Over the past few months we have been weighing out a decision about going to two services at Vineyard Christian Church. I started broaching the subject early on so that there would be plenty of time for prayer and some discussion. This is always a big subject in a church that hasn’t had two services before or in a church where it did not go well when they tried it. On the other hand, in growing churches with multiple services adding a service or adding a second service after outgrowing another building isn’t usually a big deal. Actually, recent studies show that 85% of growing churches have more than one service on Sunday morning.
The biggest attraction to doing multiple services is making room for others in the space we already have. Expansion is expensive, buildings, or even renting and refurbishing generally runs people about $100/square feet. That’s not cheap! So using the space that you have is a great solution. It also gives us a chance to reach a greater number of people. Two different service times is a kindness. Many people work on Sunday and need an earlier service, while others do not work Sunday and prefer a later service time. By have two or more services it gives us a chance to reach more people. These two reasons are excellent reasons to have multiple services, but there are concerns about two services.
One concern is, “I won’t know everyone.” Its true! It is also true that you don’t know everyone now. I encounter this every week, I will be talking about someone who has been at our church for months and people have no idea who I am talking about. That’s because already we are bigger than your comfort zone. Most people can only maintain a handful of friendships. One service or two services you aren’t going to know everyone.
A second concern is that multiple services will divide the body. I actually have never understood this one, and I don’t believe it to be true. I grew up in a church with multiple services, I got saved in a very conservative church that had multiple services, I have worked for several churches with multiple services, and almost every growing church that I know has multiple services. I never encountered division over two services until I was in a small church that didn’t already have multiple services. In fact, the first time I heard this in a small church I thought they were joking, I never dreamed anyone was serious until they got mad, and left the church, called me names, and told me I was dividing the church . . . I was confused. Tell me, which of us actually divided the church? A church is unified by Jesus Christ, and his mission, not by a building, nor by the number of services. I suppose if you had two different pastors giving a different vision, to each service that it could get divisive, but a pastor who has an agenda like that won’t be stopped by one service. I have seen that kind of division in one service. They didn’t need multiple opportunities. Our unity is not based on being in the same room, at the same time. It is based on Jesus Christ and his mission.
If you compare the two basic motives of One Service vs. Multiple Services, (i.e. Making room & offering additional time slots vs. I won’t know everyone and it will divide the body), these two sets types of reasoning are very different. The concerns are about fear, while making room and making time, are about mission. I am all about the mission of Christ. Sure I have fears. I most fear that if I force this decision that people will lose confidence in me as a leader and doubt my ability to hear God and to lead, or that people will be mad and stop inviting their friends because they didn’t get what they wanted. My guess is that I am already being too transparent for some people, just by admitting my fears. (Ha, ha, sometimes you just can’t win.) But since I am being transparent, let me also say that two services is harder for me. In fact, with every class, training, baptism, etc. That I add, I am adding work to my schedule. I am already very busy, and at the end of the day, I don’t get paid more for more activity or by the hour. As well, I am aware that to start, we will need people to be at both services, serving one service and attending the other service, until there is enough momentum and workers to sustain each service. That requires a sacrifice on the part of many. I don’t want to downplay that. So I am asking for you help to move forward in faith rather than fear.
On a side note, I have not opted for a Saturday service because Saturday is my only day with my wife who works and my children who attend school. The same is true for our worship leader, Todd. I feel the need to protect those families, so I rarely offer anything on a Saturday, and do not want to offer something on a regular basis like that for the sake of our leader’s families.
As to financial issues, a new building, and other topics that I didn’t cover in this post, let me say that our current lease is through November 2013. We have to pay that no matter what. Second, any move will require money, to a rented school hall, another strip mall, or to purchase our own building. Our goal is to raise $200,000 and we have raised $24,000 of that already. Leaving us a balance of $176,000. I am confident that by the time we reach this goal we will have found the right place, and we will be well positioned to move into a space that will accommodate us all in one service.
I hope you will join me in this strategic move to include more of our community.
Grace and peace,
Hal
