What do your church members miss out on when they miss a Sunday at your church? Do they miss out on an event or a production, or do they miss out on a participatory experience that shapes their spiritual lives?
Although most Americans (64 percent) say they’re Christian, the State of the Bible report reveals only 55 percent of self-identified Christians have attended church in the past six months, including 11 percent who attend less than monthly, 10 percent who attend monthly, and 34 percent who attend weekly.
As pastors and church leaders consider why there’s a sizable gap between self-identified Christians and those who attend church, it’s important they not only consider cultural and contextual factors but that they also consider internal factors.
When someone attends your church, what value does that add to their spiritual lives? Do your church gatherings help people grow in their faith? While many factors are at play, these are factors church leaders can control. Give believers a vision for how regular participation in the body of Christ contributes to their spiritual growth.
Measuring church engagement
In the 2025 State of the Bible survey, American Bible Society (ABS) asked churchgoing Christians about their church engagement, which they define as “the level of an individual’s involvement in the life, mission, and community of a local church.” Similar to elements of workplace engagement, ABS measured responses to the following five statements as an indicator of church engagement.
- In the past year I have had opportunities to learn and grow in my faith.
- I have a best friend at church.
- There is someone in my church who encourages my spiritual development.
- My pastor, or other church leaders, seem to care about me as a person.
- At church, I have the opportunity to use my giftings.
Weekly, in-person attendance matters
Responses to these five statements reveal a tight correlation between church attendance and church engagement. Those who attend church at least weekly are more than twice as likely as those who attend less frequently to strongly or very strongly agree with each of the five statements indicating church engagement. This correlation is to be expected, but surprisingly, there’s a much smaller gap between those who attend monthly and those who attend maybe twice a year.
A study from Lifeway Research found 1 in 4 pastors (24 percent) consider someone to be a regular churchgoer if they attend church once a month, and 11 percent consider someone to be a regular churchgoer if they attend 10 times a year or less. However, the State of the Bible research indicates the benefits of church engagement are much more likely to show up among those who attend church at least weekly.
Not only does weekly church attendance matter, but in-person attendance also matters. When considering how someone attends church, those who attend in person are more likely than those who attend only online or both online and in person to strongly or very strongly agree with each of the five items of church engagement.
In-person attendance especially makes a difference when it comes to agreement with the statement “My pastor, or other church leaders, seem to care about me as a person.” Whereas 51 percent of those who attend in person express strong or very strong agreement with this statement, only 33 percent of those who attend online and 36 percent of those who attend both online and in person expressed the same level of enthusiasm.
Gen Z and church engagement
When it comes to the generations, across the board, Gen Z struggles with church engagement, scoring lowest in each of the five categories of church engagement. Although Gen Z is less likely than any other generation to strongly or very strongly agree with each of the five points, the gap is seen most clearly in response to the statement “At church, I have the opportunity to use my giftings.”
In research of adults, Gen Z is the youngest generation studied, and not all of Gen Z has entered adulthood yet. But did you know there are already two younger generations in your church? The oldest in Gen Z are turning 28 years old this year. While they’re still young and may still be discerning their giftings and how to use them, they’re a developing generation for churches to both invest in and allow them to invest back into the church.
What barriers might exist in your church that communicate to this generation that there’s not an opportunity for them to use their giftings to serve the church? What do you need to do to let them know the church is an incredible place for them to practice these gifts?
How to improve church engagement
Most pastors and church leaders would agree they want to improve church engagement, but church engagement is not an end in itself. The church’s mission is not to grow attendance numbers but to make disciples who make disciples.
The problem is only half of churches have an intentional plan for discipleship (52 percent). Healthy churches have a healthy plan for discipleship. Based on insights from the State of the Bible’s measures of church engagement, here are a few things to keep in mind as you develop a disciple-making plan for your church.
1. Consistently provide opportunities for people to learn and grow in their faith
Make sure every time people engage with your church there’s an opportunity for them to learn and grow in the faith. People don’t need the church for entertainment or social activities. People need the church for their spiritual growth. Is your church giving attendees opportunities to learn and grow in their faith each time they enter your doors?
2. Invite people into relationships
Teach people in your church to develop meaningful relationships with one another. Give them opportunities to connect with one another beyond surface-level conversations. Teach them to ask one another spiritual questions. They may or may not have a best friend in the church, but meaningful relationships form out of spiritual conversations.
3. Encourage spiritual growth
Give people a vision of where they’re headed. Look for ways to cultivate among people a desire for growth. Encourage spiritual growth from the pulpit and equip leaders throughout your church to encourage spiritual growth in their own spheres of influence.
4. Demonstrate you care
Remember the mission of making disciples who make disciples without getting caught up in numerical metrics they may or may not measure discipleship. When your aim is discipleship, you’ll naturally care about the people in your church.
5. Help people identify and use their spiritual gifts
The spiritual gifts are given to believers “for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:7). How might our churches be hindered when we fail to invite every member of the body to practice their spiritual gifts? Look for ways to help members not only identify their spiritual gifts but also use these gifts within the church.
6. Urge people to read the Bible
Encourage people to read the Bible on their own and help them see the Bible as relevant to their lives. Scripture is transformative.
As we seek to increase church engagement, may we look not merely for increased church attendance numbers but for transformed lives.
This article originally appeared at research.lifeway.com.
