Jim Daly

Simple Steps to Improve Your Marriage

Could you use a simple tip to improve your marriage?

How about 100 simple tips?

Matt and Lisa Jacobson, my guests on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly, actually have them for you.

After 25 years of marriage, Matt and Lisa looked at each other and decided, “Let’s each write down one hundred things that we’ve done to create a loving marriage.” When they compared notes, they realized that big decisions are important, but most of the magic in a relationship is the result of small decisions that stack up over time.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family

Using Kindness to Open Doors in the Culture

I think about kindness a lot because I believe it lies at the heart of the Gospel. I’ve never heard of anyone becoming a Christian as a result of judgment, condemnation, or ridicule.

It occurs to me that Scripture never tells us to be “nice” but to be “kind.” Nice is usually a thin veneer of kindness with nothing of substance underneath.

One of my favorite verses is Romans 2:4: “Or do you … not know that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” It is God’s kindness that opens people’s hearts to God’s message.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family

Created by God for a Purpose

I’m sure you’ve wished you could change something about yourself. We all have. Taller. Shorter. Curly hair. Straight hair. We wish we were as athletic as someone else or could play an instrument.

Desiring strength in an area where we are weak is common, but it can cause us to lose sight of our greater purpose in Christ and fall into despair as a result. Especially children. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death for 10-to-14-year-olds.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family

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.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family

Living As a Disciple of Jesus in Community

When people ask me why they should go to church, I remind them of this: Human beings exist in two worlds – the physical and the spiritual. The physical world includes everything we can touch, see, smell, and hear. The spiritual world includes things that are no less real even though they can’t be directly observed.

Human life is biological, but it transcends biology. Although the spiritual realm can’t be physically seen or touched, it can be experienced – like when we feel there must be more to life than living and dying.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: faith

Are You Stuck?

Is your marriage stuck in the doldrums?

The word “doldrums” is a nautical term. It describes a region near the equator where trade winds from the north converge with trade winds from the south. They neutralize each other to the point that wind near the ocean surface completely dies out. That’s bad news for vessels that rely on wind to move forward. They’re “stuck in the doldrums” – hopelessly adrift until the breeze kicks up again.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events

Understanding the Spiritual Impact of Healthy Living

Is pursuing a healthy lifestyle something we can actually enjoy?

Author Gary Thomas says, “Yes.”

I trust Gary, but I’m skeptical. If you’re anything like me, your lazy side frequently wins out over your desire to take health and fitness seriously. We know our health is important, but it’s hard to be consistent.

I’m talking with Gary on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly about pursuing and maintaining strong, physical health, so we can be fit and effective in serving God’s kingdom.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith

Confidence Through Adversity

Some parents believe you develop a child’s self-confidence by protecting them from adversity. That strategy seems reasonable, but it’s actually counter-productive. Children need love and support, but they also need challenges. Effective parenting isn’t about making children comfortable right where they are. It’s about encouraging them toward something even greater.

Let me give you a personal example: My father figures were difficult to respect. My biological father died from alcohol. My step dad abandoned me and my siblings the day of my mother’s funeral.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: family, parenting

Moms and Anger: Understanding Your Triggers

Parenting can be frustrating!

Authors Amber Lia and Wendy Speake thought they were the only moms who believed that. Then they interviewed other women and discovered that many struggle.

Anger catches many moms off guard. Stress slowly builds until something finally pushes them over the edge and then – boom! – an outburst. Shame quickly follows, which immediately translates into isolation and feelings of inadequacy.

For every brave mom who acknowledges a problem with anger, hundreds more wonder if they’re the only ones who struggle with it.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: parenting

Healthy Budget Habits for Your Marriage

Jade Warshaw serves as a debt elimination expert, financial coach, and co-host of The Ramsey Show. But she wasn’t always so savvy about financial matters.

Perhaps her lowest moment came while standing in line at a Publix grocery store with $45 worth of food, fearful that her card would be declined. Overspending on credit cards was a common practice for Jade and her husband back then, eventually racking up $460,000 in debt.

Inspired to make a change, they worked hard for seven and a half years to pay it off.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family

Simple Steps to Improve Your Marriage

Using Kindness to Open Doors in the Culture

Created by God for a Purpose

Restoring Your Marriage After an Affair

Living As a Disciple of Jesus in Community

Are You Stuck?

Understanding the Spiritual Impact of Healthy Living

Confidence Through Adversity

Moms and Anger: Understanding Your Triggers

Healthy Budget Habits for Your Marriage

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