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Some say it’s the most important development in worship since the Jesus Movement of the 1970s. It is known by many names and it exists for as many reasons — from outreach efforts to expand a church’s geographical footprint, to a desire for delivering the Message in a ‘culturally
relevant’ way to creating a temporary worship space until a permanent structure can be (budgeted and) built.
Today, there are thousands of worshippers across the country who spend part of every weekend setting up and breaking down portable churches in meeting halls, school cafeterias, hotel meeting rooms, dormitories — literally anywhere that people can congregate. One group of Taiwanese Christians now living in the United
States had found a way to share their faith via conference calling. |
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A group characterized as being forward thinking, emerging church innovators have also adopted new technologies, like podcasts and blogs.
Willow Creek grew from a small congregation that met in a movie theater. University Baptist Church worshippers first met in a dorm room. Before The Crystal Cathedral, Robert Schuller preached from the roof of a refreshment stand at a drive-in movie theater.
In this issue, we’ll answer these questions:
What should I look for in choosing sound equipment?
How much gear do I really need?
Where can I get more information?
Our navigator is a professional who has served the needs of this special community. Tom Rutledge, founder of Worship Resources, is a minister and musician who has used his vast audio-visual experience to heighten the impact of the worship experience in churches macro and micro.
Perhaps no one is better suited to provide this advice than Tom Rutledge of Worship Resources in Cincinnati.
Tom’s involvement in technical ministries had its roots back in the 60’s, when he was a member of his high school’s A/V department. A strong religious calling led him to the Cincinnati Bible Seminary. Before long, he was using his formidable sound and lighting skills in his own ministries. By 1996, Tom’s full-time devotion
and part-time stewardship to other churches and congregations in achieving sound and visual excellence led to founding Worship Resources.
Ten years later, Tom provides a spectrum of sound, lighting and video services for Midwestern congregations that run the gamut from 75-person porta-churches to 3,500-seat venues. His philosophy? “”It’s all a matter of good stewardship.”
We asked Tom to tell us, based on his personal and professional experience, how to make the right decisions in thinking sound. Here’s his five-step approach:
1. Establish a worship style criteria
Define the worship style and worship ministry objectives. The criteria will help determine the type of equipment necessary to fulfill the church’s ministry. An acoustical worship style would have little use for a stack of speakers and a truckload of sub-woofers; likewise, a celebrative full band style would be significantly
impaired without the ability to reproduce the presence of their instrumental presence. Secure the services of a reputable source to assist in selecting products that can meet that criteria.
2. Determine the limitations of size and portability
In some rare cases, portable churches are offered storage space on site, but most are not. Transportation and storage of the sound system may dictate the size and quantity of the gear selected.
If the gear must be moved each week in the back seat of the pastor’s car, size would be a consideration.
3. Match the system to the skill level of your personnel and expectations of your church.
In the early days of portable churches, the make up of the tech team was determined by who knew how to plug in the power cord. The “K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple, Sam)” philosophy was the order of the day. Today, many portable churches are multimedia-driven and have a higher level of technical expertise and expectation than
ever before. The system components should be selected to allow the tech personnel the ability to function as effortlessly as possible within their skill level. Just as an overly complicated system would frustrate the beginner, a system without the necessary tools would frustrate the tech capable of utilizing those tools.
The use of a reputable source of gear should also be able to provide training in the use of the gear.
4. Make sure it’s set-up and teardown friendly
The system must be easy and fast to assemble. Smaller systems can be mounted in a single rolling rack with mixer, EQ, amps, and wireless mic receivers. In larger systems, amps and processing gear may be mounted in a rack on stage with an audio snake running to the console and wireless gear in the rear of the meeting area.
Road cases or bins would hold the appropriate cables, which are color-coded to allow non-technical volunteers the ability to assist with setup and tear down. Simplicity is the key.
5. Demand road-worthiness and reliability
Select products that can hold up to the rigors of the road. A product that can serve well in a fixed installation in a controlled environment may not be the best choice for a road system. Storage conditions in a trailer or truck along with the loading and unloading by volunteers will test the limits of the gear. Inexpensive
and trendy products usually do not fair well in the porta-church world.
6. Plan for growth
Build a system that is expandable and is part of a strategic master plan. This is more than just buying a bigger rack or mixer. For example, if you plan to use wireless mics and add more units as time goes by, you must consider the maximum number of systems that you desire and choose the level of product that will allow
that number.
Shure Notes thanks Tom for sharing his informed perspective. To contact Tom or learn more about Worship Resources, please visit the company’s website at
www.worshipresources.net. |
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How Many? Who Knows?
Since ‘church plants’, yet another name for these congregations, are a relatively new phenomenon, calculating the number of start-ups is almost impossible. According to Larry Eskridge, associate director of the Institute for the Study of American Evangelicals at Wheaton College, most
are launched by the nation’s 100
million evangelicals. Bill Leonard, dean of the Divinity School at Wake Forest University, notes that the model is being used by a variety of religious groups all over the country with greater numbers in the West and South. Portable Church Industries, a business started in 1994 to serve the needs of this audience, counts
500 churches in 44 states, as customers, with 100 more expected this year. Those are only the plants seeking help - the tip of the iceberg.
Source: “Portable Churches Gain in Popularity”, Sarasota Herald Tribune, February 18, 2006. |
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