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A Time to Thrive & Innovate
April 9, 2020

Innovative churches will win after this crisis

So much discussion right now is being centered around one defining question… “What is the future of the church is going to look like?” As we plan for that future, we do so with the understanding that society will emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Church will probably look different than how it looked when 2020 began.

So many church and world leaders are discussing this topic right now, and we love it! But we want to look beyond the immediate of this global discussion and consider what it means for the Church to launch out of this season of isolation with great momentum. The present situation should not be slowing down your future plans of multiplication. If anything, it should be increasing your thinking and opening up your mind to new creative solutions and innovations.

Innovation leads in times of crisis and change, and what better innovator to lead during this time than the Church. Now is an opportunity for new strides to be made for the advancement of the Kingdom, and we must take full advantage of it and see it as opportunity rather than adversity. As we navigate this time of uncertainty, many churches will be tempted to cling to a known method. It’s familiar, it’s safe. What a method struggles to be though, is innovative. Now is the time to step out into unfamiliar territory, be bold, creative, and lead.

Many churches are already doing such things. For most, live streaming has been a step of faith into unknown waters. They had to think differently and approach ministry from a vantage point they may have previously not had. It was scary and unfamiliar, but they were using innovative techniques to give their congregation the tools that allowed them to continue to gather together. As we continue through this virtual world, there’s incredible things we see on the horizon.

Finances, Scalability, and Adaptability

During this time of virtual-only church, some may have seen a significant decrease in tithing. Significant enough that it could potentially dismantle plans for planting or opening your next campus. We need to remember though that God is bigger than this pandemic and the Kingdom will continue to grow. In times of crisis people tend to lean into their faith more. So use this time, not only to continue your growth strategy, but to position yourself for potentially even larger growth than you originally planned for.

For portable churches, the ability to be flexible has proven to be a great asset during this time. It’s allowed them to not be “financial strapped“ to a mortgage or rent, flexible enough to move from space to space, and has an initially-established infrastructure that has lended itself to weathering this storm (i.e. online giving, etc.).

Portability also allows churches to launch with significantly less capital than needed when building a facility. Rather than spending potentially millions on a permanent building, a portable solution with the same level of excellence and ministry impact is often 10% or less of your permanent building cost. Our take-away… a decrease in giving does not need to prevent your plans for growth.

Scalability and adaptability are two additional and very important factors when considering portability. The future of physical gatherings is still unknown, but the possibility of enforced max gathering numbers of 50, 100, or 250 people during the summer, fall, and/or winter months is a very real possibility. Portable churches, however, are prepared for this possible regulatory action by allowing you to easily expand and grow as the gathering numbers increase and restrictions are lifted. As physical gatherings grow, PCI solutions allow you the flexibility to easily increase in specific areas to accommodate growth. Then once your church outgrows your facility, the solutions are able to adjust and adapt to your new facility. Portability gives you the tools for innovation and creative thinking within the framework in which you fulfill the vision God has given you for your church. Launching portably can work to your advantage once life after COVID-19 begins.

Planning for the Future

As we began 2020, churches had big plans and goals for what the year would look like, none of which included a pandemic. Even though your plans for 2020 might have paused, it is now time to shift your thinking and readjust. You can still launch this fall! September, October, and November are still going to come, and if you keep moving forward we can help you prepare for it with the solutions you need. Now is the time to strategize and plan for the fall. This is just a moment, not a ‘forever’. The Church is rising up, and developing incredible responses to meet the new needs of the people. All of this leads to the exciting certainty that local churches will flourish once we emerge from this season, and we at Portable Church® Industries want to help you prepare for the future we (the Church) have ahead of us.

Venue Options

We’ve heard from some pastors their concerns of schools no longer opening their facility to outside renters permanently, including churches. While this may impact some churches across the country in the short term, we have many reasons to believe this will be temporary (see video for more details).

But ultimately, the reality is that portable churches have many venue options beyond that of schools. Portable Church® solutions are designed with the intention of being just that… portable. Moving locations is extremely simple and easy to do with very minor modifications to your portable solution depending on the venue. Check out our Ultimate List of Portable Church Venues, one of our many free resources available, to help you consider the countless other possible locations where your church can meet.

Some Unique Features of portability

If you’re considering portability, here are a few other reasons it might work for you…

  1. You can launch fast – In just 3 months you can get a fully customized solution with everything you need to be operational.
  2. You can launch cheap – Compared to spending millions or hundreds of thousands on a building, portability allows you to launch at a fraction of the cost.
  3. Your Portable Church® solution grows with you – Portability allows for flexibility in times of change, and as we are seeing now, flexibility will be important for the church of the future.

Conclusion…

The world is changing before our very eyes. Even though the method of church may change, the mission remains the same. During this season of uncertainty, it is clear now more than ever the fact that the church is not a building, it is people. We are hopeful that as we emerge from this moment in time, the Church will be bursting at the seams with people ready to grow in Christ.

Let’s innovate together!

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