Church Facilities: Building & Constuction

HELPING LEADERS BECOME

B E T T E R S T E WA R D S .

BUILDING & CONSTRUCTION Presented by: Churches by Daniels Construction

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Table of Contents WHEN A CHURCH MOVES WILL ITS PEOPLE FOLLOW?

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Churches relocate more than you think. In fact, your own church might be moving. Or, maybe you’re wondering how to relocate successfully sometime in the future.

In either scenario, you’ll face some primary challenges: • Communicating the church move to your members and regular attendees (the congregation)

Over nearly 30 years in business — and with church builds from coast to coast — our team of construction experts has learned a thing or two about how to ensure projects are completed on time, and within the financial parameters.

In fact, if you do it right (and efficiently count the costs), it’s absolutely possible to complete your project under budget — something that supposedly “just never happens” in the construction world.

• Communicating the church move to your neighbors (the community) That’s why you need a communications strategy before you make the move.

To make it happen, there are five strategies you need to know.

By Rachael D. Rowland, M.P.A.

HOW TO AVOID COST OVERRUNS: TRIED-AND-TRUE STRATEGIES

ON TIME & ON BUDGET: TRIED-AND-TRUE STRATEGIES FOR MAKING IT A REALITY FOR YOUR NEXT CHURCH CONSTRUCTION PROJECT 10

By Rodney James

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Often, when a church decides it wants to build, the first step is to get a set of plans designed and then bid out with several contractors.

Nearly every month, we encounter churches where — after bidding the plans — the project is over budget and cannot be completed.

Other church leaders tell us their buildings were built using this process … and yet they ended up spending a significant amount more than the contractor’s original bid.

You might ask how this could happen. The answer: cost overrun.

By Rodney James

NEW-BUILD? RENOVATION? HOW TO KNOW WHAT KIND OF PROJECT MAKES THE MOST SENSE FOR YOUR CHURCH 8

HOW TO RENOVATE (WITHOUT THE REGRETS)

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If you take the right steps (in the right order, with the right partner), a renovation project can flow smoothly, stay on budget, and have a positive effect on the ministries of the church.

By Rodney James

5 KEY TENETS OF AN EFFECTIVE CHURCH BUILDING PROCESS

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It’s important for church leaders to know the fundamentals of the church building process. Our team is made up of experienced ministry facility design experts who desire to help educate them on the process in an effort to ensure critical steps aren’t missed.

By Rodney James

Your church (and every church) needs a partner to design its facilities — one who understands your ministry. Having the right team to first guide in an effective evaluation, and then begin to create and design a facility that functions for your ministry, helps your church be more effective.

By Rodney James

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BUILDING & CONSTRUCTION

When a church

moves, will its people follow?

By Rachael D. Rowland, M.P.A

Churches relocate more than you think.

In fact, your own church might be moving. Or, maybe you’re wondering how to relocate successfully sometime in the future.

In either scenario, you’ll face some primary challenges: • Communicating the church move to your members and regular attendees (the congregation) •C ommunicating the church move to your neighbors (the community) That’s why you need a communications strategy before you make the move.

Word of Life (Flowood, MS)

An effective pre-relocation communications strategy starts with a statement of purpose. It doesn’t need to be very detailed; it acts as a reference for what you hope to achieve, and as a reminder of your commitment to the vision. You should be able to communicate effectively with your congregation and community.

Word of Life in Flowood, MS — under the leadership of Pastor Joel Sims — made a concerted, organized effort to get the congregation to move with them when they built their new campus in the suburb of Flowood 20 minutes away.

Executive Pastor Ryan Lamberson says the move was 10 years in the making. “The senior pastor at that time began the building project, as the facility had been outgrown,” he recalls. “During this season, the senior pastor went home to be with The Lord. His son took over pastoring the church and wanted to fulfill the vision God had given his father.”

Although the new facility was state-of-the art and offered many new and exciting features, it was on the other side of town. As such, the church wanted to prepare the congregation for the move so as not to lose members in the process.

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Leaders implemented a five-step process: #1: Reach out early. As Lamberson explains, during the entire building process, pastoral staff reached out through card, calls, and in person to those who would be making the furthest drives to the new location. The message they conveyed was clear: Those individuals and their families were valuable, appreciated and a huge part in the next step in the vision of the church. #2: Communicate — consistently — the whole way. “We kept the congregation informed every step of the way,” Lamberson says. “[This gave] them ownership.”

This was done by mailing vision letters, as well as giving a short update at the weekend services regarding the progress being made. #3: Connect members with the construction process. At a World of Life onsite event held during construction, everyone was fed Chick-Fil-A and introduced to the vision of the new church.

“During this event, we connected [members] spiritually and emotionally by giving each person a Sharpie marker and asking them to write their names — and anything God put on their hearts — on the steel that was erected,” Lamberson recalls. #4: Enlist staff enthusiasm and support. At the departmental level, Word of Life engaged its staff to keep the vision strong and exciting for all its “dream team” members (read: volunteers). This dream team was instrumental in getting the site staged for the church’s grand opening.

Staff members sent emails to volunteer teams and held team update meetings. They also engaged volunteers to help plan the grand opening, calling upon their unique experience in particular areas of ministry. #5: Use the final few weeks in the existing facility wisely.

According to Lamberson, possibly the most important commitment churchexecutive.com

driver — implemented a few weeks prior to the church moving into its new location — was hosting an additional worship service at the existing facility. This provided additional buy-in from core attendees and members.

“We were running out of room, and everyone knew it,” Lamberson recalls. So, they asked each volunteer department leader commit to serve during two of the three service times. Church leaders communicated that how needed these volunteer leaders were in reaching new people who were far from God. Additionally, a church-wide campaign — called “Unite” — asked everyone to commit to attending two services, serving at two services, or attending one and serving at one. Cards were passed out to get commitments, and the church gave out T-shirts as a thank-you to each person who made a commitment.

Casting the vision The Bible tells us in Habakkuk 2:2: “And the LORD answered me: ‘Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it.’”

And in Proverbs 29:18: “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

As a church, God gives the vision — but, as church leaders, it’s important for us to project that vision before our congregations in as many ways as possible if we hope to get them connected and committed to where the church is going. If members can catch the vision, they’ll move with you!

Get creative. Ask the Lord to give you ideas to help engage your members and excite them about the changes coming.

For some, change can be challenging. Acknowledge this, and help prepare members for change before it occurs.

Rachael D. Rowland, M.P.A., has a heart for churches and has been blessed to serve them through her roles as marketing director and now office manager for Churches by Daniels Construction www.churchesbydaniels.com . Located in Broken Arrow, OK, this construction company specializes in designing and building churches nationwide.

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How to avoid cost overruns

TRIED-AND-TRUE

STRATEGIES

By Rodney James

Often, when a church decides it wants to build, the first step is to get a set of plans designed and then bid out with several contractors.

Nearly every month, we encounter churches where — after bidding the plans — the project is over budget and cannot be completed.

Other church leaders tell us their buildings were built using this process … and yet they ended up spending a significant amount more than the contractor’s original bid.

You might ask how this could happen. The answer: cost overrun.

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Also known as a cost increase or budget overrun, cost overrun involves unexpected costs incurred due to an underestimation of the actual cost during design, undiscovered due diligence items outside the designer’s scope, missed details in the plans that are discovered in bidding or construction, or simply poor execution of project management tasks.

To avoid these pitfalls, we recommend the design-build construction delivery method. For the most cost-effective results, the owner should negotiate directly with the design-build firm first to establish an overall project budget. For the best possible results, it is absolutely essential that a thorough evaluation of the design-build company being considered is completed prior to any other discussion. Choosing the right team can help you reduce common missteps that lead to cost overruns, and help avoid barriers to timely decision-making.

Additionally, there are several strategies to help avoid cost overruns.

Start with accurate pricing It’s important to begin with a budget, and accurately estimate the entire project cost during design.

Estimates are a common reason for cost overruns. When the bids for subcontractors or the actual costs come in, they are often higher than anticipated; this is why you need accurate costs for the work during design! This can only be accomplished by a company who actually does the construction and knows the costs, rather than simply budgeting with square foot or estimated pricing. churchexecutive.com

The maximum financial benefit of value engineering is the result of constant communication between contractor, subcontractors and architect during the planning phase.

