The DEEP Biblical Training and Counseling Institute was founded by Pastor Melvin Tatem in September of 1997 as a ministry of Grace Deliverance Baptist Church. Dr. Thomas Wright, III served as its director until 2022. It is also an extension of Christian Research and Development (CRD) located at Christian Stronghold Baptist Church in Philadelphia, PA. The first class consisted of 35 students in Biblical Counseling 1 and graduated 20 students.

In September of 2010, we launched a “Spanish Explosion” initiative, which introduced the first all Spanish counseling class (Biblical Counseling 1-4) at the Central Assembly of God in Bethlehem, PA and at a church in Camden, NJ with 19 students. This class graduated in January of 2014 with 11 students

DEEP (as it is affectionately referred to) stands for discipleship, evangelism, edification, and praise (and worship). These are the core principles of a Christian person’s life.