Daly Focus Blog
At age eight, Mark* was dying from a congenital heart disorder. A battery of diagnostic tests revealed that the malformation of his heart was irreparable. Mark’s doctors informed his parents that nothing short of a heart transplant would save his life. Worse, Mark didn’t have much time to live. A proper organ donor had to be found, and fast.
Meanwhile, at the same hospital where Mark awaited a heart transplant, medics rushed another young boy, Alex*, into the emergency ward.
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith
During our Christmas vacation, Jean and I packed the suitcases, planned the route, and piled into the minivan. Anticipation filled the air as the kids were strapped into their car seats like astronauts preparing for liftoff. With the house buttoned up, the mail stopped for a week, and a prayer for safety shared, off we went on a thousand mile journey to Jean’s parents’ home in Los Angeles.
Everything was going smoothly for a couple of hours .
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family, marriage, wife
In Dr. Dobson’s original film series Where’s Dad? he made a point that struck a chord with me all of these years, probably because I’m a father of two young boys. Specifically, Dr. Dobson described the difference between spending quantity time and quality time with our children. More often than not, Dr. Dobson heard parents make the comment that they just want to give their son or daughter quality time–when in reality our kids want quantity time.
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: family, kids, parenting
As the clock runs out on 2008, just about everyone is assembling a Top Ten list featuring the most popular movies, CDs, books, restaurants, and news stories of the year. You name it, there seems to be a list for it. I figured it might be fun to put together a list of my Top Ten blog posts of the year, based upon the number of comments they generated. Here’s what I found, with No. 1 being the most popular post of 2008:
3) Planned Parenthood Takes Aim at Teens
4) Fireproof is Red Hot in Theaters
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family, marriage, parenting
I love hearing from constituents like you. Today, I thought I’d invite you to read three playful letters that brightened my day. This first gem is from a mother whose son was in kindergarten where he was just learning to read. Here’s what happened:
“I remember picking-up my son from school one day. I had been reading one of Dr. Dobson’s books at the time and had it on the car seat next to me. My precocious youngster carefully sounded out the title.
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: kids, parenting
What if I were to tell you that 7 out of 10 students got an “F” when taking a basic civic literacy test? That’s the finding of Jim Tonkowich, president of Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI). Jim has a passion for American history and civic education which is why he’s alarmed by a disturbing trend in education today, namely, that our high schools and colleges are failing to provide students with a clear understanding of their American heritage.
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: kids, news
One of the six pillars that under gird our work here at Focus on the family is the permanence of marriage. We view marriage as a sacred covenant designed by God, one that serves as the basic building block of human civilization. As such, we believe marriage is God’s idea and it’s intended to be a thriving, lifelong relationship between one man and one woman.
Which is why it’s worth pointing out Newsweek’s cover story, entitled, “The Religious Case for Gay Marriage” (12/15/08).
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith, homosexuality, marriage
Cecile Richards is president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. I’ve not met her. Perhaps one day I’ll have that opportunity. If given the chance to sit across the table from her, there’s no doubt that we’d have our share of differences. For instance, here are just three of what she views as “a year full of noteworthy achievements” as summarized in Planned Parenthood’s Annual Report to Stakeholders:
We provided medical services to more than three million people and helped prevent an estimated 621,000 unintended pregnancies in the U.S.
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: family, kids, pro-life
If you’re familiar with my personal story, you know I’ve had my share of tough times. Especially at Christmas. As mentioned in my book Finding Home, the first Christmas after my mom died, I was nine-years-old and living with a foster family. While thankful that I had a place to live, my siblings and I didn’t receive any Christmas presents. None. About all we could do is watch in silence while the children with whom we lived ripped open gift after gift.
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: faith
At age 29, Blake Mycoskie was burning out in the business world. Having started four successful businesses, often clocking 80 hours a week, Blake decided to clear his schedule–and his head–for a month. He flew to Argentina hoping to recharge his batteries with a little sailing and polo. Off he went unaware that he was about to stumble onto a life-changing idea.
While visiting a number of impoverished villages, Blake was startled to see how many children were barefoot.
Continue ReadingTopics: Family and Home Tags: kids, news, pop culture
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.Home
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