Development-associated costs to consider Sight costs — Do you know the requirements to prepare your land for construction? Often, restrictions are not determined during the design phase of the facility. For example, the City could require you to put in a stop light, a turn lane or extensive storm water management. All can add unexpected drain on time and money. The right design-build firm can help uncover more of these unexpected costs earlier in the process, helping to eliminate budget surprises.

Scope changes — Changes in the scope of work within a project frequently cause cost overruns. These changes result when owners introduce new requirements too late in design, or even after construction begins. They can also arise from unknown problems discovered during construction.

Change orders always result in higher final project cost and are common in the construction industry. Here again, the right design-build firm should manage the design process and structure its fee so there is no incentive for change orders to occur.

Value engineering — The maximum financial benefit of value engineering is the result of constant communication between contractor, subcontractors and architect during the planning phase. At this time, changes or adjustments can be made without incurring any additional costs.

There is a unique level of expertise specifically needed for church design and construction. If an architect and / or builder are unfamiliar churchexecutive.com

with specific church requirements and opportunities to save in designing and building a church facility, the result will be a higher overall cost.

Not all design-build is created equal Typically, the problem with conventional design-bid arises when the owner selects the lowest-priced architect, who supplies the lowest-quality set of drawings, which is subsequently given to a general contractor to bid. The general contractor then awards the contract to the lowest bidder, resulting in the work being done by the lowest-priced subcontractor for each trade. In theory, the owner expects the highest-quality job for the lowest possible price — but this never happens.

To deliver a high-quality product for the best possible price requires a single source of responsibility, one that combines the architect and builder into one entity. This allows the builder to assign actual costs to each part of the building throughout the design process. It also gives the owner a more accurate “picture” of project costing.

In this approach, the design is driven by the budget — not just the dream.

Rodney James is Director of Business and Finance for Churches by Daniels Construction www.churchesbydaniels.com. Located in Broken Arrow, OK, this construction company specializes in designing and building churches nationwide.

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New-build?

How to know what kind of project makes the most sense for your church

By Rodney James

When it comes to church design, culture is a rarely evaluated — but critical — element.

Some would argue we shouldn’t evaluate the church’s ministries.

Even if a church doesn’t invite critique, it takes place every Sunday on an informal level. We know guests make a decision about a church within the first seven minutes of arriving on the campus.

Knowing this, your church (and every church) needs a partner to design its facilities — one who understands your ministry. Having the right team to first guide in an effective evaluation, and then begin to create and design a facility that functions for your ministry, helps your church be more effective.

Many churches have built new facilities without carefully thinking through the purpose of each building and the needs of the ministries that will be housed within. Naturally, the main purpose of each building should be to advance the kingdom of God — but this won’t happen automatically.

Often, new buildings are constructed when existing facilities could possibly be repurposed and renewed to meet the same needs.

Case in point: While assisting a church in a recent evaluation, the scope of the project dramatically changed from building a new, 60,000-squarefoot building into renovating 50,000 square feet of existing facility and building only 35,000 square feet of new construction. The end result was a $4.8-million savings and a much more functional facility.

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You start your church’s evaluation by defining your ministries, and then fitting your ministries into your facilities so that each building is assured of being used to its maximum potential. There must be clear objectives and goals. Make sure each objective is in line with the others, driving the project forward.

Here are several items to include and consider: • Where and when the church started • Average weekly attendance • Annual giving • The church’s vision for its future, with projected growth • Existing and new ministry opportunities • Timeline and process of how to facilitate ministry and growth • Proper space requirements to meet ministry needs.

The point is this: the ministry must drive the project. When people see your church’s vision — and know the purpose behind what you’re doing — you’ll be able to garner the greatest financial support and church member buy-in. People want to invest in Kingdom work, not just buildings. When they see how their giving is advancing the Kingdom, not just facilitating a building project, they are moved to give, not motivated by a campaign.

