Family and Home Archives

If You’re Concerned about Social Media, You Should See This Movie

I recently had the opportunity to have lunch with Kirk Cameron. He’s a good friend to Focus and he’s currently promoting his new movie event, Kirk Cameron: CONNECT.

Those of you of a certain age will remember Kirk as the teen star of the Growing Pains TV series in the 1980s. More recently, he has starred in a number of successful faith-based films, including Left Behind and Fireproof.

CONNECT addresses a subject that is very important to all of us here at Focus, and if you’re a parent, it’s probably important to you as well.

Topics: Family and Home February 1, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Affair Proofing Your Marriage

Marriage is central to what we do here at Focus on the Family.

We believe that marriage is the foundation of the family. We also believe that God’s design for marriage is a relationship where both husband and wife are committed to loving and caring for one another for a lifetime.

The problem is, men and women are selfish creatures, and their selfishness comes out in all kinds of unhealthy ways. One of the most devastating aberrations is an affair.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, husband, intimacy, marriage, sex January 30, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

The Three Most Spoken Words in American Homes May Not Be “I Love You”

Joshua Becker says, “I don’t know if the three most common words in American homes are, ‘I love you,’ or ‘Let’s go shopping.’”

The amount of stuff the average American owns is astounding. Our cabinets, crawl spaces, garages, and storage rooms are filled to capacity. Some people even rent additional space at a storage unit to hold even more stuff.

The statistics are unbelievable. American homes have tripled in size in the last 50 years, yet 10 percent of families rent offsite storage.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, family January 29, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Be an Advocate for the Marriages Around You

What’s your favorite song?

The reason it’s your favorite is probably because you enjoy the vocals of the lead singer. But perhaps more than you think about, you also enjoy the song because of a cast of characters who some would say are just as important as the lead: the backing singers.

Their chorus of voices harmonize with the lead and give the song a beauty, richness, and texture the main vocalist could never achieve alone.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, husband, marriage, wife January 26, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Making Children Mind without Losing Yours

Dr. Kevin Leman humorously says of children, “We have seen the enemy, and they are small. They’re unionized. The ‘ankle-biter battalion’ is on the move, so you better have a game plan.”

I’m sure many parents would heartily agree with that assessment. To that end, Dr. Leman is with us on our program “Game Plan for Raising Well-Behaved Children” to share a wealth of practical tips that can bring order to the chaos in your home more quickly than you might think possible.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, discipline, kids, parenting January 25, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Uncovering the Secrets to a Happy Marriage

Julie and Clay’s first baby was due any time. To celebrate and to enjoy one last date night – at least for a while – Julie planned a romantic dinner at their favorite restaurant.

That evening, Julie arrived before Clay, and waited.

And waited.

He was supposed to come there straight from work, but twenty minutes passed and still no Clay. She called his phone. No answer.

Thirty minutes passed.

Then an hour.

Clay and Julie lost their reservation, and Julie’s expectations for the night were ruined.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, husband, marriage, relationships, wife January 22, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Focus on the Family Best Seller List

Week Ending January 12, 2018.

Enjoy!: The Gift of Sexual Pleasure for Women (by Cliff & Joyce Penner)
The Married Guy’s Guide to Great Sex (by Cliff & Joyce Penner)
Little Book of Great Dates (by Dr. Greg & Erin Smalley)
Kingdom Woman (by Tony Evans, Chrystal Evans Hurst)
Financial Peace Junior Kit (by Dave Ramsey)
Put the Disciple Into Discipline (by Erin MacPherson)
Joni and Ken: An Untold Love Story (Ken & Joni Eareckson Tada)
The Case for Life (by Scott Klusendorf)
The Kindness Challenge (by Shaunti Feldhahn)
NIrV Adventures in Odyssey Children’s Bible
Cherish (by Gary Thomas)
Martin Luther (by Eric Metaxas)
Openness Unhindered (by Rosaria Champagne Butterfield)
Honey, We Need to Talk (by David E.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family, finances, marriage, relationships January 19, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Jase and Missy Robertson Talk About Finding God in Our Pain

You see somebody’s true character when they struggle.

That’s what’s so great about Jase and Missy Robertson, from the Duck Dynasty family. They’re the real deal. They’re as down home as they portray themselves to be. They also love Jesus and want you to know it.

The whole Robertson clan has a deep-seated faith in Christ. That was never more evident than when their daughter Mia was born with a cleft palate – a serious condition that required multiple cranial and facial surgeries, eight major procedures so far in the first 11 years of her life.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, family January 18, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Expressing Pro-Life Views in a Winsome Way

I could have been aborted.

I was born in the ’60s prior to Roe v. Wade, but even then many people felt my mother would have been justified to abort me. She was the perfect candidate. She was 42 and in a high-risk pregnancy. My dad was an alcoholic, and I was the fifth child of a marriage that was already struggling to stay together. I was born into a household in turmoil.

I could have been aborted.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, policy, pro-life January 16, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

A Quadriplegic, Cancer-Surviving Woman Talks About God and Suffering

Joni Eareckson Tada says that suffering is “like a little splash-over of hell.”

Few people can talk about the intensity of suffering with more authority than Joni. A tragic accident fifty years ago left her a quadriplegic, requiring 24-hour care. She’s also survived a stage-3 breast cancer diagnosis, the removal of a 3-inch tumor, and months of chemotherapy that followed.

So when she talks about how to handle suffering in a way that enriches our lives and glorifies God, we all do well to listen.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, pro-life January 11, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura