Daly Focus Blog
I’ve needed God to give me a second chance a few times.
Just one example would be my high school football career. I was my team’s starting quarterback and spent long hours honing my abilities 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. I was proud of my accomplishments and potential. Arrogantly so.
God humbled me. That journey started the night my big brother confronted me after one of my games.
What do you think a typical week is like for your pastor? A few hours of study and a sermon on Sunday? The occasional hospital- or home-visit?
I recently talked with two couples – Marshall and Merrie Eizenga and Sam and Pauline Doerksen – who say many pastors routinely experience stress at the level of first responders.
They would know. The Eizengas served as pastors for 35 years. The Doerksens were pastors for 22 years. Together, they now co-direct the Kerith Creek Retreat Center in Canada.
I’ve interviewed parenting experts who say, “Let go, and allow your kids to make mistakes.”
“That’s easier said than done!” is how most parents would answer back. Author Crystal Paine discovered just how hard parenting can be in the drop-off lane at school. The principal stopped her husband, Jesse, and asked for a meeting.
Their daughter had been exhibiting serious behavior problems and had become suicidal. Other students labelled her a bully, and she was dismissed from school.
According to Psychology Today, 63% of people who say they feel lonely are currently married. Two people drive in the same car, sit at the same table, and sleep in the same bed … yet they feel worlds apart.
My colleague, Dr. Greg Smalley, discovered how lonely his wife, Erin, was after he spent a few weeks during the pandemic cooking family meals when their adult children moved home for a few months. Erin quickly wore out from trying to work and cook for the entire family.
America has made great strides toward racial equality. But progress must continue. Our children must be taught how to become living examples of God’s love for every tongue, tribe, and nation.
How do you teach your children to love and serve others with respect, without regard for someone’s ethnicity or skin color?
To speak to that challenge, Trillia Newbell and Dr. Danny Huerta are joining us on our Focus on the Family Broadcast “Teaching Children to Celebrate Racial Diversity.”
Trillia Newbell is appearing on our program for the first time.
Stay-at-home moms are a big topic here at Focus on the Family. I have great respect for them. They work hard from sunup to sundown, and they often don’t get acknowledged for who they are or what they do every day.
If you’re a stay-at-home mom who feels isolated, alone, or overwhelmed, I encourage you to listen to our Focus on the Family Broadcast “Discovering Your New Identity as a Stay-at-Home Mom.” Our guest is Jen Babakhan, who talked with me about God’s calling for mothers and why your role in the family is so important.
Jeff and Cheryl Scruggs were married for ten years.
The first time.
In their mid-twenties, Jeff and Cheryl moved to Los Angeles and lived a stereotypical California lifestyle. They were successful at their jobs. They made a lot of money. They even had an ocean-front home with all of the right stuff to fill it. Yet, their marriage was mostly empty.
Cheryl thought their lack of intimacy would eventually correct itself.
It didn’t.
She thought the birth of their twins would fill their emptiness.
What’s the single most important thing you can do for your relationship?
Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott answer that question with a simple: get healthy. Your relationship with your kids, your friends, and your spouse will only be as healthy as you are. Becoming healthy requires allowing God’s word to higlight your strengths and weaknesses.
The Parrotts once visited Michelangelo’s famous statue King David while visiting Italy. Thousands of other people were there that day as well.
Our country is at a crossroads. Society is rapidly changing – and not always for the better. Some people call it “woke” or “cancel” culture, where only certain points of view are allowed to be expressed.
Many Americans feel like these disturbing seismic changes happened overnight. The truth is our culture has been chipping away at the Judeo-Christian value system for decades. Increasingly, the Christian viewpoint is unwelcome in public settings. And that problem will only become more challenging for families and for the church.
I have strong feelings about the importance of dads being in the home. That’s partly because of my experiences. I’ve seen the impact of fatherlessness up close and personal. My stepdad abandoned me and my siblings within hours of my mother’s funeral. A few years later, my biological father died of alcoholism, and I spent time in foster care.
My views are reinforced by the data. Every scientific measurement of child well-being around the globe consistently reveals that fatherlessness is profoundly harmful to children and society.
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.
