Ed Bahler’s Blog…To Enhance Ministry

I am grateful for the opportunity to work with a dedicated team that is consulting, designing, and building for some of the fastest growing and most innovative churches in the US. Aspen Group is a leading church architecture and construction management company, and I am privileged to serve as their President.  Another exciting avenue that God has opened up is the opportunity to speak regularly at conferences around the US in order to help churches learn about drawing people, enhancing ministry, and changing lives.

God has laid on the team’s hearts a passion to understand and align the following four ministry dynamics:

• Evolving Culture
• Relevant Ministry
• Empowering Leadership
• Intentional Facilities

Alignment ensures a clear message from leadership, trust throughout the congregation, and healthy collaboration vital to minimizing headwind for ministry. In this challenging Post-Christian environment, we cannot afford wasted energy or talent.

So what’s fueling this passion? We’ve discovered that church facilities consume 40% of a typical church budget. Yet, we know so little about how facilities impact ministry or help us powerfully connect ministry with a rapidly shifting culture. Furthermore, spending on church facilities in the US has risen from $3.5 billion to over $8 billion in the past 15 years. And believe it or not, even though we’ve increased spending over 200%, church attendance has actually decreased from 49% to 47% of the US population.

There’s so much we need to learn, which is why we’re making a considerable investment in the Cornerstone Knowledge Network. Check out the CKN tab above for further insight into this national effort to accelerate learning and enhance ministry efforts.

Above all though, my most significant blessing and responsibility is to my family; my 30-year marriage to Annette, our six healthy children, and our four grandchildren. We are so grateful that God’s spirit has drawn our children to Him.

Thanks for sharing in the journey with us.

Email: ebahler@aspengroup.com