1. Every Movie Cliche About Teenage Dating is Basically Wrong: Chris Bourn begins, "As told by Hollywood, the humiliation of simultaneously being a teenager and being unable to get a date is one of the deepest, most difficult emotional traumas a person can endure." Bourn argues that the truth is quite the contrary, that teens who don't date are, on average, more socially adept and psychologically healthy.
2. Christianity Continues to Lose Numbers in the US: New Pew Research report shows important data. Headlining this detailed study is that, "Christianity has dropped to 65% of the U.S. population, while the religiously unaffiliated or “nones” grew to 26%."
3. I Finally Wrote My Resignation Letter: Chris Thomas pens a poignant reflection on exhaustion and disappointment in ministry. "I think I entered ministry too early. Puffed up by praise, I charged forward on the toxic confidence of a vapour made of 90% gifting and 10% character. I was 18 and ready to change the world. I knew what was wrong with the church, what was wrong with other Christians, and what was wrong with, well, pretty much everything. Now here I am 25 years later. I’m 43 years old, and I’m not sure what I know anymore."
4. Are You Too Concerned with Your Child's Behavior? Tedd Tripp asks important questions about our motivations in parenting. One of several important points is, "Many idols of the heart will pollute our interventions with our children. These idols will not motivate us to act for the well-being of our child, but for our own reputations."
5. Occupation Growth and Decline since 1970: This is a fascinating infographic. Some unsurprising occupations on this graph and some surprising ones, too.