Light 'em up! Architectural, practical or just for fun
Getting straight to the point with this one, why would we as churches want to ‘light ’em up?’
Ultimately, the answer comes from what your mission is as a church and if any lighting in any form will help that mission. If so, how? There are lots more questions to think about as always before you go into the detail of what lighting equipment you will actually need to accomplish your vision and aid your mission. A few things to think about are below
Do you want to be more visible?
Maybe your church building is in quite a residential area area so you want to stand out a little. Or you are on a busy main road and just want to highlight that you are there. Using lighting can do this quite subtly but with great effect. It doesn’t have to be much, it doesn’t even have to be colourful if you want to be super subtle.
Some gentle uplighting from some LED floodlights can do wonders. If you are in a more traditional building, lighting up some of the features on the outside will be enough. Or if a more modern building it can be as simple as lighting up any signs you may have stating who you are. Just make sure that whatever you choose is IP rated for outdoor use. Websites such as CPC have a great selection for most needs.
Do you want to be more welcoming?
The best thing about Christmas, for me at least, is all the pretty lights and decorations. They just make everywhere seem so much more inviting and cosy. When they go away again it all just feels a bit empty, and boring. How many of our churches feel a bit like that? Do you have some plain walls that greet people as they walk in to your entranceway, or even sit and stare at during the service? How do you make them a little more inviting and friendly to look at? Adding some lighting and some colour can change how your visitors feel when they walk into your buildings.
Again, uplighting can do wonders here. If you have a traditional building, are there any stained glass windows or columns/pillars that are in everyone’s eyeline as they look at the preacher that you can light up? Or maybe you have a plain wall, or hanging cloth behind the high altar? Adding a bit of colour can make it feel more inviting. The same applies to newer buildings. Unless your preacher wanders all over the room whilst they are preaching, there will be a backdrop that everyone sees. Light it up with some subtle colour and it makes the whole experience more comfortable.
Some simple LED pars, that you can hang or sit on the floor are great for this sort of thing. There are lots of them out there with various features and functions (and prices to match) to choose from. They can be ‘standalone’ or integrated fairly easily into a lighting system. Having the ability to change the colours at times by pressing a few buttons, or with a remote, is a big bonus too.
Do you want to enhance your worship?
As briefly inferred above, when lights are used correctly they can enhance the mood of the building. The same applies to your worship. Whether you are just using a few lights to make sure your worship leader and/or band can be seen. Or whether you want a full on ‘rock and roll’ experience during your worship. There are so many options open to you to fit most budgets. A key thing to really think about here is why. Why do you want that rock and roll experience? Or why do you only want to use lights for the more practical reasons? How are these going to enhance your worship gatherings?
Where uplighters can be helpful for the more rock and roll experience, it’s now all about the top light. Lighting people from above means they are seen, and they can see. Again, this can be as simple as some LED pars or just some floodlights if you don’t want to use/change colour at any point.
Moving Lights
Moving lights can be another great addition. With these you can change colour and light different areas at different times without the need for lots of lights. You can even project pretty patterns onto walls/ceilings/floors with some. You will need more infrastructure with these though and not many of them are ‘plug and play’ so someone who knows how to use them is important too. With moving lights you will at least want a lighting desk to operate them along with cable and proper rigging. All of these add to the cost, but again, they do vary in price so you can often find some to fit your budget still.
These lights are the ones to be most cautious with. When programming them, always think about whether how you plan to use them is going to distract or attract people in their worship. Lots of movements, colour changes and pattern use have their place, but they can also be really distracting for some. Overall though they can be a great asset in your worship services if you have the budget and space and need for them.
As always, these are only a few questions to consider when thinking about using lighting in buildings. If you want to think through some more or have any questions on any of the points made please do get in touch!