NGU DMin Students Study Church Revitalization During In-Person Seminar
Posted on: September 30, 2025
Greer, SC—North Greenville University Doctor of Ministry (DMin) students are diving deep into the importance of church revitalization this week during their in-person seminar on the university’s Tim Brashier Campus in Greer.
Instructed by South Carolina Baptist Convention Executive Director-Treasurer Dr. Tony Wolfe, the course will run through Oct. 3.
“The goal of this course is to afford students a solid biblical, philosophical, and practical framework for leading churches through revitalization,” Wolfe said. “My hope is that they gain a deeper understanding of just how much Christ loves his church, a greater appreciation for the strength of healthy leadership in challenging contexts, a more biblically formed conviction for ecclesiological models, and a more compelling vocabulary for communicating these truths in the local church and in leadership among churches.”
DMin students are discussing and evaluating several philosophies of church revitalization through various assignments, including studying Scripture for biblical foundations, assigned presentations, and live feedback.
“If current statistics are correct, about seventy to eighty percent of SBC churches are plateaued or declining in weekly attendance and/or church membership. A variety of factors contribute to this, so not every plateaued or declining church is unhealthy,” Wolfe said. “However, almost all of them could likely benefit from local church leadership that clearly understands and strategically implements the principles this course is designed to instill within students.”
“No one wants dying churches to be revitalized more than Christ himself, who is her husband and her head. If church leaders want to care about what Christ cares about, they should give attention to biblically grounded principles and strategies of church revitalization,” he said.
Wolfe emphasized that church revitalization is ultimately the work of the Holy Spirit, noting that the Lord uses healthy churches as an avenue for renewal.
“God the Holy Spirit is the only one who can breathe new life into dying churches. I believe he accomplishes this practically, most frequently, through the involvement of other healthy churches,” he said. “Both by direct church-to-church involvement and through associations, conventions, and other organizations churches entrust with this purpose, for unhealthy churches to become renewed and revitalized they need healthy churches to come alongside them in prayerful, financial, and relational support.”
“The end goal is more gospel saturation in more communities through more healthy churches,” Wolfe added.
NGU’s College of Christian Studies offers online and graduate level degree programs, including Doctor of Ministry, Master of Arts in Christian Ministry, and Master of Divinity.
