Family and Home Archives

How to Provide a Healthier, Happier Childhood for Your Son

According to Dr. Meg Meeker, boys today grow up in a world that is often at odds with their natural instincts to be curious and to explore. They’re taught to be cooperative and passive, to stay safe and avoid risks. What’s more, parents don’t always recognize how dangerous social media, popular entertainment, and marathon gaming can be for boys. Overconsumption can deaden their sensibilities and disconnect them from human interaction.

Dr. Meeker bases her expertise in years of clinical experience as a pediatrician, relevant scientific data, common sense, and her Christian faith.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, parenting March 27, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Rediscovering Faith in a Culture of Chaos

God’s light often shines the brightest when circumstances are at their darkest and most bleak.

Which makes today’s world an opportunity for Christians to be salt and light by recommitting to studying God’s Word and allowing the Holy Spirit to work through us into the lives of others – our families, our neighborhoods, our churches, and our communities. We are ambassadors for Christ, called to be prepared to “give a reason for the hope that is in us” (1 Peter 3:15).

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

Training Kids to Listen to the Right Voices

Rich Griffith is a single Dad of three teenage sons, all of whom he adopted. He soon realized that despite ministering to teenagers for many years, he didn’t know how to disciple his children as a parent. Neither do a lot of parents.

And that is why Rich likes to help parents teach their children how to engage their world by discerning which voices in their lives are helpful and harmful. The wisdom for determining whether or not a voice is worth listening to is discovered through what he calls the “Three Ts”:

Time.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, parenting March 21, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Tying Ties

There are a lot of great dads out there, but many men are disengaged from their boys. They don’t see masculinity as a quality they offer to their sons. They see it as something boys figure out on their own.

That was my story. I didn’t have a father to teach me how to be a man. I had to figure it out by myself. But that journey wasn’t easy, and it’s why I can say from experience that leaving a boy in the hands of “trial-and-error” is not ideal.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, parenting March 20, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Simplify

Author Jeff Manion once decided to de-clutter his life. His goal was to throw out or give away five items every day. Over a period of six weeks, he got rid of outdated video tapes and DVDs, old sneakers, and more than a few things from the garage. At the end of that short period, Jeff succeeded in tossing out a total of 210 items.

He thought he’d feel relief. Instead, he felt disappointment – not because he missed the things he’d gotten rid of but because his life was no different in their absence.

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

Nurture Your Wife, Stay Married for Life

Maybe you can relate to this exchange between author and speaker, Dan Seaborn, and his wife Jane.

Jane: I like hot tea.Dan: I like sweetened iced tea.

Jane:I don’t like to be sweaty.Dan: I love to sweat.

Jane: Yellow lights mean stop.Dan: Yellow lights mean floor it, baby!

Jane: He drives way too fast.Dan: She drives way too slowly.

Jane: I like grilled chicken.Dan:I like my chicken deep fried in oil and covered in Shake and Bake.

Topics: Family and Home March 18, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Ministering to the Heart of Pastors

Pastoring can be a tough, stressful job.

Most of us don’t realize how true that is because we’re only with our pastors for an hour or two on Sunday mornings and have little understanding of the time and energy necessary to keep the church moving forward.

Did you know that the average pastor works 50 to 74 hours per week, doing all kinds of jobs – teacher, counselor, worship leader, business executive, even janitorial and maintenance work?

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith March 17, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Restoring Your Marriage After an Affair

Infidelity is one of the top reasons why marriages end in divorce. That should come as no surprise. It’s hard to repair the gaping wounds that an affair rips into a relationship. Many couples choose to walk away. Even Christians often view infidelity as a “get out of jail free card.”

Josh and Katie Walters know firsthand the betrayal and devastation of infidelity. They now serve on staff at Seacoast Church, a multi-campus ministry in South Carolina, but six years into their marriage, Katie confessed that she was having an affair with one of Josh’s best friends.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, marriage March 14, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Marriage is a Team Sport

The secret to winning in a team sport is no secret at all. Teammates share a common goal, and they work together to achieve it.

That commitment to unity is what makes marriage work, too. Working together as a team isn’t always easy. Joshua and Christi Straub are both experienced counselors, but even they overlook the importance of teamwork from time to time. Like the day Joshua came home and told Christi about all of the exciting projects he had going on at work.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: marriage March 13, 2025 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Toddler Discipline

Most toddlers share one thing in common – they want their own way. We’ve all seen the “throw yourself on the floor” tantrums that often shows up as a result. But what’s a parent to do when the kicking and screaming starts? We’d like to share a few helpful suggestions.

Most importantly, when your child demands his own way, don’t give in. If you do, he’ll learn that tantrums work and is more likely to throw a fit the next time he wants something.

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