Daly Focus Blog
I know my wife loves me.
She tells me so every day, but she also brings me coffee.
I usually start each day with some quiet time for devotions and to look over work for the day ahead. Many days Jean will bring me a nice hot cup of joe. It’s her way of saying, “I love you.”
I should say, it’s my way of hearing, “I love you.”
In the same way our personality has us hardwired to be introverted or extroverted, we all feel love in specific ways.
“I think abortion is immoral. But I’m glad it’s legal.”
Ever heard someone say that? Not only do I disagree with the sentiment, it’s inherently illogical. Most people who say it don’t realize that.
Then again, a lot of us in the pro-life camp may not realize it, either. We often don’t know how to respond to arguments that portray abortion as a practical and rational choice for society.
My answer to that kind of reasoning is to point to two fundamental questions that have driven the debate about abortion, euthanasia, and other crucial pro-life issues for decades:
1.
Yesterday I shared with you how schools, community groups and churches can work together to help parents increase their children’s likelihood of success in life through the evidence-based, bilingual program Raising Highly Capable Kids.
Developed to build stronger families by empowering parents, Raising Highly Capable Kids helps parents understand what foundational building blocks their children need to exhibit the positive behaviors – and avoid the negative behaviors – that will ultimately help them do well in life.
Parenting isn’t easy. Moms and dads – the people who wield the most influence over a child’s life – can sometimes feel like they’re flying blind.
And if that’s true for parents who are doing their job in the best of circumstances, can you imagine the challenges families living in at-risk communities face? Not only do they have to deal with the typical homework struggles and behavioral issues, these parents must do it while navigating poverty, neighborhood gang activity and other hardships.
You have to be a creative parent when your child is strong-willed. A headstrong child rarely backs down from even the smallest challenge when it’s a question of who’s in control.
One of our boys is strong-willed, and Jean and I have joked about how we’re raising a lawyer-in-training. He can find a loophole in anything.
Jean once held a women’s tea and set out chocolates in the living room. She later discovered half the bowl was gone.
Several months ago, the Daly household grew by two when we invited foster kids into our home. I’m happy we’re getting a chance to have an impact on these young people.
Well … I am now, at least.
The credit for our involvement belongs to Jean. It was easy for me to rationalize why we couldn’t do it. “We’re too busy. We’ve got two teenagers and have so much going on. How could we possibly do this?”
Jean just looked at me and said, “How can we not do it?”
That’s the dilemma we often face, isn’t it?
The empty nest years can sneak up on a marriage.
I shared my thoughts about this in a post a few weeks ago:
“Well-meaning moms and dads spend so many years completely devoted to the task of raising their children that they often forget to be husband and wife. It’s a situation that may be manageable while the kids are still at home and there’s enough work to ‘float’ the relationship along – but it can become unbearable after the kids move out.
Parents, every day you’re passing on a legacy to your children.
What are you leaving them?
Jean and I have two teenage boys at home, and we think a lot about how we can instill them with the biblical values we know will carry them through their lives.
There are countless ways moms and dads can pass their faith on to their children, a lot of them based on the family’s schedule and each member’s unique personality.
I’ve needed God to give me a second chance to do His will a few times in my life.
Just one example would be my high school football career. I was my team’s starting quarterback and spent long hours honing my performance and pushing myself to be at the top of my game. Several colleges had offered me scholarships and future opportunities seemed wide open for me.
But God started moving me in another direction the night my big brother came to a game.
It’s a problem so big that some experts are calling it a public health concern. It impacts both a person’s emotional and physical wellbeing.
And while it can affect most anyone, this condition especially targets the elderly.
The problem I’m talking about?
Loneliness.
Complicating the issue of loneliness is that there’s a stigma around it. Some people might think loneliness is due to a “social weakness, or an inability to stand on one’s own,” according to a recent New York Times article on the topic.
Jim Daly is a husband, father and President of Focus on the Family and host of its National Radio Hall of Fame broadcast. His blog, Daly Focus, is full of timely commentary and wisdom designed to help you navigate and understand today’s culture. His latest book is Marriage Done Right.
