its time

WILLOW Magazine (a service of the Willow Creek Association) published an article recently titled 15 Innovations the Church Should Embrace Now! Item #5 is "Multi-Purpose Church Buildings - Doing ministry in the marketplace." And I quote,

Jesus didn't hang out at synagogues. He hung out at wells. Wells were natural gathering places in ancient culture. Coffeehouses are postmodern wells. That's why National Community Church, in Washington, DC, built a coffeehouse on Capitol Hill instead of a church building - to create a marketplace environment where the church and community could cross paths. Less than a year after it opened, "Ebenezers" [see pic below] was rated the #2 coffeehouse in the metro DC area by AOL CityGuide 2007. They serve 600+ customers seven days a week. Instead of asking people to come to them, the church is going to the people.

"Coffeehouses are postmodern wells." How I wish I could say I penned that one.

I'm assuming by now you have a well-established third place space in your church building. Good for you. You've probably seen your congregation grow in both size and relationships. You may even be asking, "What now?" How about adding a third place on the other side of town? Third place space is supposed to be accessible, and yours just is not accessible across town. Silence the little voice that immediately screams, "We could never do that!" and just consider it for a few moments.

(If your church is growing and you're considering a satellite campus, consider it for a few extra moments.)

On paper it could be a not-for-profit outreach ministry of your church; you don't have to start a new business. That said, in brick-and-mortar it should look like a new business: a hip coffee shop, not an outreach mission ... except on Sunday mornings. National Community Church uses Ebenezer's ("the #2 coffeehouse in the metro DC area") as a satellite campus on Sunday mornings. Imagine! Broadcasting the gospel into the unchurched's favorite café.

But if it worked for Jesus ...