Choose your building partner wisely Another item to consider during your evaluation is a good building churchexecutive.com

Renovation?

partner. Every pastor needs someone who can come alongside him or her, the staff and / or building team to educate and lead them toward wise, informed decisions. Every church needs a partner who will be honest about the realities of what the church can and can’t do and what it can and can’t afford. This same partner must be able to walk with the church in faith for what might seem like an impossible goal.

That is the kind of partner every church needs.

The partner your church chooses can make the difference in the success of your project. It’s important to partner with a team that has been in the ministry, and understands design and ministry function from the church’s point of view.

Your building partner should do its own evaluation and understand your church’s and ministry’s culture. The right partner will ask questions about who you are as a church, how you do ministry, and what your mission is in the Kingdom before asking you what you want to build or how much you want to spend.

When your vision and missions are molded into the design, plans and phases of a project, you’re building with a purpose — and will end up with a project that advances your ministry into the future.

Rodney James is Director of Business and Finance for Churches by Daniels Construction [ www. churchesbydaniels.com ]. Located in Broken Arrow, OK, this construction company specializes in designing and building churches nationwide. churchexecutive.com

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Tried-and-true strategies for making it a reality for your next church construction project

By Rodney James

Over nearly 30 years in business — and with church builds from coast to coast — our team of construction experts has learned a thing or two about how to ensure projects are completed on time, and within the financial parameters.

In fact, if you do it right (and efficiently count the costs), it’s absolutely possible to complete your project under budget — something that supposedly “just never happens” in the construction world.

To make it happen, there are five strategies you need to know. #1: Understand the entire process of project due diligence. After defining the vision — and before you begin to think about the details of the building itself — consider the impacts. Some people call this “doing your due diligence” on the property.

Translation: If you’re doing new construction, you must first determine if the site is fully developed.

One client in Alabama learned this lesson the hard way. Unexpectedly, the church had to incorporate utilities under a four-lane highway and run them quite a long distance to the property. This came with a $200,000 price tag! Obviously, this cost was immediately taken out of the overall budget, which affected the end result.

The church demanded an explanation from the architect, but he couldn’t help. No architect will question the potential difficulties of bringing in the utilities; it’s just not within their scope.

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#2: Get your priorities straight — right from the start! A wise church once asked: “Do we determine what we want, and then figure out how much it will cost? Or, do we figure out how much we have to spend, and then decide what we can afford to build?”

Most churches answer this question backwards; they start with what they want to do, and then figure out what it’s going to cost.

The vast majority of the time (82 percent), projects that begin without a budget, never get completed.

So, do the budget first, before you begin that first phase of due diligence.

You can expect the due diligence to have associated costs which must come right out of the budget before you pay for even one square foot of the new building. #3: Before proceeding: Check twice, and complete all due diligence.

Due diligence gathers data which warrants the allocation of associated costs. Only after you’ve taken the time to complete all due diligence — and accurately apply cost projections — can you know how much is left for the design and construction of your building.

Due diligence takes some time, but it’s an investment that will prevent a lot of heartache (or even disaster) in the future. churchexecutive.com

The Kirk Crossing Community Church project (Jenks, OK) spans nearly 35,000 square feet and includes a 510-seat worship area, a main gathering area with a cafe, and a separate children’s worship area, nursery, and classrooms for 3-, 4- and 5-year-olds. The children’s worship area seats 100.

#4: Design your building within budget parameters. Designing a building has several phases, starting with the concept, or schematic design. During this phase, you should have great input on what you desire in your building. Your design team should have an intimate understanding of your ministry. To this end, they should first ask how you do ministry, not what you want in your building.

While design is often fluid and changes many times, these changes should be held to an absolute minimum once this phase is complete. Changing features after you start the next phase of the design process costs money. #5: Get accurate pricing prior to the design. This is big! The biggest, in fact! You absolutely must make sure cost estimate are done frequently, and are detailed during design.

You also need to determine project costs, not building costs.

Ascertaining basic square footage estimates of what you think it’s going to cost is a dangerous game. You need someone who truly understands what the real costs of construction will be.

Rodney James served as executive pastor, then senior pastor, at Sequoyah Hills Baptist Church in Tulsa, OK, for 20 years. In that time, he led and completed multiple building and renovation projects. In 2012, James joined Churches by Daniels, Inc., in Broken Arrow, OK [www.churchesbydaniels.com] as director of business and finance. The company specializes in designing and building churches nationwide. churchexecutive.com

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How to

renovate (without the regrets)

By Rodney James

Remodeling church facilities can be a painful process — but it doesn’t have to be that way.

If the church takes the right steps (in the right order, with the right partner), a renovation project can flow smoothly, stay on budget, and have a positive effect on the ministries of the church during the process.

Having served as an executive pastor and lead pastor through three major renovation and expansion projects, I understand firsthand how construction can affect church ministries. So, having walked that journey and led many other pastors through that process, let me share some thoughts on how you can prepare your team and your church for a project of your own.

Choose the right partner This is the first and most critical decision you’ll make about renovating your facilities. You need a designer and builder who have been in your shoes. You can’t expect architectural and construction professionals who haven’t served in ministry to help you plan and coordinate how a project will impact your ministry.

If your partner doesn’t engage conversations about how your ministries can function around the areas of renovation, this should be a red flag. As a church and ministry designer and builder, our first conversations are 12

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based on how a church will continue to function throughout the course of construction. Our team understands — and builds into our schedule and communication with subcontractors — even unexpected factors such as funerals and other unplanned ministry needs. Choose a partner to design and build your project who can be a true source of counsel to assist you through the entire journey.

Project Profile: Asbury United Methodist Church (Tulsa, OK)

Construction will impact ministry flow No matter how large or small a renovation project might seem, it will in some way impact the regular flow of your ministries. However, that impact doesn’t have to be negative, nor should it be. In fact, a good communicator should use this opportunity to lead his or her people through a season of excitement, anticipation, and even growth, both spiritually and numerically.

The way to do this is to stay focused on the future impact of the “results” of the project. Communicate the opportunity for lives to be touched, changed and transformed by the finished product. The project details are important to communicate, but the focus should always remain on the impact of the outcome — not the process.

Budget accuracy (and “wiggle room”) is key To ensure a successful project, you must insure that your designer is providing you accurate construction costs with plenty of contingency for unexpected issues that arise during demolition and renovation. One of the greatest failures in renovation projects is not having an accurate budget during design.

Designers often use square footage estimates or rely on simple historical data to determine budgets. But, the only way to accurately know what every line item is going to cost is to have real pricing during the design process. You need your builder (and even subcontractors) involved throughout design, putting eyes on the drawings and the existing facility to determine real costs for each aspect of the project.

To design a renovation or expansion project, and then put it out to bid, is asking for sticker shock and a myriad of change orders that will push you over budget during construction. Having successfully completed hundreds of projects under budget, our team knows the absolute value of getting real pricing all through the design process.

Expect the unexpected Plan for issues and problems. Having participated in multiple renovation projects — from both the ministry and, now, professional construction side — I know firsthand that every project has problems and issues.

Having served on staff during major projects, I coach the church teams we work with on what to expect. Meanwhile, our team gives them great confidence that our job is to find solutions to every issue and problem.

When a church has a relationship of complete trust in its building partner, the staff can have peace of mind, even when problems arise. We know the importance of keeping everyone aware of the progress and the process throughout the project; so, if something unexpected happens, everyone is on the same page and has the answers for what’s happening and how we’re going to walk through it.

Renovation and expansion projects keep church facilities up to date and allow for continued growth. Even though the process will interrupt the weekly flow of ministry activity, it doesn’t have to be a painful process.

Rodney James served as executive pastor, then senior pastor, at Sequoyah Hills Baptist Church in Tulsa, Okla., for 20 years. In that time, he led and completed multiple building and renovation projects. In 2012, James joined Churches by Daniels, Inc., in Broken Arrow, Okla., [ www.churchesbydaniels.com ] as Director of Business and Finance.

He is now a Business Partner and Vice President of Business and Design. The company specializes in designing and building churches nationwide.

