Lay ministry is done by lay persons (those not ordained or working as clergy) who intentionally approach their activities as furthering the work of God in the world.  Lay ministry occurs both inside and outside the formal worship services and buildings of Christian communities.  In The United Methodist Church, lay persons can be formally consecrated to full-time, life-time lay ministry through the Office of Deaconess and Home Missioner, and the types of ministry deaconesses and home missioners engage in range from teaching to social justice activism to fire-fighting and everything in between.

Lay Ministry Websites

---

• Office of Deaconess and Home Missioner of The United Methodist Church    www.unitedmethodistwomen.org/dhm
• ​National Association of Deaconess, Home Missioners, and Home Missionaries www.nadhm.org/
• Lay Ministry in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America www.elca.org/Our-Work/Leadership/Lay-Schools-for-Ministry
• ​Lay Leadership in the Presbyterian Church USA www.pcusa.org/lay-leadership-development/

For a discussion of the theological importance of lay ministry in The United Methodist Church, please see my paper entitled "Supporting the Body of Christ: A Theological Exploration of Lay Diaconal Ministry in The United Methodist Church" written for the Office of Deaconess and Home Missioner