Daly Focus Blog
The problem with life moving so fast is you never see the cracks starting to form.
That’s what Bob and Audrey discovered. They met in Bible college. They were passionate about their faith and each other and wanted to change the world together. They got married, and within a few years had three kids, were active in a national ministry, and began pastoring a thriving church. They attended marriage conferences and read books together. They were highly visible and well-known in their community.
On the surface, news that scientists are learning how to tweak the genetic code of organism cells – potentially “editing out” deadly illnesses and diseases – seems positive. Indeed, there is a lot of potential good that can be derived from technologies like these, which is why Focus on the Family supports its use in basic research as well as in treatment of diseases in adults and children.
But, as with most things, there are also potential dangers we have to be aware of.
When my first child Trent was born 17 years ago I knew two things right away:
I loved him desperately.
I didn’t know how to be a dad.
I doubt I was much different than most guys. There’s a lot about fathering that men have to learn as they go. But every new dad and soon-to-be new dad could benefit from a playbook. We’ve got just the thing for you on our Focus on the Family Broadcast “Helping Men Prepare for Fatherhood.”
We’re talking to Benjamin Watson about his book “The New Dad’s Playbook: Gearing Up for the Biggest Game of Your Life.” If you and your wife are expecting, you’re going to want to hear this program.
Where were you on 9/11?
If you’re old enough to remember that Tuesday, I’m sure that question instantly brings an answer to your mind.
It was early in the morning here in Colorado when the news broke. I had been having devotions and turned on the television just before the second plane hit the World Trade Center. Like everybody else, I spent the rest of the day glued to the television, watching one of the most epic and tragic moments in American history unfold.
We’re fast approaching the fourth annual Bring Your Bible to School Day, when tens of thousands of public school students across the nation will celebrate on Oct. 5.
I’ll share more about it in the coming weeks, but in case you’re not familiar with Bring Your Bible, let me give you a quick explanation: it’s a student-led event sponsored by Focus on the Family where children and teens from all 50 states will share God’s hope and celebrate religious freedom by bringing their Bibles to school and talking about it with their friends.
“My coach from my senior year could look at me and knight me with his eyes.”
That powerful comment illustrates the hunger of every boy to have a man, particularly a father, draw him into manhood. It comes from Dr. Robert Lewis, who has been associated with Focus on the Family for years. Back in the late 90s, he wrote a book with Focus called “Raising a Modern-Day Knight.” Since then, it’s been our number one best seller.
In his popular Morning Briefing yesterday, Southern Seminary president and former Focus on the Family board member, Dr. Al Mohler, wisely summed up the current challenge facing Congress regarding DACA – the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy – this way:
“Our current immigration laws are a complex of confusion; they do not reflect either what this country intends to enforce, by means of its police and its law enforcement agencies, nor does it reflect a coherent sense of national priorities.”
How can any reasonable person disagree?
Officials say that Ohio’s problem with heroin is reaching epidemic proportions. Ohio has the nation’s highest rate of deadly heroin overdoses, killing at least 23 people in the state each week by some estimates.
And as so often occurs when it comes to drug abuse, children are among those who suffer the most.
About half of all the kids in Ohio’s foster care system are there because one or both of their parents are drug addicts – and some counties report a rate of over 80 percent.
“What would Jesus do?”
Remember that pop-culture phenomenon from a few years back? Lots of people wore “WWJD?” bracelets and T-shirts or slapped a sticker on their car bumper.
It’s too bad that such a deep and meaningful question has become better identified with trinkets and deprecating parody than with life-changing self-reflection.
We’ve sanitized the gospels.
To answer what Jesus would do requires a closer examination of the life He led and the gritty world in which He lived.
Do you know your “why”?
God’s purpose for your spiritual journey, for your work, and for your family starts with your “why.”
People ask, “How will I serve God? Where will I serve God? When will I serve God?” Unless you tackle the “why” question, everything else becomes a mountain that prevents you from moving forward – your finances, your background, your education, your training, your age, and so on. If you know your why, those mountains somehow don’t appear as big or as insurmountable.
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.
