Daly Focus Blog
Toss a pebble into a lake, and the resulting ripple impacts the entire body. In the same way, you have the ability to positively influence your family by taking small steps that create big impact.
I know I’ve seen this principle in my own life.
My childhood story is not a pretty one. It involves divorce, death, and a lot of dysfunction.
I was only 5 when my father, who was an alcoholic, abandoned the family.
It started in December, when Focus on the Family first began running “Irreplaceable” trailers in cinemas across the nation.
The trailer was benign, a collection of clips with a voiceover of host Tim Sisarich asking what happened to the belief in traditional family. What happened to the view that a man and woman should marry, raise children and remain committed for a lifetime?
During the trailer, Sisarich rightly points out that the culture is now seemingly at odds with that simple and natural design formula.
It’s hard to believe we’re less than a month away from debuting Focus on the Family’s first-ever movie. We’re working hard to be ready for the big one-day event that will take place on May 6 in more than 700 cinemas nationwide – we’re making final edits to the film and spreading the word via media interviews (like this one I gave to Janet Parshall at the 25-minute mark).
As we prepare to launch “Irreplaceable” we’re also looking ahead to “The Family Project” – the small-group DVD-based curriculum to be launched this summer that will continue to explore the themes introduced in our documentary.
About 90 percent of today’s school-age children attend public schools – and they’re discussing a lot more than reading, writing and arithmetic in their classes.
Conversations on controversial topics like homosexuality, transgenderism and same-sex marriage now form a surprising part of a teen’s school life. Part of it can’t be avoided – these topics dominate the national conversation as courts hear case after case devoted to homosexual rights and same-sex marriage.
However, it’s also becoming apparent that an increasing number of schools are actively promoting views that are contrary to biblical teaching.
Focus on the Family’s first feature-length film, “Irreplaceable” will debut in a one-night theatrical event in more than 700 cinemas nationwide on May 6. I want to share a clip from the movie that really sets up what the documentary is all about.
This clip features author and cultural commentator Eric Metaxas talking about two different views of family – and his words drive deep into the heart of the question, “What is family?”
As “Irreplaceable” host Tim Sisarich explains during the trailer, “Every day in the media, the life choices of my neighbors, even in public policy, I seem to be told that I’ve got it wrong.”
More and more, it seems like vastly different views of family are coming head-to-head in the culture.
Just two weeks ago I found myself in Nashville, TN attending the National Religious Broadcaster’s Convention. It’s always a good time to reconnect with some old friends and meet new ones as we strategize ways to more effectively and efficiently spread the Good News of the Gospel.
But while I was holed up in meetings at the Opryland Hotel, a team from Focus was across town at the Fellowship Bible Church hosting our latest Wait No More conference.
Remember “The Bible” miniseries that was broadcast on The History Channel last spring?
Well, it’s now up for a People’s Choice Award in the category of “Favorite TV Movie/Miniseries.”
Nearly 100 million people tuned in to see it, and it’s the top-selling miniseries in Blue-Ray history. But that’s not the greatest success producers Mark Burnett and his wife Roma Downey achieved through their cinematic telling of major biblical stories.
From the beginning, Mark and Roma were very open about their big hope for the miniseries: to “affect a new generation of viewers and draw them back to the Bible.”
The Burnetts were inundated with stories from viewers who were blessed and encouraged to dust off and read their Bibles as a result of watching the five-part series.
I recently had the opportunity to sit down and tell a story via video that will be shown at this year’s Catalyst conference in Atlanta, Ga. If you’re not familiar with Catalyst, it’s an organization that works to shape the next generation of leaders. Its annual conferences have drawn more than 100,000 young men and women eager to learn how to serve and lead others in a Christlike way. My friend, Brad Lomenick, heads up the movement and does a great job of bringing together people this next generation needs to hear.
Even the casual observer will acknowledge there’s an overabundance of sarcasm and biting attitudes throughout the culture today. Horrifying violence and evil are regularly depicted on the news and throughout social media. And in case you haven’t noticed, a growing number of people are cynical of societal institutions.
Then, in the midst of all that, there are the acts of kindness. A glimmer of hope and light, these stories oftentimes spread like wildfire via social media.
We get their calls and emails all the time: people who are going through the unthinkable and reach out to us hoping for hope. It’s never easy to understand why these men and women – often through no fault of their own – are hurting so badly.
And, indeed, it’s an age-old question: Why do bad things happen to good people?
A brokenhearted wife who just learned her husband cheated on her.
A family that lost their home in this tough economy.
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.