BRENTWOOD, Tenn.—When pastors look out from the pulpit and congregants glance around the pews, most say they see a church with people from across the generations.

Almost 4 in 5 pastors (78%) and 9 in 10 churchgoers (91%) believe their church is multigenerational, with a good number of active members from all generations, according to Lifeway Research.

Despite their perceptions, the statistical reality paints a picture of a congregation that skews older. According to Pew Research, the median age of a Christian in the U.S. rose from 46 in 2007 to 54 in 2024. Most Protestant Christians (57%) are 50 or older, including evangelicals (55%). Pew Research also found 43% of U.S. adults 71 and older attend religious services at least monthly, compared to 31% of 18-30-year-olds.

“Whether you are a pastor or lay person, your views of the health of your church include your perception of whether your church can reach all generations. This question is about the viability of ministry across age groups, not whether they are proportional in size,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research.  “A visitor’s reaction would likely be similar based on whether they see a good number of people their age, signaling opportunities for connection.”

McConnell said a lack of generational diversity can stem from several reasons. “How can a church find itself without a mix of generations? Sometimes it is an intentional strategy to reach one population on a college campus or a senior adult community,” he said. “But much more often, it is a lack of intentionality in reaching the next generation and a refusal to set aside preferences that put off younger people.”

Pastors’ perceptions

When pastors are asked about the age demographics of their church, 78% believe they lead a multigenerational church, including 52% who strongly agree. Around 1 in 5 (21%) disagree, and less than 1% aren’t sure.

“A healthy church is reaching new people with the gospel,” McConnell said. “The Holy Spirit is not just working in one demographic group, but sometimes a congregation’s sphere of influence where they share the gospel is limited.”

In many cases, the larger the church, the more generationally diverse the congregation is. Pastors at churches with attendance of 250 or more (95%) are the most likely to agree their church is multigenerational, followed by pastors of congregations with attendance of 100-249 (89%), 50-99 (74%) and less than 50 (54%). Pastors at the smallest congregations, fewer than 50 in attendance on a typical weekend, are more split over their multigenerational status. While 54% agree, 45% disagree.

Younger pastors are also more likely to lead multigenerational congregations. Pastors younger than 45 (82%) and those ages 45-54 (88%) are more likely than pastors who are 55-64 (75%) and 65 and older (72%) to say their church has a good number of active members from all generations.

Evangelical pastors are more likely than mainline clergy to see a multigenerational congregation (80% vs. 74%). Denominationally, Holiness (90%), Pentecostal (88%), and nondenominational pastors (88%) are more likely to agree than Lutherans (76%). Methodist pastors are the most likely to disagree (39%) and say their church is not multigenerational.

Those in the Midwest are more likely to agree than those in the Northeast (80% vs. 71%).

“While most churches believe they are welcoming to newcomers, people only feel welcome when the church has made room for them,” said McConnell. “Almost half of pastors say their church is challenged by people dynamics such as having strong opinions about non-essentials (48%) and resistance to change (46%).”

Perspective from the pews

Churchgoers are more likely than pastors to believe they are part of a multigenerational congregation. Around 9 in 10 (91%) say their church has a good number of active members from all generations, including 58% who strongly agree. Just 8% disagree, and 1% aren’t sure.

“More churchgoers say they are in a multigenerational church than pastors, because more people attend mid-size and larger churches that tend to have this mix,” McConnell said. “A larger number of small churches exist in the pastor numbers that are more likely to lack many people from all generations.”

Church size remains a contributing factor for the congregation’s perception. Those attending churches of 500 or more in attendance on a typical weekend (98%) and those with 100-249 in attendance (95%) are more likely than those at churches with 50-99 in attendance (89%) and those at churches with fewer than 50 (79%) to say their church is multigenerational. Churchgoers at congregations of fewer than 50 in attendance are the most likely to disagree (18%).

Churchgoers with evangelical beliefs are more likely than non-evangelical churchgoers to believe their church has a good number of active members from across the generations (94% vs. 87%).

Denominationally, Baptists (94%) and those at nondenominational churches (92%) are more likely than Methodists (81%) and Lutherans (84%) to agree.

Churchgoers in the West are more likely than those in the Midwest to see their church as multigenerational (93% vs. 87%). Those in the Midwest (12%) are most likely to disagree.

McConnell said a multigenerational congregation can have a compounding impact.

“Churches strive to be welcoming to Christians who move to their area and are looking for a new church home,” he said. “But it is difficult for a church to get new people to connect to their church if there is nobody like those people at that church.”

BRENTWOOD, Tenn.—Regular small group participants are likely to be among the most mature disciples in a church, but they still need encouragement in some areas.

According to the latest analysis of Lifeway Research’s State of Discipleship study, U.S. Protestant churchgoers who regularly attend a small group Bible study, such as Sunday school, have the highest discipleship scores.

Those who attend a small group five times or more each month (74.1) and those who attend three to four times (72.4) have higher scores in the discipleship assessment than those who attend once or twice (67.2) and churchgoers who do not participate in small groups at all (60.4).

Across eight signposts that highlight characteristics consistently present in the lives of believers progressing in their spiritual maturity, those who participate in a small group five times or more a month have the highest scores in four signposts and among the highest in two others.

“The value of small groups is seen in higher levels of evangelism, service, giving, disciplines and relationships among those who regularly participate in small groups of adults from church compared to those who don’t,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. “Americans like to do things themselves, but that isn’t the biblical pattern for following Christ.”

Ken Braddy, director of Sunday school at Lifeway, said those participating in small groups are in environments where the key behaviors of spiritual growth are practiced consistently. “The reason is not simply that people are attending another church event,” he said. “Small groups create the conditions where discipleship flourishes.”

Areas of strength for small group participants

If someone attends small group frequently, they’re also likely to attend worship services and serve in their congregations. Churchgoers who participate in small groups at least five times in a month say they’re at worship services 9.1 times in a typical month, more than any other group. They are also among the most likely to have regular responsibilities in their congregation (48%) and to serve their community with a ministry outside of their church (41%).

Not only are small group attendees active participants at church, but they also seek to make their faith a priority outside the church walls. More than others, those who attend five times a month or more say they’ve made decisions to obey or follow God, with an awareness that choosing His way might be costly to them (13.8 times in a typical month).

Those who participate in church small groups at least five times each month have the highest scores in building relationships (80.5), engaging the Bible (79.4), serving God and others (78.6) and sharing Christ (69.7). And, along with those who attend three to four times a month, those who attend at least five times each month have the highest scores in seeking God (81.9) and obeying God and denying self (79.1).

“In a healthy group, people study and discuss Scripture together, receive encouragement and accountability, pray for one another, serve alongside one another and build meaningful relationships,” Braddy said. “These experiences move discipleship from information to transformation. In short, worship services inspire discipleship, but small groups personalize it.”

Additionally, those who more frequently attend church small groups are the most likely to engage every day in numerous other Christian habits such as studying the Bible themselves (31%) and listening to or reading teaching about the Bible (38%).

In the past six months, they have most frequently shared with someone how to become a Christian (11.1 times), invited an unchurched person to a church service or program (7.6 times), fed the hungry (8.5 times), visited the sick (5.7 times) and visited those in prison (3.6 times).

The most frequent small group attendees are the most likely churchgoers to have participated in a mission trip both in the U.S. (44%) and internationally (33%). They are also the most likely to have been discipled one-on-one by a more spiritually mature Christian (63%) and to have done that type of individual spiritual mentorship themselves (54%).

“Groups provide a smaller community where believers can practice obedience, apply biblical truth, receive accountability and experience genuine care,” Braddy said. “Healthy groups should do more than discuss biblical truths; they should give members opportunities to practice them.”

By contrast, those who say they never participate in a small group attend worship services 3.9 times per month on average. They are also the least likely to have invited someone to church in the past six months (1.4 times compared to 7.6 times for those who attend five times or more). And they are the least likely to have regular responsibilities at their church (16%).

Those who never attend have the lowest scores in obeying God and denying self (69.4), serving God and others (66.4), engaging the Bible (59.8) and sharing Christ (41.1, the lowest score for any attendance group across the signposts).

Compared to their fellow churchgoers, those who don’t participate in small groups are the least likely to say they regularly ask God to help them love all people (72%), follow their pastor’s teaching from the Bible (74%), adjust other priorities to keep God first (58%) and seek justice for those who need it (60%).

One of the most significant impacts of not being in a small group is seen in relationships. Compared to those in groups five or more times a month, those not in groups report significantly lower involvement in biblical community. They are far less likely to have developed significant relationships with people at their church (65% vs. 82%), have several Christian friends who keep them accountable (55% vs. 78%), or believe they need other believers to help them grow in their walk with God (64% vs. 72%). Half as many spend time with other believers to help them grow in their faith (37% vs. 76%) or build friendships with non-Christians for the purpose of sharing Christ with them (30% vs. 66%).

