One of my professors stopped me and my roommate in the hall during graduation week from seminary and said, "I don't know you two very well, but I have been watching both of you for three years. I have an observ...

I sat listening to her in an abandoned school building in our neighborhood. Bible verses, scrawled in Spanish, were left as blackboard relics of some former evangelism class. They were intersected by expletives...

An odor blew across my fence on a recent Wednesday afternoon, interrupting my pruning. I looked under the tangerine tree long enough to realize I didn't just get sprayed by a skunk. I smelled weed.Cannabis is a...

When I was a teen, I invited several friends to our youth group. Nobody told me to invite them. I just wanted them to have what I had: a solid faith and a wonderful group of friends where I felt accepted and l...

Recently, some churches have begun calling themselves missional. In truth, however, aren't all churches called to join in God's mission? If so, then what's the difference between doing missions and being missio...

One of the better books I've read recently is Souls in Transition by noted sociologist Christian Smith. He is studying the age characteristics of the emerging adult. They are choosing to navigate life in a...

For years, people have lambasted iconic fashion doll Barbie and her employer, Mattel, for her insane body proportions: Her legs are too long. Her bust is too big. Her waist is ridiculously skinny. Now, it seems...

We all know teens and young adults spend a great deal of time staring at screens (i.e.,  smartphones, tablets, flat-screen televisions). According to Nielsen's Audio Today Report, they also engage in a for...

Teens are feeling significant levels of stress these days, struggling with pressures at school, home and on the job. Experts say stressed-out teens—particularly those who don't have very effective coping ...

The American Dream is alive and well among Millennials, but the dream looks quite a bit different for them than for their parents and grandparents.Youth in their late teens and 20s place a premium on mobility a...