There is a need for pastors and congregations to understand that there is a right way and a wrong way to structure a church building program. It is apparent that a great cloud of mystery has developed concerning the entire building process, extending from design to completion. This uncertainty has, too often, resulted in poor decisions which create attractive opportunities for unscrupulous architects and contractors to prey upon the trusting.

Many of these good people have prayed about their “new building” and sacrificially given to the cause for years. Sadly, in the absence of proper planning, their dream is likely doomed to frustration, if not actual failure. The resulting cost is measured in wasted time, squandered resources and the loss of congregational support,

The net effect of improper planning is a demoralized church body. Often it takes years and numerous pastoral changes to recover from the negative effect of such a fiasco.

Often, perhaps weekly, those of us in the business of helping churches through the nuances of consulting, church building design, financing and construction hear horror stories about hundreds of thousands dollars that have been wasted. Some heavy loses can occur even in the early stages of design.

Just a few years ago I conducted a seminar designed to assist church representatives who were considering building. There were twenty-two pastors or church representatives in attendance. We began the seminar by asking how many of them had seen old building plans sitting around the church office, plans which had never been implemented. These drawings would have represented the dreams of good but ill-informed believers…people who loved the Lord, but were never given proper direction. Are you ready for this? Nineteen of the twenty two raised their hands to testify affirmatively, suggesting that unfulfilled dreams, wasted resources, and most significantly, stagnated growth in ministry had dominated their building programs.

There is an answer, there is a better way! There is a proven process that represents the best possible stewardship of the monies and ministry entrusted to you. It does so while allowing you to maintain growth within your ministry.

Posted: by Dick White