What comes after expressive individualism? Trevin Wax says, “More and more people are shaping their sense of self through powerful group affiliations rather than as independent individuals. This isn’t a rejection of expressive individualism so much as its evolution. The self is still in the driver’s seat in determining where identity will be based, but now it seeks authenticity and affirmation through belonging, conformity, and visible alignment with ideological, political, ethnic, or cultural tribes.”
The surprising importance of shallow Christian friendships: Danny D’Aquisto with a helpful contrarian perspective, “In fact, these less-personal friendships—let’s call them church acquaintances—are vital to the health of our churches and the advance of the gospel.”
Training your nervous system to treat rejection as an invitation into maturation: Griffin Gooch had me sympathizing with every one of these painful letters, “Several studies have demonstrated that the areas of the brain that register social rejection overlap with the areas that register physical pain; rejection can feel worse than getting hit by a car. These parts of the brain are so intertwined that one group of researchers even found that taking Tylenol can lower the intensity of social pain.”
The sacrament of staying: Stacy MacLaren says, “Sometimes faith does not look dramatic. Sometimes it looks like staying. And sometimes that staying becomes its own kind of witness—quiet, ordinary, and full of grace.”
Here is what American homes look like the year you were born: It’s fun to go back into this online time machine.

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash