This August I had lunch with Andrew Kelley, a local church pastor who lives near me in Southern California. As I often do when I meet with pastors, I asked Kelley what trends or discipleship challenges he was noticing in his pastoral ministry. His answer launched us into a fascinating conversation about “hustle culture,” Joe Rogan, Ryan Holiday, modern stoicism, and how it all was influencing his congregation (particularly the men). A couple months later, I worked with Kelley and another pastor, Cory Brock, on an article they co-authored for TGC, exploring this topic: “How Comfort Culture and Hustle Ideology Fill the Meaning Gap.” The article is a great example of why we do what we do at TGC, and how we do what we do.

First, the why. At TGC, we seek to apply timeless gospel truth to timely cultural issues, in hopes of serving the church. In this article, Kelley and Brock skillfully analyze a growing cultural trend, in a way that doesn’t condemn adherents but which cautions Christians to recognize potential problems. It’s a balanced, careful look at a relevant topic—both insightful and practical for Christians in a secular age. The article is one example of what a reader observed in TGC’s year-end survey: “TGC brings me the words of experts, people who have time and knowledge to explain issues that I don’t have the wisdom to interpret myself.”

The article also speaks to how we do what we do. In order to know what TGC should address in our online content, and how to address it, editors like me spend a lot of time speaking with pastors and church leaders in the trenches. Unsurprisingly, what they notice or face in their local congregations is often good fodder for topics we should address on our website. In this case, my lunch with a local pastor alerted me to a fascinating cultural trend that wasn’t fully on my radar. Now, we’ve published the article below that unpacks the trend for believers everywhere, with more articles on this topic in the works for 2023.

If you appreciate TGC resources which help you think deeply and Christianly about contemporary life and culture, would you support our ministry with a year-end gift? Thanks for reading and supporting TGC. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!