Family and Home Archives

Leaving a Legacy of Love for Your Children

Bill Butterworth had something of an awakening when his father passed away.

At the funeral, Bill stood behind the lectern as the family representative and told stories about who his father was. Bill didn’t mention his father’s stock portfolio or real estate holdings. He shared about what his father believed, about what he valued, and recounted a few of the meaningful life lessons his father had taught him.

And all the while Bill was thinking, “Someday the funeral will be mine, and one of my kids will be standing behind a lectern.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, parenting January 2, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Reflecting the Heart of God in Your Parenting

I don’t know about you, but my wife, Jean, and I have days where our parenting doesn’t go very smoothly. Sometimes we’ll look at each other and wonder, “Is there a secret to all of this that we’re missing?”

A conversation I had with the late Dr. Karyn Purvis before she passed away reminds me of a concept that I wouldn’t exactly consider a secret, but it comes about as close as anything: Good parenting is rooted in the heart of God, which is all about connection.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, parenting December 29, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

She Thought All Christians Were Arrogant Until …

I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating.

In recent generations, some in the Christian community have seen homosexuality as a bigger sin than every other and homosexuals themselves as virtually beyond redemption.

It seems to me that we too often use the sword of the Spirit to attack other human beings rather than reach out to them.

There is no sin we can name that is bigger than one drop of Christ’s blood. Salvation in Christ is available to everyone.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, friendship, relationships December 27, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

A Lighthearted Look at Wedded Bliss

Marriage is serious business …. unless you’re comedian John Branyan.

Like this astute observation: “Have you ever noticed you’ve got to get your driver’s license renewed every four years, but you don’t have to get your marriage license renewed, ever. You’d think there’d at least be some kind of eye test. You look into the little machine, ‘Alright, Mr. Branyan, can you see your socks on the floor?’”

I think Jean could get on board with an idea like that.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, parenting December 26, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

The Ideal Soundtrack to Christmas Preparations

With only two shopping days left until Christmas, a lot of you are scurrying through malls today, searching for those last minute gifts. Others of you are loading up the car for a long drive or preparing to catch a flight to someplace special. Since Focus on the Family is closed today for a long holiday weekend, me and the rest of the staff aren’t in the office, so we can enjoy extra time with our families.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast December 23, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Lysa TerKeurst on Overcoming Self-Rejection

Henri Nouwen once said, “The greatest trap in life is not success, popularity, or power, but self-rejection. Success, popularity, and power can indeed present a great temptation, but their seductive quality often comes from … self-rejection.”

Henri is right. Self-rejection is dangerous.

It usually begins as a message communicated to us by others. But over time it becomes a lie that weaves itself into our lives and infects every relationship we’re in, including our relationship with God.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith December 22, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

The Wealth Is in the Waiting

Do you remember how hard it was to wait for Christmas when you were a kid?

I’m reminded of that every year at about this time as I watch the excitement in my two boys, Trent and Troy, grow over the holiday season. But their giddiness reminds me of something else as well.

The wealth is in the waiting!

You see, I’ve realized it’s the waiting that makes Christmas feel so special. Obviously, kids look forward to ripping the paper off gifts to discover what’s inside.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family December 21, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

What’s Your Love Style?

We’ve all got a love style.

It started forming back in childhood when your mom and dad connected with you emotionally, listened to you share your feelings, and made you understand that you mattered.

Or maybe they didn’t.

For good or for bad, the relational experiences of our early years form the roots for how – or even if – we emotionally attach to others.

Ideally, we’ll have an abundance of positive moments that enable us to become what Milan and Kay Yerkovich call “secure connectors.” Jesus was the personification of that love style.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, relationships December 19, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Did You Know This About Duck Dynasty?

Not many families are considered a “dynasty.”

And only one is credited with building a “Duck Dynasty.”

But I guess that’s the way you’d expect a family like the Robertsons to be characterized. After all, the family patriarch, Phil Robertson, turned down an opportunity for a professional football career because it would interfere with duck hunting season.

They’ve also built a highly successful duck call business, have starred in a record-breaking cable television series for several years now, and the men of the family are all well-known for wearing beards that have become something of a cultural icon.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, family, pop culture December 15, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

VIDEO: A 96-Year-Old Man, the Wife He Misses, and a Love Song

Today I want to share some sad news, and to remember a good man.

Fred Stobaugh, the elderly widower whose love song for his wife of 75 years went viral in 2013, passed away on Nov. 23.

“Oh Sweet Lorraine” eventually made Fred the oldest person to appear on the Billboard’s Hot 100 – and even helped save marriages in the process. Truly, the love he had for his wife was inspiring.

I want to honor Fred today, as well as his sweet Lorraine, by re-running the original post I first shared three years ago.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: husband, marriage, news, wife December 13, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura