5 Facility Questions to Ask to Plan for 2026

2025 was a big year for the church. Easter set a record-breaking attendance across America. Multisite churches learned how to scale smarter. Church leaders are learning how to operate effectively in a digital-friendly, post-pandemic world where people are coming back to the church and engaging both in person and online. 

So, what’s next? You could say more of the same, but what does that look like when “the same” is something we’ve never seen before? 

Often, the best starting point is understanding your current mission and then supporting it with a building activation strategy. What are you trying to accomplish, and how are your current church assets helping or hurting you in that process?

Are you thinking about activating spaces in your church building heading into 2026? Is it the right move? Where does your church real estate fall in your strategy, planning, vision, and mission? Here are five questions to ask to help you see how your facility should factor into the mix.

1. What is your mission right now?

This is where your facility conversation starts. Why? Because your goal should never be a church building. Your building needs to feed into your larger vision as a church.

So, what is your calling as a church? Right now? Are you working on a long-term mission statement? An ongoing vision? Upcoming initiatives? What goals are you trying to reach this year?

Be specific. For instance, Faith Promise is working with the explicit goal to “win the world by equipping Christ followers to win their world starting with 1% of Tennessee.” That isn’t an inspiring idea they came up with when they started the church. It’s their current goal. 

What is guiding your church in 2026? This sets the tone. It is the bar you want to reach, the end goal you want to achieve. Before you start thinking about facility, make sure this God-focused part is clearly in place.

2. How does your facility fit with your church’s trajectory?

Once you have your mission and vision in focus, it’s time to think of how it applies to your physical building space. This is where things get nuanced and highly specific. 

Are you growing? Shrinking? Is your church bursting at the seams? Did you plant a campus in 2025, and now you’re working with a little more breathing room?

Take the time to get a sense of how well (or not so well) your church is supporting your church’s mission, vision, and overall trajectory heading into 2026. This isn’t a yes or no answer. You’ll probably find some areas are just what you need. Other areas aren’t enough. Still other areas are sitting empty most or even all of the time.

3. Is your facility costing your ministry right now?

How is your building impacting your ministry right now? One of our go-to questions at Ministry Solutions Group is: “Is your building paying for your ministry or is your ministry paying for your building?”

Is your giving just keeping the lights on? Are there areas of your church where you find you’re pouring time and resources in without getting enough utility or value out of the space?

4. Where is the potential in your underutilized spaces?

As you assess your church’s current value (or expense) to your ministry, you can start to identify where there’s potential to activate your underutilized spaces. 

Churches typically lie empty for more than 90% of the week. Building activation is the process of finding and activating your building’s untapped potential. 

This is how you turn your church facility into an asset that funds your ministry (not the other way around). Finding areas where you can open up a day care program, a coffee shop, or even a pickleball court enables you to use the same square footage more. You can generate revenue from unused space during the week, and then use that income to keep your ministry fueled and focused.

5. What local needs and key partnerships connect to your activated spaces?

Once you’ve identified how activated spaces can support your ministry, you need to put a plan in place. This is where it’s important to resist what we call “we have a guy” syndrome.

Every church has a person without enough experience who wants to take a crack at planning and running a multi-million dollar project. Don’t slide into that mindset. If you want a building activation strategy to succeed, you need to get the right people involved.

For instance, when we helped Chase Oaks Church activate their spaces, the successful project included a childcare program. This came from two things. First, the team saw a childcare vacuum in the local area and tried to meet it. Second, the Ministry Solutions Group facilitated the selection of a vetted, proven, and trusted partner capable of using the space to set up and run a high-quality childcare center. 

Don’t skimp on this step. Don’t fall for the “we have a guy” option. Connect your unused spaces with legitimate local needs and then work with quality partners to turn those dreams into reality.

Prepping Your Facility for 2026

Expect 2026 to be another year of learning and growing for a church already picking up momentum. If you want to be ready for whatever is in store, begin by asking the right questions about your facility. Prep what you can, and start moving things forward, so that when your mission picks up steam next year, your building is supporting and not holding back that momentum.

If you have any questions about building activation or need help assessing your facility’s spaces, contact us for a free analysis. We can take a preliminary look at your financial options, funding strategies, heat map analysis, and all of the other factors that go into a successful building activation strategy.