Date
9-2021
Department
Rawlings School of Divinity
Degree
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
Chair
Danny Allen
Keywords
revitalization, collaboration, church growth movement, leadership, missional
Disciplines
Leadership Studies | Religion
Recommended Citation
Reaves, Bradford William, "Creating Collaborative Missional Communities to Enhance Church Revitalization" (2021). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 3170.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/3170
Abstract
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This project utilizes the revitalization efforts of Grace Community Church in Winchester, VA to examine the precedence of collaborative strategies for church revitalization. In this study contemporary literature, theological foundations, surveys of church leaders in the United States, and interviews with collaborative church and ministry leaders from around the United States are evaluated to determine the need for greater collaboration for the health and revitalization of church and ministries. The findings of this research argue that contemporary church growth strategies that emerged from the recent church growth movement may actually inhibit church revitalization efforts by imposing isolating strategies and limiting community engagement. This thesis contends that implementing collaborative strategies among churches perpetuates church revitalization and has a positive impact on the missional reach into the community.
