Daly Focus Blog
A friend of mine once dialed a wrong phone number and reached an elderly woman, who said, “I live alone and don’t have anyone to talk to. Can we chat for a few minutes?” My friend agreed, and they had a lovely conversation.
That woman was not unique. In the wake of COVID, nearly half of Americans say they struggle with feelings of isolation. Loneliness takes an enormous psychological, physical, and financial toll on millions of people.
More and more young people, especially girls, are experiencing gender confusion. Ten years ago, the prevalence of transgenderism in children was 0.1% in the US. Now it’s 2-3%. That’s an increase of 4000%. Why?
Here’s another important question to answer: Is medical gender transition necessary to prevent youth suicide?
To answer those questions and others, I’m talking to Dr. Meg Meeker and Laura Perry Smalts on our Focus on the Family Broadcast “God’s Amazing Grace in a Transgendered Person’s Life.”
Dr.
In 2006, Charles Roberts entered the one-room schoolhouse of a Pennsylvania Amish community, took a dozen girls hostage, then shot ten of them, killing five before taking his own life.
Days after the shooting, something profound happened. The grandfather of one of the murdered girls stood up at her funeral and urged the congregation to have mercy. “Instead of choosing hate,” he said, “forgive.”
And they did.
Although heartbroken, the people responded to their tragic circumstances with grace.
Many couples who enter a second marriage naïvely believe their new stepfamily will bond quickly and fix everyone’s loneliness and loss. When some problems get worse instead, questions and doubts arise until the couple reaches a crossroads: do we hang on? Or do we give up and quit?
How does a new family find its identity?
We’re answering that question on our Focus on the Family Broadcast “When Lives Collide: Navigating Remarriage and Stepfamily.” Our guest is author and speaker Sabrina Beasley McDonald.
One of the most frequently asked questions in a crisis is, “Where is God when we suffer?” I don’t pretend to have all the answers, but I’d offer this thought: God doesn’t abandon us in our suffering. He’s present with us in it.
Nothing feels more lonely or more isolating than pain. Which is why when we’re hurting, God reaches out to us through people. We don’t have to search for Him in the clouds or hope a divine apparition appears.
We talk a lot about biblical wisdom here at Focus on the Family. The reason is because more than any other factor God’s wisdom is critical to the success of a marriage, a household or a culture. Without His wisdom to guide us, poor, even destructive choices, are sure to follow.
Consider this: at the height of the #MeToo movement, The New York Times reported that 201 powerful men had been exposed for their mistreatment of women.
Fourteen-year-old Connor Halsa from Minnesota caught more than fish on his summer vacation last year. He and his family were enjoying a sunny day on the lake when he reeled in a wallet that contained $2,000 in cash. And yet, even as Connor spread out the money on a rock to dry, not once did visions of a new bike or gaming system dance through his mind. That wallet belonged to someone, and Connor intended to find out who and return it to him.
I’m excited for the opportunity to highlight the life and work of my friend Dr. Gary Chapman on our Focus on the Family Broadcast “The Impact of a Life Well Lived.”
Matthew 5:16 says, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
I can think of few people who exemplify this more than Dr. Gary Chapman
Many of you know him as the author of The Five Love Languages, which has sold 20 million copies and has been translated into over 45 languages.
At an orphanage in Guatemala, author Dave Willis saw how deeply love can change a person’s life. Most of the children at the facility had been rescued from sex-traffickers or abusive families. Like Margarita, who had been abused by her father and uncle. Everyone who should have protected her wounded her instead.
When she arrived at the orphanage, she hardly spoke and didn’t trust anyone – especially men. John and Jessica, the couple who ran the orphanage, did their best to love Margarita and to help her feel safe in every way that they could.
When Albert Einstein was a little boy, his father gave him a compass. The moment changed his life. No matter what direction he faced, the needle always pointed north. It was the first time he realized that something invisible influenced the universe.
You and I are so used to invisible things that we rarely give them a second thought. We can’t see air, but we experience its influence every time it fills our lungs or blows through our hair.
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.
