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“Love your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27). Read how three congregations have designed their properties to be inviting spaces for their neighbors.
Relational architecture
Is your church facility hospitable? As a new church plant in Firestone, Colo., we had the opportunity to ask ourselves that question as we designed our first building.
During that design, a fascinating subculture of architecture came to light. It’s called hostile architecture. Maybe you have seen examples of it: benches with metal bars so no one can sleep on them; spikes on walls to prevent intruders climbing; or, as in the case of Moynihan Train Hall in New York City, the absence of anywhere to sit at all. It’s not hard to understand the purpose of hostile architecture. But if curbing behavior we don’t want works, then how about encouraging behavior we do want?
The writer of Hebrews encourages us not only to continue loving one another but also to be hospitable (loving) to strangers. “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it” (13:2).
In a facility-use sense, I think we naturally consider how our buildings and campuses work for us, but how do they work for the stranger and those in our communities? What has guided our congregation from its inception has been the desire to “Connect people to Christ and create community.” With the new building, congregation members asked, “How will it encourage connection to Christ through the use of his Word but also encourage relationships among our church family and with our community?” To put it another way, how can our building avoid hostile architecture and utilize relational architecture?
The building wasn’t a blank slate. It was a former plant nursery (3.5 acres, commercially zoned, visible, under-ground infrastructure in place, and landscaping largely done), so we couldn’t simply dream of making it anything we wanted. To make the building work for us, we decided early on that we would design a campus that gave space for relationships to grow (in the Word), deepen (between brothers and sisters in Christ), and be created (with strangers).
Those guiding principles led us to design a flexible sanctuary that can be used in a host of ways in addition to worship: glass garage doors that open from the sanctuary to an outdoor area that people can spill out onto; a large gas firepit area that seats 12 people for small groups; artificial turf where kids can play, picnics can be held, and lawn games can be enjoyed; and three age-appropriate playgrounds. In other words, we designed relational architecture.
But we wanted our building to be used not only to deepen our internal relationships but also to create new ones in our community. To do that, we wanted to be open but also wise about what uses we would allow. Would this use inhibit existing gospel ministry? Would it conflict with our beliefs? Would it be good for the community and our neighbor?
Relational architecture leads to opportunities for relationship building. Here are some relational opportunities we have had on our campus.
- Busy Bee Preschool (rents our facility during the week)
- Beekeeping (honey is given to new member families)
- New foster parent training location and activities to support foster parents
- English classes
- Shred-a-thon (allowing use of our parking lot)
- Parking lot use (renting parking spaces to our neighboring coffee shop for staff)
- HOA meeting host site
- Women’s garden party (under the awning with guest speakers)
- Cornhole tournaments
- Small group Bible studies
- Help Center Christmas gift distribution site
- Clothing swap for families with children
- Paint & Sips
- The Murph workout site
- Marriage strengthening nights
It’s amazing what God can do when we provide space where relationships can be created. Our community views us and our campus as a relational, valuable part of the neighborhood. That’s a pretty good start for conversation, as we share a Savior who loves all people dearly and values them more than his own life.
No hostile benches here, only relational ones.
Timothy Spiegelberg
Learn more about Carbon Valley’s ministry.
Open doors
“It is seven minutes to your destination—but warning, your destination is closed.”
Has the navigation on your phone ever given you this message? Isn’t it a shame that this is sometimes the message that people get about our churches? “If it’s not Sunday morning, then this place is closed.” Is it possible that people might begin to think that if church doors are closed, then so are the arms and hearts of the people who worship there?
What if we could communicate the opposite? What if we could announce to our community that we are the church that is open?
You have a church in a visible location and a building capable of hosting gatherings. You prove it every time your congregation gets together. Why not invite your community to gather in your facility as well? It’s a way you can serve your neighbors and build relationships with them. What needs do the people who live near your church have? What public services can you offer? Can your church be a voting location, host a neighborhood party, or facilitate a community service initiative?
“Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling” (1 Peter 4:9).
At Grace, Milwaukee, we are blessed with a downtown location that sees a lot of foot traffic. This allows us to use our buildings in a variety of ways. We host a coffee shop. We hold a monthly First Fridays concert showcasing a free concert for our community. Annually, we host a rummage sale and a fine arts and crafts festival. Happy Hobby Hours see gifted Grace members sharing their expertise and passions—like wine and cheese pairing, gardening, or art skills. Additionally, we rent our facility to the public for wedding receptions, birthday parties, business meetings, and the like. Some events garner a small amount of revenue, but the biggest payoff is the opportunity to meet our neighbors and provide for them in real and meaningful ways.
Open doors could be the first step in people learning that you have arms and hearts that are open. That could be the important next step in people learning an even more important truth—that Jesus’ arms and heart are open to them and he longs to hold them close to himself here on earth and forever in heaven.
Brian Hackmann
Learn more about Grace’s ministry.
A parklike property
At Holy Scripture, Fort Wayne, Ind., we were blessed with nearly 4 acres of excess land just to mow weekly. There must be something that we could do with the land! But what? A gentleman who designed our landscaping suggested a one-third-mile walking path. We took the idea at walking pace for a couple years but eventually ran with it. We realized there were no parks nearby for neighbors to walk their dogs or ride their bikes safely. What a great way to show we care for the community!
The vision for our property has been to create a parklike feel that is inviting to the community. In addition to the walking path, we have added various things for the community: a playground, a free little library, a community bulletin board, and three Buddy Benches around the path made from recycled plastic caps we collected.
Almost every time I have been at church when the weather is decent, someone has been on the walking path, playground, or basketball court. Neighbors have commented that it’s convenient to have a nice, safe place to exercise. Parents can take a walk while their kids are always in sight on the playground. For our Trunk or Treat event, all the cars park around the path instead of the parking lot.
Future plans include organizing a walk to sponsor a cause or a nonprofit in the area. We also may add more trees, a soccer field, and signage around the path citing Scripture or parts of the catechism.
Overall, the community has been appreciative of what we have done and is more open to conversation. The path and playground have allowed us to meet new people from the neighborhood. Our outreach team leader jokes that our path should have led right up to the church’s front door. While that is where we hope our conversations will lead, we are also glad to show love for our neighbors. We pray that God will continue to bless those conversations over time.
Nathanael Brenner
Learn more about Holy Scripture’s ministry.
Author: Multiple authors
Volume 111, Number 08
Issue: August 2024
