Family and Home Archives

Living for Christ in a Me-First World

How do we, as believers, live for Christ in a world that constantly puts self first? Leslie Vernick addresses this highly relevant topic in her book, How to Find Selfless Joy in a Me-First World.

Our culture makes me the highest priority. From social media posts and selfies to the aisles of bookstores that are filled with self-help books – our individualistic, American culture calls us to be the best version of ourselves to the exclusion of God and others.

However, this hyper focus on self is one of Satan’s strategies to make us believe that we are the center of our own universe.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith June 18, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Learning and Teaching Godly Manhood

Many of the problems in the church, in our families, and in society could be solved if men were spiritually and emotionally mature – that is, if they were able to meaningfully connect with their God, their wives, and their children.

Men’s ministries often focus on a man’s outward behavior but ignore the deeper influences. Men shouldn’t be coddled like little boys, they should be challenged as men. A man needs another man to step into his life and to challenge him to mature from the little boy he was into the man God is calling him to be.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, manhood June 17, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Creating a No-Regrets Marriage

King Artaxerxes commissioned Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Nehemiah and his men set to work with trowels in one hand and with swords in the other, defending against enemies on all sides (Neh. 4:17).

In many ways, married couples face a similar challenge. With one hand, they’re building their marriage, their children, and their careers. With the other, they’re wielding the sword of the Word of God and defending their families against a culture that’s increasingly hostile.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, marriage, spouse June 14, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

How Do You Forgive Evil?

Forgiveness is never easy, but how do you forgive evil?

For Polly Sheppard and Reverend Anthony Thompson, that question is no mere hypothetical. Polly was a member of a weekly Bible study led by Anthony’s wife, Myra, at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina.

On the evening of June 17, 2015, 12 members of Myra’s group came together for study. A few minutes in, they welcomed a young white man who unexpectedly came into the church.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, evil, forgiveness June 13, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Navigating the Challenges Teens Face

Social media. Cyberbullying. Peer pressure. Drug and alcohol abuse. Pornography. Depression. Suicide.

Parenting teenagers is not for the faint of heart.

Moms and dads play a critical role in guiding their children through the challenges that arise in the teen years. Their mission is not to protect their children from every adversity, but to train them to develop the faith and strength of character that will carry them through it.

A helpful goal is to parent your teenager toward becoming a responsible adult rather than toward short-term obedience.

Topics: Family and Home June 10, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Finding Hope Again

Everybody has moments where they feel a little sad. But some people encounter depression so fierce they don’t know if they’ll ever come out of it again.

Counselors identify six things that lead us to feel overwhelmed, hopeless, and helpless:

A traumatic eventStrained relationshipsSerious health problemsCrushing disappointmentUnchangeable circumstancePainful loss

Kay Warren has experienced all of those. Kay co-founded Saddleback Church with her husband, RickWarren, in California in 1979. She had been sexually abused, battled cancer and depression, and spent years trying to help her son, Matthew, battle his own depression – a battle she and Rick lost when Matthew died by suicide at the age of 27.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: depression, faith, hope June 7, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Embracing God’s Purpose for Your Marriage

Is there a secret to a happy marriage?

That’s a common question. It’s also a tough one.

On the one hand, who doesn’t want a happy marriage? Everyone walks down the aisle believing they’re committing themselves to a spouse who will fill their life with joy and fulfillment. On the other hand, when couples reach out to Focus on the Family, many are struggling because their marriage isn’t making them as happy as they thought it would.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, couple, faith, marriage, spouse June 3, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Harnessing Your Strength to Transform Your Marriage

Wonder Woman.

Batgirl.

Black Widow.

The Invisible Woman.

Wives.

What do all of these women have in common?

Well, they all can be strong and fierce in character. They’re all capable of having bold convictions and standing firmly behind their decisions. Really, the comparisons could go on and on.

There’s really only one difference: Fictional superheroines are esteemed because they stand on their own and lead their lives independent of men.

God never intended Christian wives to do the same.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, marriage, spouse, wife, women May 31, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Finding Healing and Hope After an Abortion

When Pat decided to have an abortion, she was convinced it was the right thing to do.

Her first marriage had ended a few years before as a teenager when her husband, also a teen, abandoned her, leaving her with a newborn son. She tried to pick up the broken pieces of her life by enrolling in college, despite the responsibilities she carried as a single mom. As a student, she wrote articles for the National Organization for Women and wholeheartedly supported abortion as a woman’s right.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: abortion, broadcast, hope, pro-life May 30, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Justice Thomas Speaks Truth: Abortion IS a Tool of Modern-Day Eugenics

Yesterday’s Supreme Court decision that upheld Indiana’s fetal remains law – legislation that requires burial or cremation of a baby’s body following an abortion – was welcome news regarding a very uncomfortable topic, of course.

It’s hard to even fathom why anyone would oppose these types of standards, but Planned Parenthood’s wicked and evil opposition to anything that hints at the rights and respect due pre-born life shouldn’t shock us anymore.

At the same time, there was disappointing news within the same decision.

Topics: Family and Home May 29, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura