In 2001 the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) conducted the U.S. Congregational Life Survey. More than 1.2 million worshipers and 12,000 congregations across three continents were surveyed to provide a portrait of congregational life. The findings were published in the first edition of "A Field Guide to U.S. Congregations."

With the completion of the 2008 survey comes an expanded edition of this invaluable reference with new findings; updated statistics, tables, and cartoons; a new chapter describing changes in congregational life; and chapter summaries focusing on the implications of the 2008 survey.

In "Places of Promise," Cynthia Woolever and Deborah Bruce present the ways in which location is defined and employ results from research to reveal how location influences congregational life. Woolever and Bruce include illustrations to demonstrate that every congregation can achieve strength and effectiveness in its present location if its ministry focus and leadership decisions parallel factors that are important to the community.

Results from the U.S. Congregational Life Survey, the largest project of its type ever conducted in the United States, have prompted this second book from Westminster John Knox Press authors Cynthia Woolever and Deborah Bruce. Their original work, "A Field Guide to U.S. Congregations: Who's Going Where and Why," explores the practices and activities of worshipers in more than 2,000 U.S. congregations, encompassing more than 300,000 worshipers across a representative sample of denominations and faith groups. This book describes the qualities that are evident in strong congregations and develops congregational applications from those findings. Like the first book, it is helpfully illustrated with charts, graphs, and cartoons.