Institute/Initative: Rural Church Institute

pew image for RI article
Expanding Support for Rural Churches Across the Country with the help from Lilly Endowment Inc.
January 8, 2025 Wheaton College Billy Graham Center Receives $5 Million Grant from Lilly Endowment Inc....
Read More
Amplify 2024
Amplify 2024
A two-day immersive conference for forward-focused church teams.
Read More
Wheaton College
Dr. Jeff Clark
Dr. Jeffrey Clark, Director, Rural Church Institute Jeff also serves with the International Mission Board...
Read More
Chicken
Chicken Feather Stories
I was told to be on my best behavior. A guest was coming for dinner. My family uses a standard practice...
Read More
Banjamin-Francis-1
Nine Lessons for Rural Pastors from the life of Benjamin Francis
Benjamin Francis had everything against him. English wasn’t his native tongue. He was a bi-vocational...
Read More
harvest-hands-scaled
10 Things I Would Have Done Differently
I pastored a normative size church in Indiana for 8 years. It was revitalization work, and by all outward...
Read More
Tennessee-Driveway
The Stable Church
In his book, Shepherding the Small Church, Glenn Daman brings up a myth plaguing small and rural churches...
Read More
Seattle
Two-Level Lessons Learned in Seattle
Early Seattle had a significant problem. Their toilets would not flush. I think that we will agree that...
Read More
gaetano-cessati-124444-unsplash-scaled
Developing a Theological Mandate for Rural Ministry Part 2: Ecclesiology and the Rural Church
Within each of the various theological disciplines, there is both agreement and disagreement among scholars....
Read More
Two-Farmers-Talking
Rural Churches Need More Weak Relationships
We need more weak relationships in our rural churches. Granted, “weak relationships” do not make for...
Read More
gaetano-cessati-124444-unsplash-scaled
Developing a Theological Mandate for Rural Ministry
Part 1:  Soteriology and the Rural Church   In his classic book, Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis writes,...
Read More
Fire
The Mann Gulch Wildfire of 1949: Lessons for Rural Pastors
August 5, 1949. A wildfire started in Mann Gulch of Montana’s Helena National Forest that burned nearly...
Read More
1 2 3 4 5 6 7

We’re on a journey to revitalize 19,000 churches in the next twenty years.

We invite you to join us, pray, and give.
Church Evangelism Fund
General fund
500 College Avenue Wheaton, IL 60187
630-752-7947
Facebook Twitter Instagram Vimeo-v Youtube

Established in 1980, the Wheaton College Billy Graham Center stands as a global hub for evangelism and mission training. With a commitment to develop and mobilize Christ-followers for individual and corporate witness, the center boasts nine specialized institutes dedicated to research, teaching, and fostering a world where every believer actively makes Jesus Christ known.

© 2025 Billy Graham Center | Wheaton College