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Though the recent remodel of the sanctuary Asbury First United Methodist Church was a major undertaking, the church never missed weekend services or experienced disrupted weekday preschool and ministry events.

Instead, a massive tent was set up each Sunday afternoon to protect the rest of the building from the construction mess. More than 10,000 square feet of plastic was draped from ceiling to floor surrounding the construction area. Specific tents for cutting concrete, demolishing portions of the existing stage, and tearing out sheetrock kept the dust intrusion to a minimum.

The stage expansion took place week by week, with exposed framing and decking, right in front of the congregation. In fact, the imposition was used as an excitement-builder for what the new facility would be when finished.

Moreover, the project was completed with minimal change orders — and 2.5 percent under budget! This kind of outcome is extremely rare with remodel projects, but the Churches by Daniels team took great care in accurately pricing every step of the project throughout the design process.

Now, the renovation has had major impact on the Sunday morning worship experience. It has also extended the life of the new sanctuary beyond the next decade with minimal impact to the church’s ministries.

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5 KEY TENETS of an effective church building process

By Rodney James

It’s important for church leaders to know the fundamentals of the church building process.

Our team is made up of experienced ministry facility design experts who desire to help educate them on the process in an effort to ensure critical steps aren’t missed.

#1: Carefully think through the purpose of each area of your ministry facilities Define the needs of the ministry in each of those areas. Naturally, the main purpose of each building will be to advance the kingdom of God and fulfill the mission of the church — but this won’t happen automatically.

#2: Share the vision Once you understand the purpose, sharing the vision for any facility renovation or expansion will have greater impact. The vision and future ministry opportunities will help greatly in garnering the greatest financial support and church member buy-in. People need to know the “why” of what they are giving to. How their money is being used is important, but the impact it will make on the Kingdom is what motivates the heart to give.

When they understand the vision, their giving becomes based on advancing the kingdom, not just facilitating a building project.

#3: Determine what you can afford This step — determining what your church can afford to build — is a big one. Before you design even one square foot of your new building, this is where you must begin.

Staggeringly, 82 percent of projects that begin without a budget, never get completed. So, the most important step you’ll take is to insure you can afford the entire project before you begin design.

#4: Execute a thorough due diligence process This step is critical! If you’re doing new construction, you must determine what it will take to develop your site before you design the buildings that are to be constructed. You must consider the financial impact of developing every piece of your land.

Finding a partner to help you with the due diligence process will save you time, money and potential heartache in the long run.

Some of the items to consider: • Will you need a stop light or turn lane?

• Where are the connection points for all utilities?

• How much parking is required?

• How will you manage the storm water?

• Are there any wetlands identified that must be managed?

These are just some of a host of items that have costs attached to them.

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#5: Choose the right partner This will require contemplation and study on your part. A few things to look for: First and foremost: do they understand ministry?

It’s impossible for a team of people to design a functional ministry facility if they don’t first understand the ministry that will take place in that facility.

How many church projects has a potential partner been involved with? Do they understand how today’s culture has affected ministry facility design? Have they completed recent projects under budget? Do you have a heart connection with their team? Are they concerned that you’re working within safe and realistic budget parameters? How do they determine the cost of the building as they design? Can they provide real references from pastors who they have completed projects for, without hesitation?

You will be working with your church facility designer and builder for many months. It’s very important that you’re comfortable asking questions and that you feel you’re given honest information to help you make the right decisions.

Once you understand your purpose for facilities, lay out your vision for ministry within current and future facilities, and then determine what you can afford, the next steps will be the beginning of the journey to help you turn that vision into reality.

A trusted partner to lead you through the due diligence, design and building process will be a pastor’s greatest asset to ensure the information provided to the congregation is accurate from beginning to end.

Rodney James served as executive pastor, then senior pastor, at Sequoyah Hills Baptist Church in Tulsa, OK, for 20 years. In that time, he led and completed multiple building and renovation projects.

In 2012, James joined Churches by Daniels, Inc., in Broken Arrow, OK [www.churchesbydaniels.com] as Director of Business and Finance. He is now a Business Partner and Vice President of Business and Design. The company specializes in designing and building churches nationwide. churchexecutive.com

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