We are looking at location options at this time.
__________________
There are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, Chuck Norris lives in Houston.
Either the United States will destroy ignorance, or ignorance will destroy the United States. – W.E.B. DuBois
Building using metal buildings I can tell you will come in between $110 and $120 per sq. ft.
this is a good time to be building because people are hungry for work and bids seem to be less than a year or two ago.
This has been our experience in the Dallas area.
I dont know about renovation.
The $110 to $120 number is about in line with what I've been getting from Metal building companies. Many of the existing properties that I've looked at in Houston run anywhere from $30 to $60 per square foot. Of course with the metal buildings you have to factor in the land, any retention or ther city issues, paving parking lots, etc....
__________________
There are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, Chuck Norris lives in Houston.
Either the United States will destroy ignorance, or ignorance will destroy the United States. – W.E.B. DuBois
Anybody here have any experience with modular church buildings?
What is the most economical way to build/relocate?
Sprung Structures hands down.
You can actually move the structure from one side of a property to another, they are also hurricane and earthquake rated.
Saddleback used and still uses them and I've seen several churches use them very very successfully. You can have up to 600+ people for about 1/4th of the cost in a nice neutral space you can later relocate to another foundation on the property to use as a kids area or multi-use facility.
If you want to be truly economical, make an impact on the local community and people's spiritual lives why not do what this Vineyard pastor did with his church?
House Church and the “Pareto Principle”
Filed under: General Simple Church, Leadership — H2H @ 12:01 am
By William T “Bill” Faris, MPC http://www.story.house2house.com/
Like me, you’ve probably never met Mr. Vilfredo Pareto but you know something about the so-called “80-20” rule that bears his name. Simply put, the “Pareto Principle” is the observation that in many systems, organizations and events, 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. This principle is also sometimes known as the “law of the vital few” and has found wide application in business theory and, not surprisingly, in traditional church leadership models. For example, popular Christian leadership author John Maxwell makes the following observations of how the Pareto Principle works in traditional church life in his book, Developing the Leader Within You:
“Time—20 percent of our time produces 80 percent of the results.
Counseling—20 percent of the people take up 80 percent of our time.
Reading—20 percent of a book contains 80 percent of the content.
Donations—20 percent of the people will give 80 percent of the money.
Speech—20 percent of our presentation produces 80 percent of the impact.
Picnic—20 percent of the people will eat 80 percent of the food.”
Over the course of my own life long journey as a pastor and church leader, I became quite familiar with the Pareto Principle (Pareto Curse?) and its applications to traditional church life. I think it is fair to say that I, like most pastors, did everything possible to break the 80-20 grip on most church giving, ministry participation, decision making and organizational ownership. After all, our stated call as professional church leaders was to “equip the saints for the work of the ministry”. However, it often seemed that empowering church members to truly engage this biblical concept and live it out in the context of our church life and ministry was always more difficult than it sounded. Then a funny thing happened. Nearly two years ago, I initiated a process that eventually deconstructed our traditional Vineyard local church and reconfigured it from a traditional destination campus ministry to a house church network. Gone were such familiar features of church life as a full time staff (including me!), rented building, worship band, Sunday School and other standard church life markers. These days “Vineyard at Home” (the name of our small house church network) operates on an entirely different basis as it seeks to accomplish its mission in an entirely different environment and structure.
One of the most satisfying outcomes of this transition has been a demonstrated victory over some of the more stubborn aspects of the 80-20 principle in church life. A very recent experience will illustrate what I mean. However, in order for the story to make sense I must first explain how we operate.
In our new modality, our church operating budget has been radically slashed. Wonderfully, this means that funds that were once used to pay staff, rents, and other fixed expenses are now available for each house church to use in the accomplishment of their localized ministry and mission. Can you imagine how fun it is for me to send out an email to all our members each month which updates their budget and asks them to “please spend more money” on Kingdom stuff?
Recently, I was present as one of our house churches took a portion of their meeting time to decide how they were going to direct certain funds at their disposal. In my role as overall Network Director/Pastor, I do not tell them what to do with their resources. I only remind them of our mission to “empower everyday people to take the ministry of Jesus to everyday places” and ask that they use funds in ways that reflect that priority. It was great to be a part of the decision-making conversation that followed as parents, single adults, teens and even younger children discussed the options under consideration. Before long, the following decisions were made by the group:
1. Some of the money would go to a particular family in their house church to help them face some pressing financial challenges.
2. Some would go to a particular children’s home in the Philippines in order to bless the fifteen staff members and forty children residents at Christmas time.
3. Some would benefit the ministry of a local crisis pregnancy center by purchasing diapers and other supplies and to help with other expenses.
It was great to observe the way everyone agreed that it had to be about much more than “just sending money”. Together, the members decided the children would make cards for the individual residents and staff of the Philippine children’s home. It was also decided that several shopping trips would be put together that would enable house church members to purchase specific gifts geared specifically to each of the children overseas. In this way, a life-on-life touch would be extended from the members of our house church to those receiving the gifts overseas. From the beginning it was clear that this was no 80-20 experience. It was a “100% participation” endeavor that defied expected organizational convention.
Since shifting to a house church modality, I have witnessed other ways that the normal, organic nature of house church life defeats the Pareto Principle. During church meetings, for example, Bible-based discussions are often led by various adults in the house church fold and even a teen or two. One of our house churches has already thrown two different neighborhood fairs over the past several months. These joyful events have included games, food booths, crafts and many other activities offered freely to the neighbors – all manned, of course, by house church members of every age. The same is true of the “at home” neighborhood Christmas Eve service, the Easter gatherings and various other outreaches, meetings and events. Even the potluck meals that precede weekly worship gatherings are a result of “every member” participation.
I find that House Church life is rather fluid when compared to more traditional church modalities. House Church involves challenges and opportunities that constantly call out different gifts and modes of participation from the various members in ever-changing ways. It is my observation that, due to the “home grown” nature of house church life and ministry, there are many more roles and opportunities available to members than are typically found in the more professional, fine-tuned environment of a traditional church body. In all my considerable experience as a full-time local church pastor or assistant pastor, I have never seen such a natural fulfillment of the “every member a minister” notion of church life and ministry. And it makes sense since house churches are structured from the ground up to facilitate such total involvement as a matter of course.
I am sure that the 80-20 rule still applies to various aspects of church life – including house church life. However, my experience with Vineyard at Home has provided me with a most rewarding vision of what church life can look like when the Pareto Principle is trumped by the kind of Spirit-directed, and organically constituted “every member” ministry that arises from our life together in Christ.
Mark 10:21
Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.
Little is much when God is in it. Labor not for wealth and fame. For there's a crown and you can win it. If you'll go... in Jesus name.
Linear Mode
