Jim Daly

Finding God’s Beauty in Alzheimer’s and Dementia

Dementia is one of the most difficult issues that families face today because the diagnosis is often a surprise, even though the statistics surrounding it are staggering.

Dementia is the general term for deterioration in memory and thinking, behavioral processing, and the ability to perform everyday tasks for yourself.

Sarah Smith, our guest on our Focus on the Family Broadcast “Finding God’s Beauty in Alzheimer’s and Dementia,” was shocked when her fiercely independent mother – nicknamed Beauty – was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family

Men and Relationships: What Works and What Doesn’t

I have an outstanding set of tools in my garage. My brother and brothers-in-law are jealous of my collection. I have hammers, a circular saw, a miter saw, a router … everything I need for a decent workshop.

The trouble is, I’m not much of a handyman. That circular saw … I’ve never used it. And the router? I’m not entirely sure what it’s for. I never really learned how to use all of those tools.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: marriage

Walking Through the Healing Process

Pain has been called “the gift that no one wants.” And with good reason. Pain is a very real part of life – for all of us.

Many of you know my story. My mom died when I was nine years old. My stepdad abandoned me and my siblings within hours of her funeral. A few years later, my biological father died of alcoholism, and I spent several years in foster care. I got through it all mainly because of Christians like my football coach, who inspired me to turn to Christ and walk a path of hope and healing.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith

Experiencing a Fulfilled Marriage

Do you believe that God can save a marriage – any marriage?

Patricia Ashley didn’t always think so. At one time, her marriage to Vernon was dead. She says, “I didn’t love my husband. I didn’t hate him. I wasn’t glad to see him come. I wasn’t glad to see him go. It didn’t make a difference what time he came in or if he came in at all. It was dead.”

They were isolated from each other.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: marriage

Helping Our Kids Manage Technology Well

It’s ironic, but true. In an age when technology connects us more than ever, teenagers are lonelier and more disconnected than any previous generation.

In the five years prior to the pandemic, the number of high school seniors who said they felt lonely dramatically increased – from 26 percent to almost 40 percent. In the past year, that percentage has increased to well over 50 percent.

Even taking Covid restrictions into account, today’s kids don’t engage face to face as much as past generations did.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: children, technology

No, Secretary of State Antony Blinken – Abortion is Not a Human Right

I sometimes wonder if government officials who champion abortion are blinded to the truth – or just knowingly embrace an indefensible position for the sake of ideological partisanship.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken comes to mind. He recently declared, “Standing up for human rights everywhere is in America’s interests.”

I would agree – it’s never right to embrace a wrong and defending the dignity of each person is a noble ideal. The United States may not be the world’s police force, but America has historically stood up for those in need, something we can all be proud of.

Yet during the same speech, Mr.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: abortion, pro-life

Does Living Together Help or Hurt?

In 2021, it’s more common for young adults to live with a boyfriend or a girlfriend than to be married.

One of the main reasons for this (for non-believers and believers alike) is the desire to be certain that the relationship is rooted in love. After all, you don’t buy a car without first test driving it. Why wouldn’t you take a relationship for a spin before making a lifetime commitment?

Perhaps the best reason to avoid cohabitation is that the data suggests that doing so significantly increases the possibility that a relationship will end badly.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: dating, marriage

Fighting for Joy as a Special Needs Parent

What do you do when you’ve prayed for a miracle … and the miracle never comes?

Jason Hague faced that situation after his son Jack was born. Like any father, Jason had dreams for his relationship with his son – the games they’d play together, the conversations they’d have.

Around age two, Jack started to regress developmentally. He struggled to walk. He lost his vocabulary and his ability to communicate. Jack was soon diagnosed with autism, and everything in Jason’s family changed.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: parenting

Loving Your Spouse in the Midst of Parenthood

Do you remember when you were first married – how you and your spouse enjoyed endless conversation, had fun together every weekend, and always seemed to have time for one another?

Do you remember how all of that changed in the years after you became parents – how every moment seemed busy with sports practice, dentist appointments, and school programs?

Once a couple has children, it’s easy for the marriage to get pushed down the priority list.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: marriage, parenting

A Bracelet That Can Change Someone’s Life

Bracelets as a form of fashion go back thousands of years, whether as jewelry made of gold, silver or even wood.

In recent years, though, bracelets have been used to help communicate a message or champion a particular cause.

My friend, Randy Hatcher, co-founder of Explore Your Faith, recently alerted me to a neat bracelet his organization is distributing. Here is how they describe it:

The bracelet is intended to be a relational, live, Gospel conversation starter.