Jim Daly

Oregon Bakers Fined $135,000 for Supporting Marriage

Late last week it was announced that Aaron and Melissa Klein, owners of a bakery in Gresham, Oregon called “Sweet Cakes by Melissa,” had been fined $135,000.

Why?

Because they exercised their right of conscience and declined baking and decorating a wedding cake for a same-sex ceremony.

This Christian couple with five children have been guests on our broadcast as they told their story of how their faith came under fire when they were confronted by a choice they thought would never come: obey God or obey an unjust law.

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

Transgenderism in the News and Other Stories You Need to Know

A news summary on issues that matter.

Christians continue to be martyred around the world
The horrific scene is all too familiar: Christian men walking blindfolded across a beach, held by Islamic State militants. A new video shows two groups of Ethiopian Christians being shot and beheaded at the hands of ISIS. This comes just days after Christians were thrown overboard on a ship, drowned at sea, “for praying to Jesus.”

Please continue to pray for the persecuted Church around the world.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: faith, homosexuality, policy, pop culture, religious liberty

Could You Use a Laugh?

I don’t know about you, but there are times when I could use a good laugh.

Do you ever feel that way?

If so, we have a great program for you.

Today and tomorrow we’re airing one of our classic broadcasts, featuring Luci Swindoll. Like few other speakers, Luci has the ability to put a smile on your face at the same time she’s piercing your heart with the truth of Scripture.

In this entertaining talk, Luci shares how our family’s journey can be filled with joy.

Continue ReadingTopics: Focus Events Tags: broadcast

5 Ways to Parent More Effectively

Is your parenting style different from your spouse’s?

That’s the case in the Daly household. Generally speaking, I’m laid-back and spontaneous. When things get tense, I tend to diffuse the situation with humor. I enjoy using car rides with my boys to have spontaneous devotions.

My wife, Jean, on the other hand, likes consistency, planning ahead and routines. She appreciates the benefits of a regular, dedicated time of family devotions.

Jean and I know first-hand it can be hard work to merge two distinct parenting styles.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: family, marriage, parenting

Focus on the Family Amicus Brief Gives YOU a Voice at the Supreme Court

Despite the perception one might get after browsing social media, the fact remains that millions of people in the U.S. support God’s design for marriage. After all, it’s common sense to understand that marriage serves an important purpose: to bring together the two halves of humanity — male and female — to form a family.

It can be frustrating, then, when it seems that our view is drowned out in the culture. But while Hollywood, academia and the media can try their best to muffle pleas for civil discourse on how we as a nation should define marriage, thanks to an amicus brief Focus on the Family and nearly 45 pro-family groups and scholars submitted to the U.S.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: marriage, news, policy

How to Bless Your Spouse

What comes to mind when you think of pleasure?

How about temptation? Or sin? Or guilt?

Ever notice how the idea of pleasure so easily sends our minds spiraling toward the negative? It’s as if pleasure were a creation of Satan with no other purpose than to distract us from God.

But if we’ll think back through Scripture, we’ll arrive at a different conclusion.

Numerous passages remind us of times when God commanded His people to celebrate with lavish feasts.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, family, marriage

Falling in Love While Grieving a Loss

Dave Aldridge died unexpectedly just four days before Christmas in 2012. The happy husband and father of three was a strong believer who loved the Lord and poured himself into everything he did, from being a husband and father to going the extra mile for anyone who had a need. The Colorado Springs resident collapsed while running, the victim of a congenital heart defect. He was just 39 years of age.

The obituaries are full of stories of people like Dave, men and women whose lives on earth seem all too brief.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family, marriage, relationships

How Do You Parent a Teenager?

Are you raising a child or raising an adult?

That’s not a trick question. In fact, for many of us, it gets to an idea that may reflect a complete paradigm shift in how we view parenting.

Our job isn’t simply to teach our kids to obey a set of household rules (although learning to follow instructions is important, too). It’s to empower them to use their judgment to make good decisions in life.

How do we do that?

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, parenting

How Young is Too Young to Walk to the Park Alone?

Do you or will you allow your children to walk to school or to the park alone?

If you said “yes” and happen to live in the state of Maryland, you could find yourself on the wrong side of the law.

Danielle and Alexander Meitiv of Silver Spring, Maryland, learned that the hard away.

Mr. and Mrs. Meitiv practice “free-range parenting,” a philosophy where moms and dads give their children a great degree of independence. So when they allowed their two children, Rafi and Dvora, ages 10 and 6, to walk home alone from the park, the police got involved.

Continue ReadingTopics: Current Events Tags: news, parenting

3 Signs You Might Be Having an Emotional Affair

Marriages everywhere are at risk because of one of the most powerful drugs known to man: infatuation.

Maybe you don’t think of infatuation as a drug. But pastor and marriage expert Dave Carder, who has spent the past 30 years studying the causes of infidelity, says infatuation is as powerful as any substance out there.

Do you think that’s overstated?

Consider this: if you’ve ever known someone who walked away from their family for an affair, you probably asked yourself, “What were they thinking?” And that’s the point.

Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, marriage