Better together? Seven Advantages Of A Multi-Site Church
For the past ten years, Allison Park Church has functioned as one church in multiple locations, or what has come to be known as ‘multi-site church’. Currently, we have six physical locations, an online campus, and an associated international church (Revival Church International) who all function as a part of one larger organization.
This post is the beginning of a seven part blog post series, in which the Campus Pastors of APC have been asked to share their perspective on the WHAT and the WHY of our model and function. The first of these is from a pastor who has been on the team for over twenty years. Chris Griffin is currently the Campus Pastor of the Mt Nebo Campus.
Here’s his thoughts on the benefits of being multi-site and how we are better together…
#1 - OPTIONS
People like options. A multi-site church with campuses creates many options for people to choose from, and still belong to the same church. Size options. Geographic options. Demographic options. Service Time options. Worship style options. The size option is really important for some people. Some prefer the worship and production of a larger campus. Also, a larger campus does provide a sense of anonymity for a person or family who is just checking things out. While some people really prefer a smaller campus size that feels more welcoming, less intimidating and can be easier to get connected.
#2 - CAPACITY
Having the different settings of multiple campuses allows for the capability to grow and launch leaders into the next level (that a mega-church or one-site church wouldn’t see) due to positions and opportunities being more readily available. Opportunities abound for young leaders and people newer-to-the-faith to serve. Campuses are the perfect training ground for worship, kids, youth ministries and virtually every kind of platform ministry because it's not high pressure. Multi-site allows room for growth and experimentation.
#3 - STAFFING
When we take a chance on someone as a volunteer staff person, or a part-time hourly staff position, when they succeed and find their sweet spot, they can launch from a part time role at a smaller neighborhood campus and then transition to a full time role at the original location / broadcast campus or work for Central Ministries. A leadership pipeline is then created for people to excel and grow in their ministry leadership abilities.
#4 - REGIONAL IMPACT
Having multiple campuses gets the church closer to the communities where people live, work and play. With more than one location, we have the ability to reach those who would never come to the broadcast campus. When we grow roots down into a direct community, it is easier to invite and reach the people in the community due to proximity.
#5 - RESOURCES
With multiplied leaders and staff, there is a greater amount of resources to pull from, such as multimedia and creative video content, live-stream, the shared central website, a central financial department, logo and poster design. Overall, there is less strain on staff members to plan as we do events as a multi-site network, not just one church or one campus.
#6 - RELATIONSHIPS
When each campus has the same ministry roles and staff positions, it’s easy to build relationships with the same position at the other campuses – the campus pastors have peers to connect with and relate to, the kid’s ministry directors can bounce ideas off of each other, the worship leaders can sharpen each other on best practices and recruiting strategies, etc. The building of intentional relationships helps to ensure that the common downfall of ministry loneliness and isolation is minimized.
#7 - COVERING
The final advantage of being a multi-site church is the covering that is provided for everyone involved – a financial and legal covering, as well as the spiritual one. With the covering comes greater accountability and authority as one submits to the overall organization. Practically speaking, this covering helps a mid-sized neighborhood campus take the 50+ year history of the church, the financial backing and the overall attendance of the entire church – and leverage those advantages for the good of one campus.