Editor's Note: Multi-venue churches are popping up like Starbucks franchises. In fact the franchise model describes some of these self-perpetuating churches well. But there are multiple definitions of multi-venue churches.

A 2003 survey of nearly 1,000 such churches across North America by Leadership Network found that multi-venue churches can look very different. Some have an on-premises additional venue, such as a live service with video sermon in the church gym. Others offer an off-premises satellite, branch or regional-campus location, such as a school or converted warehouse across town. Another option is a sponsored church, whether in the same community or halfway around the world, where the staff, style or content comes from the parent campus, and where the church in turn identifies itself as a site of the parent campus.

Church Central will explore multi-site churches in a two-part series about two very different multi-venue churches. First, Jim Couchenour describes a mega-church church in California that offers 13 flavors of worship in its multi-venue model. Couchenour explores how this new way of doing church reflects new ways of doing business. He also discusses the advantages multi-venue churches have because their modus operandi is change and because they build their facilities with adaptability in mind.

North Coast Church

Attending different venues at North Coast Church in Vista, Calif., is like changing television channels. The North Coast Live venue, the original location of the Evangelical Free Church of America that began as a home Bible study in 1977, is the only place to offer live teaching from Senior Pastor Larry Osborne.

The Video Café venue offers teaching via big-screen video in a casual coffeehouse atmosphere, complete with an acoustic style of worship.

The Edge venue is a cutting edge, rock-and-roll worship experience with a full band and big subwoofers.

The Edge venue at North Coast features a rock-and-roll worship service.

Traditions is a venue offering intimate and nostalgic worship with classic hymns on a baby grand piano.

North Coast @ Roosevelt and North Coast @ Madison, the newest venue, offer the same service at other locations.

Osborne told Religion & Ethics Newsweekly that all the options offered at North Coast are about evangelism. "I am very comfortable with a consumer mindset and use that as a tool to help reach people," Osborne said, "as long as I'm not compromising the message."

North Coast ties the church sites together with Osborne's uncompromised message broadcast to all via video. That may help ensure theological unity throughout a church that encourages diversity in worship styles.

"People have very strong opinions about worship," Osborne told Religion & Ethics. "I think God's tastes are much broader than most Christian tastes. But we have a tendency to think that God likes only what I like. And having all of these venues allows us to have worship of various styles with the same message."

Not only is North Coast one of the pioneer multi-venue churches, it is a multi-venue success story. It has no less than 13 different worship services over five venues with a total of 5,400 people in attendance every weekend.

North Coast @ Roosevelt is a church gathering at a local elementary school.

Changing the business of church

Multi-venue churches may be the first prominent indication of a transition in the church world that mirrors the transition that has been taking place in business. Throughout much of the 20th century, business and institutions were primarily built on the top-down command and control model.

This was an outgrowth of the need to centralize operations near the source of physical power (i.e. water flow, coal, etc.). All of this led to a centralized decision making system where decisions would flow outward and profits would flow back inward. The middle manager would then synthesize these to keep the operation running smoothly.

With the disruptive technological advances in the latter part of the century, things began to turn completely upside down. There is now a shift to a consumer-driven reality where the decisions have to be made on the outer edges because they are most in touch with the consumer and can adapt more quickly. This has led to two important phenomena in modern day life and church operations -- customer segmentation and organizational regeneration.

When it comes to customer segmentation, Chris Mavity of North Coast says the church tries not to categorize people by demographics such as age, income, etc. Rather, they distinguish "mindsets" and offer multiple flavors in each venue space.

Different venues have varied colors, seat layouts, musical styles, etc. It is similar to the way McDonald's offers McSpaghetti in the Philippines, beer in Germany and Happy Meal chopsticks in Japan. The "command and control" has given the responsibility for contextualization to those on the front lines, while maintaining the trusted brand identity.

Similarly, multi-venue options give venue pastors the freedom of "indigenous innovation" while everyone remains connected theologically through the common sermon.

A model of change

Multi-venue churches also have a built-in advantage because their ethos accepts newness and change as a natural occurrence. In other words, they embrace organizational regeneration.

When one venue gets full, another is open. When one venue isn't drawing critical mass, it can be regenerated into a different form. If a venue pastor thinks round tables are more conducive to worship, round tables are installed next week. It's very nimble; it's very quick.

Multi-venue churches are also experimenting with smaller groups of people rather than trying to effect global change in a church of thousands. As a whole, North Coast Church fits the mega-church profile, but in its parts North Coast is several smaller churches. Their smallest venue seats 75 and the largest seats 450.

Flexible facilities

What does this mean in terms of current and future worship space? For those considering new facilities, the key word is adaptability. Modular building models and wireless technology increasingly allow church designers to plan for immediate ministry needs and still maintain open flexibility for future needs.

With forethought, architectural appointments can be woven into less permanent interiors. Then changes in technology, communication and ministry styles over the life span of the building can be adapted.

This is more difficult with an existing structure, although latent spaces can be revitalized for additional venues that provide additional worship options. Unused fellowship areas, family life centers, and even off-site buildings can be converted into additional worship space.

Kingdom growth

Obviously the key factor in all of this is how it affects growth in the Kingdom. An extensive survey of U.S. churches by Leadership Network found the secondary benefits for multi-venue churches included increased volunteerism and re-engagement of members because of a closer location. The primary benefit, however, was evangelism. The majority of churches (55 percent) cited evangelistic outreach as the driving force behind the multi-venue model.

 

Since 1983, Jim Couchenour has partnered with hundreds of churches to design and build new facilities through his work with Cogun, Inc., which is part of the Cornerstone Alliance. Most recently he developed "High Tech, High Touch, Hi Jesus" - a church building design for postmodern culture. He is a member at New Hope Community Church in Boardman, Ohio and is developing ways to bridge the gap between the church and the unchurched. You can reach him at 800-258-5540. Email: jrc@cogun.com.