Daly Focus Blog
If you’re a fan of home improvement shows, it’s hard not to love Chip and Joanna Gaines, the stars of the hit HGTV reality program “Fixer Upper.”
The couple has taken the television world by storm since the show first aired in 2013. And while they’re talented home renovators and savvy businesspeople, those aren’t the main reasons for their popularity.
Fans will happily tell you there’s something different about the Gaineses. They’re kind, funny, and devoted to their four young children.
Every week, nearly 6 million listeners tune in to the Focus on the Family Daily Broadcast. It’s still humbling for me to realize that so many people invite Focus – and, by extension, me as the program’s host – into their lives.
We love our listeners, and appreciate the feedback you give us. Whether you contact us by phone, email or on social media, we review every single opinion, comment and testimony, and we share it with relevant staff.
A father who visited psychologist Michael Anderson’s counseling office illustrates the shift in thinking many moms and dads need to make in their parenting.
The father said, “You wouldn’t believe what my daughter has become. In the last 90 days, she’s changed completely. She’ll do anything her friends tell her to do. She’s smoking. She’s drinking. She’s shoplifting.”
Michael asked him, “What was she like 90 days ago?”
“She was an A-student. She was in the church youth group and would do anything we told her to do.”
That wording caught Michael’s ear.
No matter how strong your faith, the death of a spouse can rattle it. That’s how deeply a heart can be broken. The richer the love, the worse the suffering.
Tricia and Robb’s love was like that, thanks to God’s grace and a lot of hard work. Early on in their marriage, Tricia felt ungrateful for Robb. Over time, her ingratitude grew into openly criticizing him. His quirks and idiosyncrasies, once so charming, became irritating.
But Tricia and Robb got to work and built a strong and fulfilling marriage.
By now you may have heard that the actress Florence Henderson died last week on Thanksgiving Day. She was best known as Carol Brady, the “lovely lady … who met this fellow” on the iconic 1970s sitcom “The Brady Bunch.”
The show wasn’t a ratings hit during its initial run, but “The Brady Bunch” found its niche when it first aired in syndication in 1975. It’s been on the air ever since.
Some of that success is undoubtedly due to Henderson’s take on the family matriarch, which made Mrs.
My colleague Glenn Stanton, who’s a noted author, researcher and family expert, has an interesting article out in The Federalist today.
In it, Glenn takes a look at a new, unique study from the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) that examined a wide array of high school students’ health behaviors in light of their sexual activity (virginal, heterosexual active, and same-sex or bisexually active).
The results are telling.
As Glenn writes, “The virginal students rate significantly and consistently better in nearly all health-related behaviors and measures than their sexually active teens,” and “teens who have sexual contact with the same or both sexes have remarkably lower percentages of healthy behaviors overall than their heterosexually active peers.”
And those behaviors range from binge drinking to illegal drugs, from dating violence to even tanning beds!
Before having children, women might think motherhood is the most natural role in the world. So what should a woman believe about herself when she feels like she doesn’t have what it takes to be a good mom?
The bar can seem impossibly high. Some moms have smooth pregnancies, and their babies might even take to breastfeeding easily. These mothers look completely content and patient with their children, never frustrated, never aspiring to goals or achievements outside of their family.
Jean, the boys and I are having a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday together. I hope your family is too.
Although depending on when Black Friday sales began in your neighborhood, Thanksgiving was probably over well before your clocks struck midnight earlier this morning.
The race to Christmas has begun.
With every retailer fighting over your hard-earned dollar for the next four weeks, do you worry it’ll take until next Christmas to get this Christmas paid off?
Americans spent nearly $580 billion last year for Christmas.
“The story of Squanto is one of the freakiest miracles in history.”
With an introduction like that, I know you’ll want to tune in to our radio program today while you’re preparing Thanksgiving dinner and keeping an eye on the football game.
Our guest, author and radio host Eric Metaxas, will share the true story of Squanto most of you have never heard.
The very founding of our country might never have happened had Squanto not walked out of the woods and had his heart prepared by God like Joseph.
Monday’s USA Today featured a story suggesting that families are disinviting friends and loved ones to their Thanksgiving celebration based on who they voted for in this year’s contentious presidential election.
Other news outlets like the New York Times and the Wall St. Journal are filing similar reports. Across the nation we’re hearing that people feel like they just can’t bridge the divide caused by political differences. In addition to being disinvited to holiday tables, many who are going somewhere are dreading the family get-together.
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.
