Radiant Church in Charleston, South Carolina, has experienced significant changes in recent years.

Under the leadership of Pastor Walter Belton, the church has grown in discipleship, baptisms, and community engagement after facing a difficult season.

Growth After Difficulty

Walter Belton became the lead pastor of Radiant Church over two years ago. Before coming to Charleston, he pastored a church in Spartanburg for 22 years. When the previous pastor of Radiant left, Belton was called to step in.

At that time, Radiant was struggling. “People were afraid that Radiant would not continue to exist,” Belton said. The church had lost around 160 members, attendance had dropped to 64 people, and financial challenges put its future at risk. Belton focused on rebuilding through discipleship, relationships, and restoring the church’s health. He also emphasized to the church that God had not forgotten them and the need to celebrate God’s favor for them even amongst the difficulties they faced. 

Commitment to Diversity

Radiant Church has always emphasized being a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural congregation. “Becoming multi-cultural doesn’t just happen. It won’t happen by just hiring someone on staff. You have to be intentional with it with everything you do,” Belton said. The church incorporates diversity in leadership, worship, and teaching. “You have to be intentional at every step to think through that and guard it.” 

Radiant encourages members to build relationships beyond Sunday services, including having meals together and fostering diverse friendships. “Who we are as it relates to being diverse is not just in this room,” Belton said. The church leadership regularly reminds members that true diversity should be reflected in their daily lives, not just in Sunday gatherings. “We want diversity to be a part of who we are, not just what we do in this room,” he said. 

Church Growth and Discipleship

Since Belton’s arrival, Radiant’s attendance has grown to about 150 people. The church has also seen an increase in baptisms.

A key part of Radiant’s growth has been its focus on discipleship. The church organizes D-groups—small discipleship groups meeting twice a month for accountability. Leadership training sessions for men and women occur monthly, and community groups meet regularly to build relationships and strengthen faith. “These groups are another opportunity to get people in the room to grow together,” Belton said. 

He feels that the sense of community has allowed the church to be excited and engaged with what’s next rather than fearful about the future. “God has just done an amazing work,” he said. 

Receiving Support

Radiant Church received support from the South Carolina Baptist Convention and other local churches during its challenging period. “One of my first calls was to our state convention,” Belton said. When he reached out for help, SCBaptist provided six months of financial assistance and helped fund community outreach initiatives. 

Other churches also contributed. When Radiant’s sound system failed, First Baptist Church of Charleston provided assistance. “It was a beautiful picture of the church helping the church,” Belton said. “We are still here today because of partnerships across our state and our Convention stepping up in a time of need.” 

Future Goals

Looking ahead, Radiant Church is focusing on evangelism. The congregation will spend 2025 studying the book of Acts, with an emphasis on sharing the Gospel. Belton hopes to encourage more members to actively engage in evangelism.

Radiant Church has transitioned from a struggling congregation to a growing and stable church. Through strong leadership, intentional diversity, discipleship efforts, and support from the larger church community, Radiant continues to serve Charleston as a place of faith and transformation.