“Not everyone is looking for relationships or has the people skills to easily form relationships, but healthy small groups should welcome and include those people as well,” McConnell said.

“Many people who are in small groups may not realize how essential relationships with other believers are to their spiritual walk. Jesus wants believers to follow Him together, encouraging and helping each other along the journey.”

Other attitudes and activities across the discipleship signposts, however, suggest those who are frequent small group participants could still use some help in their Christian journey.

Areas small group participants need encouragement

In general, the more someone attends small group Bible studies at their church, the higher they score on the discipleship assessment. Two signposts, however, are the exception: exercising faith and living unashamed. In those two, there is no correlation between attendance and scores.

In exercising faith, those who attend five times a month or more (63.4) and those who attend once or twice (67.0) have the lowest scores, while those who attend three to four times (73.2) and those who never attend (74.8) have the highest.

Similarly, in living unashamed, those attending at least five times (55.5) and those attending once or twice (57.7) have lower scores than those never attending (61.3), and those attending three to four times (64.2) have the highest scores.

“Most of the signposts include a good mixture of questions on beliefs, desires and actions. The living unashamed and exercising faith signposts focus on one’s dependence and identification with Christ and only ask at a summary level about actions such as telling others you are a Christian, doubting God or needing God’s help,” McConnell said.

“It is likely these two signposts don’t improve with each higher frequency of small group involvement because frequent group attendees may evaluate themselves more critically, and those who don’t attend groups may generalize they do these things decently.”

Churchgoers who attend small groups at their church five times a month or more are among the least likely to say they want to learn and be reminded of truths in the Bible (83%).

Additionally, when asked about life after death, those who attend small group the least are closer to the historic orthodox Christian belief than those who attend the most. Those who attend five times a month or more are more likely than those who never attend to say they will go to heaven because they have tried to be a good person and live a good life (17% vs. 11%). The most frequent attenders are less likely than the least frequent attenders to say they will go to heaven because they have confessed their sins and accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior (63% vs. 70%).

“Frequent participation in a small group is a helpful contributor to discipleship and should be encouraged,” McConnell said. “However, a perfect attendance record does not indicate a perfect disciple. Pastors and small group leaders must assume there are always attendees who need to surrender to Jesus Christ for salvation or to bring an area of their life in line with Jesus’ teaching.”

Braddy says certain aspects of discipleship require more intentional cultivation, and groups can build accountability into their practices to help members move from learning about their faith to exercising it.

“A healthy small group ministry is not measured primarily by how many groups it has or how many people attend them,” he said. “It is measured by whether those groups are producing disciples who increasingly look like Jesus and help others do the same.”

PHILADELPHIA—Scripture-engaged adults are more confident of their calling or purpose in life and thereby flourish, the American Bible Society (ABS) said in its latest release from the 2026 State of the Bible.

But those who are least engaged with the Bible often continue to seek a purpose or calling well into adulthood and score lower on researchers’ flourishing scale, ABS said of findings released July 9 in the study’s fourth chapter.

Adults with the strongest sense of calling score 7.8 on the human flourishing scale of 10, compared to a score of 6.1 among those with the lowest sense of calling, and also continue to flourish through life’s challenges.

Scripture engagement makes the difference, said John Plake, ABS chief Innovation officer and State of the Bible editor-in-chief.

“People with a strong sense of calling flourish more, and Scripture is at the heart of that connection,” Plake said. “And when life is disrupted by grief, job loss, or a serious illness, people who turn to Scripture find real comfort. Many don’t just endure the hardship; they come through it even stronger.”

Scripture-engaged adults report the highest confidence levels in their sense of calling, scoring 7.4 on researchers’ 10-point scale, compared to adults who don’t engage with Scripture, who scored 5.4 out of 10.

“People in the Movable Middle—open to the Bible and often curious about it but not committed—are the most likely to say they are searching for their calling,” researchers said in Chapter 4. “The Bible offers real insight to their big questions about life, purpose, and fulfillment.”

Scripture-engaged adults also view their calling as spiritual or inspired by God, ABS said, as Scripture records many examples of spiritual callings. The vast majority, 94%, of practicing Christians view the sense of calling from at least a somewhat spiritual lens, researchers said, compared to 70% of all Americans.

