ROD MACILVAINE / PASTOR / GRACE COMMUNITY CHURCH / BARTLESVILLE, OKLAHOMA
RICK LINEBERGER / PASTOR / FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH / GLEN ROSE, TEXAS
It's all about
alignment
By RaeAnn Slaybaugh
We’ve all heard of church building projects that go like this:
hire an architect, design a building. Find out the building
you want is more than your church can afford. Hire a capital
stewardship consultant to raise the difference. Find out the
money can’t be raised.
Nobody wins.
But thinking differently — by coordinating the design
and capital fundraising efforts — can pay big
dividends, not just in terms of project efficiency
and cost containment, but for a pastor’s peace
of mind.
Two church executives who know this firsthand are
Pastor Rod MacIlvaine of Grace Community Church
(GCC) in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and Pastor Rick
Lineberger of First Baptist Church in Glen Rose, Texas.
For both of them, it all started when they enlisted the help
of Rodney James, a former pastor who’s now president and
founder of Master’s Plan Church Design & Construction in
Tulsa, Oklahoma. [ www.mpchurchdesignbuild.com ]
James was recommended to MacIlvaine by a respected non-profit
stewardship consultant in the congregation. GCC’s $3.5-million
building project was the third undertaking of its kind, and
MacIlvaine was previously involved in two others at different
churches as an elder and staff member.
For Lineberger’s part, he reached out to James after he and the
long-range planning committee at his church spent a year identifying
the most pressing needs: specifically, additional Sunday School and
education space, as well as a ‘grand connect room’ to replace the
church’s small foyer. After interviewing three different architects and
a few design-build firms as well, they decided that the latter approach
made the most sense for their project.
While reliable recommendations and a steep vetting process
obviously factored into their selection of a building partner, both
MacIlvaine and Lineberger said their ability to see a little bit of
themselves in the former pastor was key.
During James’ time in church leadership, he oversaw three major
building projects. This informed his design expertise, of course; it also
enabled him to be uniquely transparent, open and able to share relevant,
credible examples of problem-solving with potential church clients.
At one church, for instance, a full evaluation of the client’s needs (and
all its current facilities) resulted in a complete change of course. The
church had already engaged another builder and planned to build 50,000
square feet of additional space. Instead, James and his team came in, built
32,000 square feet of new space, renovated 50,000 square feet of existing
space and saved the church $6.5 million.
“That built confidence, for me, in [James’] ability not only to
understand our needs, but to understand ministry at the same time,”
Lineberger said. “He talked about the present need but also helped
evaluate and maximize our existing space. To me, that was really a plus.”
James acknowledges that his own “pastor side” is instrumental in
helping church leaders effectively cast the project vision. “You don't
show [the congregation] pictures of something you can't afford,” he
cautioned. “I come in and say, ‘Let's make sure that we design this facility,
first and foremost, so that it facilitates your ministry. And let's make sure
you’re 99% certain you’re giving the congregation the right
information when you stand in front of them.’”
“Having people with you who clearly exude a
warm and infectious walk with Christ is a big deal,
and [Klein] and [James] do that. The technical
proficiency is there; that goes without saying.
But knowing their hearts makes me feel like
we're on the same page.”
— Pastor Rod MacIlvaine
We’ve got your (quarter)back
While a major building project
is a blessing, it’s also a challenge.
The potential for a pastor to become
overwhelmed is real.
This was certainly true
for Lineberger.
“Unless you've got an
administrator who’s going to
handle the project, the pastor is going
to be inundated,” he said. “It's going
to take away from study time, from
sermon preparation, from ministry.”
MacIlvaine, too, was wary of being
swamped by his church’s building
project, based on prior experience.
On four separate occasions,
he’d taken a more traditional,
decentralized approach.
“I’ve been pastor of this church
for 25 years, and one of the reasons
why I resisted doing another
stewardship campaign was
because of the headache between
the fundraising process and the
design process,” he recalled.
So, the ability to have the builder
act as a sort of ‘quarterback’ for the
project was, understandably, very
attractive for both pastors. James
was able to take a 20,000-foot view of
the process and how all the pieces fit
together. From that, he developed
and followed a game plan
from beginning to end.
And what’s essential
16 CHURCH EXECUTIVE | MAY / JUNE 2020