01 Relational vitality
93.5%
People care for one another in tangible ways.
88.8%feel like a spiritual family
84.3%say worship is meaningful
78.2%serve their community
Full report The Lay-Led Congregations Project · April 2026
Ministry is
present.
The system is
under strain.
A cross-denominational study of how lay-led congregations are sustaining leadership, discipleship, and community — and what they need to flourish.
Explorethe findings
TECELCAPC(USA)UMC
293survey participants
11in-depth interviews
4denominations
5opportunities for action
Mixed methods
Jan–Apr 2026
Jan–Apr 2026
THE CONVERSATION BEHIND THE DATA
Hear the findings
in their own voices.
The researchers sit down with the ecumenical team to unpack what they heard, what surprised them, and what the findings mean for the future of lay-led ministry.
Lay-Led Congregations Project releaseWatch on YouTube
THE CENTRAL TENSION
Alive in the present.
Uncertain about the future.
Lay-led congregations are not the absence of ministry. They are ministry carried out through remarkable commitment — within systems that have not fully caught up.
02 Structural uncertainty
47.1%
Only 47.1% believe their current leadership model is sustainable in five years.
55.1%rely on one or two people
65.9%of lay leaders are unpaid
40.1%are unsure about sustainability
There’s kind of a sense that this is worth continuing, even if it’s not the same as it used to be.
— Interview participant, ELCA
FIVE STORIES FROM THE DATA
One landscape.
Five ways to see it.
Select a chapter to explore the pattern, the pressure point, and the opening for action.
03
Deeply connected today. Unsure about tomorrow.
Relational vitality, structural uncertainty
People care for one another, worship meaningfully, and show up in their communities. But vitality rooted in relationship does not automatically create the capacity for long-term sustainability.
THE OPENINGRelational strength is the core asset. Sustainable systems should protect it — not replace it with institutional complexity.
93.5%say people care for one another tangibly
WHO WE HEARD FROM
A portrait of the
people carrying ministry.
The survey reached a broad ecumenical sample. Most respondents led small congregations, often with limited weekly hours and long histories of service.
72.3%serve congregations with 100 members or fewer
Leadership timeHours per week
Community contextSelf-described
31.7%Small town
26.6%Rural
24.2%Suburban
15.7%Urban
THE OPPORTUNITY NOW
From endurance
to intentional design.
Five moves can help denominational systems meet the reality these leaders are already carrying.
Design for sustainability
Build leadership models around real capacity and a five-year horizon — not inherited expectations.
Distribute leadership
Equip more people, define shared roles, and reduce the fragility of one- or two-person systems.
Make training fit real life
Offer practical learning in flexible formats that respect time, cost, geography, and bi-vocational work.
Strengthen peer support
Invest in mentorship, cohorts, and relationships that make guidance ongoing rather than occasional.
Align systems to reality
Simplify processes and make denominational resources clearer, closer, and more responsive.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The question is not whether
lay leaders can lead.
It is whether the structures around them can evolve to match the reality on the ground.
Read the full 47-page reportPDF · April 2026About the research+
This mixed-methods study was conducted by Future of Faith on behalf of TryTank Research Institute from July 2025 to April 2026. Data was collected from late January through early April 2026.
The study combined four denomination-specific surveys with 11 one-hour interviews. Findings should be read with awareness that participation varied across denominations.