Family and Home Archives

Identifying Harmful Patterns to Heal Your Marriage

Have you ever gotten your car stuck, in mud, or like those of us in Colorado, snow? You rock your car back and forth to get traction, but your tires spin, and you get nowhere.

Husbands and wives can get stuck like that. In anger, so you’re always battling each other. Or busyness, so you never have the time or energy to connect. Or maybe like my guests on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly, Justin and Trisha Davis, you’re stuck in the saddest rut of all: apathy – you’ve given up and stopped fighting for your marriage.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, marriage August 26, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Navigate Your Differences

Dr. Gary Chapman wrote the book on love. Literally. He’s the author of the best-selling classic The Five Love Languages. But even Dr. Chapman had to learn how to love his wife well. Early on in their marriage, he and his wife Karolyn struggled to navigate their differences. They had such a tough time that at one point they both wondered if they had married the wrong person.

My wife Jean and I experienced something similar.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, marriage August 25, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Forming New Habits for Your Marriage

The stress of daily life takes a toll on even the happiest couples – which is why marriage and family counselor Dr. Randy Schroeder says seeking marital happiness is unrealistic. A better approach is to pursue consistent marital satisfaction. How? Good habits.

Dr. Schroeder offers four “daily essentials” for creating good habits in your marriage:

“Goodbye, I love you.” Whoever leaves the house first should initiate this.

“Goodnight, I love you.” Whoever goes to bed first should initiate this.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: marriage August 21, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Supporting Your Pre-Teen’s Faith Journey

A common question we get here at Focus on the Family is from parents who ask how to raise children who embrace the Christian faith. Many moms and dads feel unqualified to lead their children along their journey of faith.

The challenges are real. Many teens and preteens consume hours of digital media every day, which unwittingly shapes their view of God, the world, and themselves according to the values of people they don’t even know.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, parenting August 19, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Say This, Not That: Smart Parenting Tips for Misbehavior

Have you ever:

Regretted something you said to your child in the heat of a conflict?

Or wished you’d spoken in a different tone?

Or repeated for the hundredth time this month, “Why don’t you listen to me?” or “When will you ever learn?”

We parents are busy, stressed, and pulled in a lot of directions and don’t always handle circumstances in just the right way.

According to authors Amber Lia and Wendy Speake, these stumbles occur because we’re not intentional about how we respond in a crisis.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, parenting August 12, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Learning to Love Your Spouse Well

It’s often easier to tell your spouse, “I love you,” than to show them through your actions.

I can tell you that’s true not only from personal experience but from the sheer number of questions we get here at Focus on the Family from married couples about navigating busy schedules, financial issues, and communication and conflict. Each question represents a small everyday moment that somehow turned into a disruption to the couple’s marital unity.

Authors Matt and Lisa Jacobson are with me on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly to encourage husbands and wives to serve and love each other well.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: marriage August 7, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Meet Your Neighbors

Life is busy. For everybody. We spend so much time away from our homes that we never meet our neighbors. We pull into our garages and close the door behind us. That’s too bad because life is better when it’s lived in community.

A lovely example of that went viral on social media. It featured 87-year-old Doug Turner, a widower, who rang his neighbor Michelle’s doorbell one winter morning. She had only lived in the neighborhood for a few months, but she recognized Mr.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith August 4, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Curses into Sweetness

My wife, Jean, is the living embodiment of Proverbs 16:24, which says, “Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.” Every time I call her on the phone, she answers with a delightful tone that lets me know she’s glad to hear from me. She reminds me that I’m loved and encourages me when I’m having a stressful day. Her positivity blesses me.

It’s not easy to speak words of blessing if we weren’t taught how growing up.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: parenting July 30, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Government Reaffirms Religious Rights of Federal Workers

According to a newly released memorandum from the United States Office of Personnel Management, government employees do not lose their First Amendment rights when they begin their work for Uncle Sam each day.

Scott Kupor, who serves as director of the agency, offered long overdue clarity in the document, especially given some of the hostility that Christians have encountered on the job during the previous administration.

“The Federal workforce should be a welcoming place for Federal employees who practice a religious faith,” wrote Director Kupor.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith July 29, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Getting a Handle on Your Family Finances

You and your spouse don’t always see eye to eye. One of you talks too much – or not enough. One of you feels hot while the other is shivering cold. And one of you is probably a saver while the other is a spender.

Those differences – especially the last one – can drive you apart. Petty disagreements about money can easily turn into full-grown battles that bleed a relationship dry.

Well-known author, radio host, and financial expert Dave Ramsey is my guest on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: marriage July 29, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura