Jim Daly

What to Do When You Feel There’s No Future for Your Marriage

“We were doing all the right things. We knew each other’s love languages. We went on date nights. We spent time away, just the two of us. We thought we were doing all the right things and yet, infidelity became a part of our story. That’s when we realized it wasn’t a lack of big things that were robbing us of intimacy. It was all the deeper emotions under the surface that went undiscussed that pulled our hearts away from each other one centimeter at a time.”

That’s how Mark and Jill Savage describe their marriage’s slow descent into a dark abyss of infidelity and near-divorce.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, husband, marriage, wife

How to Forgive When You Really Don’t Want to

The call to forgive others lies at the heart of the Christian message.

But that doesn’t make it easy.

Forgiveness is tough. The human heart is wired for justice. When somebody sins against us, the hurt we feel is a cry for wrongs to be made right again. And when they can’t be, we often want the other person to suffer in some way that will help us feel that the debt has been satisfied. At least, we tell ourselves this is true.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, relationships

A Sweet Mother’s Day Video

In anticipation of Mother’s Day weekend, I want to share a sweet video with you that celebrates moms:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjWoRd4OMZw

You know, as Christians, we should all be living lives worth emulating, because our lives should reflect Jesus Christ.

But that reality – that others are watching us – is especially true for parents. Our children (yes, including the older ones) watch our every move and even tend to mimic our words and behaviors.

And that’s one reason why I thank the Lord for godly moms.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: events, family, parenting, relationships

The 10 Myths of Motherhood

It’s never been easy to be a mom, but social media is pressuring them in unique ways. Women are inundated with radically different ideas about what it means to be a mom. The image of perfection is everywhere.

But that’s all it is: a picture.

There’s no picture-perfect mom, and that’s a good thing. There’s no such thing as the picture-perfect dad, either. We’re all falling short. God’s grace is what brings us through, not our perfection.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, parenting

Why We Don’t Think Teens Should Watch ‘13 Reasons Why’

It’s a new series on Netflix that’s causing a lot of controversy – and if you have a teen in your life, you need to know why so many mental health professionals are concerned.

The series is called “13 Reasons Why,” and it tells the story of a 17-year-old girl, Hannah Baker, who commits suicide – and who blames others for what happened. The story unfolds through the cassette tapes Hannah posthumously leaves for the 13 people she blames for her decision to end her life.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: entertainment, kids, parenting, pop culture

Signs of Human Trafficking and What You Should – and Shouldn’t – Do to Help

Human trafficking is a part of the seedy underbelly of our society that most of us would rather not have a conversation about. It’s hard to conceive of hundreds of thousands of people, most of them children and women, being either kidnapped or manipulated into psychological enslavement. So we turn our attention to more pleasant topics.

That’s exactly the behavior traffickers count on from us to keep their activities hidden and their operations running smoothly.

Even the lowest estimates suggest that something like 100,000 kids are taken into human trafficking every year in the U.S.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: broadcast, kids, news, pro-life

How to Win at Family Dinners in the Midst of Crazy Schedules

Over the past couple of decades, more studies than you can count have been done to pinpoint the most crucial factors for raising emotionally strong, well-balanced kids. Almost all of them have arrived at the same conclusion: Eating together as a family is one of the most significant influences in fostering healthy child development.

A mountain of research indicates that the more families eat together the less likely a child will engage in drug use, suffer from depression, develop an eating disorder, or succumb to a host of other behavioral problems.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, family, kids, parenting

Lift Your Voice to Heaven on the National Day of Prayer

Today is the National Day of Prayer.

If you’re not familiar with it, this annual observance is held on the first Thursday of May and invites people of all faiths to pray for the nation. It was created in 1952 by a joint resolution of the United States Congress and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman.

I hope you’ll take some time today to pray on your own and perhaps to represent the Christian faith in your community.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: broadcast, faith, religious liberty

Ten Commandments for Husbands and Wives

Whether it’s our marriage, parenting or our profession, it’s common for us to get so consumed in our own little world of trouble that we forget that every problem we face has, in some form or fashion, also been a problem for prior generations.

Nowhere is this more true than in marriage. In fact, in doing research for my book, Marriage Done Right, I reviewed plenty of old pamphlets and books that were full of marital advice.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: husband, marriage, relationships, sex, wife

How You Can Change a Child’s Life

A lot of you know my story. My mom died when I was nine years old, and my dad wasn’t around, so I spent a year in foster care.

That time could have been a bright moment in an otherwise dismal period of my life, but things didn’t turn out so well for me. Instead of support and compassion, I mostly remember feeling lonely, afraid, and desperate.

My past is one of the reasons I’m so passionate about God’s call on believers to care for “orphans and widows” (James 1:27).