Daly Focus Blog
Remember Goliath in 1 Samuel 17, David’s giant nemesis who challenged the entire Israelite army to a fight? He was nearly ten feet tall. His armor weighed 150 pounds, and his spear weighed nearly 30 pounds.
David was a shepherd boy. A teenager. Yet when he heard Goliath’s taunts, he didn’t run and hide in fear. He said, “For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” Then he stared Goliath down and trusted God for victory.
There’s a lot that we don’t yet know about the chilling and tragic story surrounding the violent death of 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery of Brunswick, Georgia.
But here’s what we do know.
On February 23rd Ahmaud Arbery was killed in broad daylight while running on a suburban street following an altercation with Gregory and Travis McMichael.
According to a press release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the McMichaels – who are father and son – “confronted Arbery with two firearms.
By: Christy Cabe
I remember the somber voices singing at my mother’s funeral.
I sat beside my dad, near the front of the church, as the crowd behind us led and echoed the chorus of the hymn “It Is Well.”
It Is Well
It Is Well
With My Soul
With My Soul
And though I was a child, a fifth-grade girl sitting in shock and grief near her mother’s casket, I understood.
Deep down, I knew it was true.
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.
In honor
of today, I hope you’ll tune in for a special edition of our Focus on the Family Broadcast we’re calling “Prayers and Stories of Hope for America.”
We’re airing
your stories of hope, your tales of God’s faithfulness during this time of
crisis, and your prayers for our nation in the days ahead.
Our hearts break for the thousands of lives lost to COVID-19 and the millions of Americans currently out of work in the wake of the pandemic.
The virus has touched every life – and upended many long held plans.
I heard that some are calling students graduating high school and college this spring, members of the “Disappearing Class of 2020.”
Isn’t that sad?
One day they were all together, taking classes, playing games – looking forward to traditional end of year activities like the prom and special award ceremonies.
Fear over the
coronavirus continues to grip people. I have a family member who calls my wife
every few days expressing her uncertainty about where our country goes from
here and how we protect ourselves. Her concerns are not unreasonable, but it’s
clear that her questions are driven by fear and anxiety.
Fear is
contagious, and children are especially susceptible. So are Christian moms and
dads who wish to instill their children with faith.
What can
you do?
If you’re like most parents with students in the home, the coronavirus pandemic has thrown a real wrench in academic plans – not just for the last two months but even looking ahead to the prospect of summer camps and other nontraditional instruction.
For the last 57 years, our friends over at Summit Ministries in Manitou Springs– led by Jeff Myers – have been helping to equip high school and college students during the summer months to become next generation leaders.
The coronavirus pandemic and subsequent quarantines and lockdown orders have posed substantial challenges for everyone – especially not being permitted to worship together in person with fellow believers.
But according to a recent poll conducted by the Pew Research Center, the pandemic has actually caused faith to grow.
Imagine that – God using a tough time for good!
The poll found that almost one-quarter (24%) of U.S. adults say their faith has become stronger because of the coronavirus pandemic.
When was
the last time you and your spouse enjoyed a date night? Has it been a while?
I get it.
You’re busy. You’re tired. Once your children came along, your priorities shifted,
your schedule became less flexible, and your budget got a lot tighter. Before
you knew it, time together as a couple flew right out the window.
Finding
time for each other doesn’t get any easier as your children get older. You have
to schedule an evening, hire a babysitter, and find something interesting to
do.
Six months
ago, none of us has could have imagined what American families would be going
through right now because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Thousands
continue to get sick and die. Millions are out of work, and our nation is still
only in the very beginning stages of re-opening. There’s plenty to fear.
Or is
there?
What do
passages like Philippians
4:6-7 mean? It says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by
prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known
to God.
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.