Evangelicals and Historically Black Protestants outpace others in finding their life’s calling, researchers said, with Mainland Protestants, Roman Catholics, and religious Nones citing less confidence.

The 2026 State of the Bible marks the first time ABS has studied how Scripture-engagement impacts calling, pointing out that one’s calling is not always seen in spiritual terms, nor is exclusive to Christianity.

“The language itself begs a question: Who or what is calling me? Whether people believe that’s God or nature itself or their own soul, the term carries the suggestion that we are uniquely suited to perform some task that benefits others,” researchers wrote. “As Christian thinker Os Guinness put it in his book The Call, ‘Deep in our hearts, we all want to find and fulfill a purpose bigger than ourselves. Only such a larger purpose can inspire us to heights we know we could never reach on our own. For each of us, the real purpose is personal and passionate: to know what we are here to do, and why.’”

Delving into the topic, researchers relied on four questions from the Brief Calling Scale, exploring whether people had found or were still searching for their calling, and added a unique question exploring whether adults view one’s calling as spiritual.

Research findings are based on 2,649 online and phone interviews conducted Jan. 8-27, using the nationally representative AmeriSpeak panel fielded by NORC at the University of Chicago.

This article originally appeared in Baptist Press.

GuideStone has transitioned its property and casualty insurance solutions to an independent agency model through GuideStone Agency Services, which is operated by GuideStone. This move marks a significant step forward in expanding the scope and flexibility of its offerings in the Lone Star State.

GuideStone has provided insurance guidance and risk management support to churches and ministries for nearly 20 years. With this model, GuideStone Agency Services is now able to work with multiple property and casualty insurance carriers, allowing for greater flexibility in coverage structures and options as services expand into additional states.

“This program now allows us to evaluate coverage across more carriers and better match policies to a church’s actual needs,” said Matt Cardwell, a 30-year veteran of GuideStone who is serving as managing director of the agency.

Texas service expansion

Texas churches are among the first to benefit from the expanded property and casualty insurance model. The initial service footprint reflects current capacity and areas of strong church concentration as the agency begins serving churches in additional states.

“Churches today are navigating insurance decisions that are far more complex than they were just a few years ago,” Cardwell said. “Our role is to help leaders understand how policy structure and coverage terms affect risk.”

Looking beyond premium

As churches evaluate insurance options in a challenging market, the agency team encourages leaders to look beyond premium alone and carefully review how coverage is structured.

Some policies may appear comparable at first glance but differ significantly in how they respond at the time of a claim. Focusing solely on price can lead churches to accept provisions that may reduce the level of financial protection available when it is needed most.

For example, certain liability structures may limit coverage for claims reported years after an incident if prior acts protections are not included, particularly in areas involving serious misconduct allegations. In addition, some policies include defense costs within the liability limit, meaning legal expenses can reduce the funds available to resolve claims.

Property-related provisions can also affect outcomes. In some cases, insurers may control repair scope and pricing through managed repair provisions, which can result in settlements below full replacement expectations. Roof coverage may also be subject to separate sublimits and higher deductibles, capping recovery well below the building’s insured value.

Cardwell noted that the consultative, multi-carrier approach is designed to help churches evaluate these considerations by comparing coverage terms across carriers and aligning solutions with each church’s actual risks and financial tolerance.

“Insurance decisions made today can affect a church’s financial health for many years,” said David Puckett, GuideStone chief growth officer. “Providing clarity around risk and coverage helps church leaders protect their ministries now while planning responsibly for the future.”

Puckett and Cardwell also emphasized the importance of working with insurance professionals who understand the unique characteristics of church ministry. General-market agencies may not fully account for the complexities of church property, liability exposures and ministry activities, while specialized guidance can help ensure those factors are properly considered.

Long-term expansion plans

GuideStone’s ministry assignment from the Southern Baptist Convention includes making risk management resources available to churches nationwide. While the agency currently operates in select states, the organization plans to expand its geographic footprint over time.

“GuideStone’s work is rooted in strengthening pastors, churches and ministries so they can serve well today and prepare for tomorrow,” said Hance Dilbeck, GuideStone president. “Expanding GuideStone Agency Services is a natural extension of that responsibility—helping churches address risk thoughtfully in ways that support long-term ministry effectiveness.”

For more information, or to request a quote, visit GuideStone.org/propertycasualty.