faith Archives

He Told Her He Was Prejudiced. This is How She Responded.

Every February the nation observes Black History Month and recognizes the many contributions of African Americans to the United States and the world. Here at Focus on the Family, it’s no different. We recognize the special commemoration during our monthly chapel service with our staff and through other special educational and celebratory activities over the course of the four-week period.

While reflecting on the celebration, I was reminded about something that happened last August on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal.

Topics: Current Events Tags: events, faith, friendship, news, relationships February 15, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

How to Love Your Neighbor… Without Being Weird

“And who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:29).

If we’re being honest, a lot of us would admit that we like the idea of loving our neighbors more than actually getting to know them and investing part of our lives into theirs.

I’m sure your family’s schedule looks a lot like mine. You’re busy with work and kids and everything that goes into making that all run smoothly. If you’re introverted, maybe just breaking the ice with the couple next door and starting a conversation is hard.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, relationships February 13, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Take a Virtual Tour of the 430,000-Square-Foot Museum of the Bible

As I previously mentioned, I had the opportunity to travel to
Washington, D.C. last week to attend the 65th Annual National Prayer Breakfast. I usually try to “bundle” various activities and
meetings per trip, and this visit was no different. All in all, I spent nearly three days in the nation’s capital meeting with several members of Congress and with media.

During my visit to D.C., I was also able to tour the Museum of the Bible, which is located about three blocks from the Capitol.

Topics: Current Events Tags: entertainment, faith, news, promos February 10, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Where Is God When We Grieve?

Do you allow yourself to grieve?

Some Christians push away feelings of sadness or anger, worried that those darker emotions indicate a lack of faith. It can certainly feel like God has abandoned us when we’re enduring emotional anguish so deep that we can feel it in our bones.

Think of the agony David was feeling when he wrote in Psalm 22, “I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death” (14-15).

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith February 2, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

So You Want to do Devotions with Your Little Ones…

Chuck Colson once said to me, “By age 10, your children’s moral compass is pretty well set.”

His wisdom confirmed what Jean and I already believed from our earliest days of parenting: we only had a few short years to impart biblical wisdom and a love for Jesus to our two boys. It’s a task that we’ve taken seriously ever since. But we also discovered early that “serious” doesn’t have to mean “dull” or “boring.”

Thankfully, there’s no magical “one way” for moms and dads to pass their faith on to their children.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, family, parenting January 30, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

What to Do When You’re Overwhelmed

There’s a risk in going too fast.

I’m reminded of the time a group of friends invited me to an afternoon of road racing at a Le Mans style race track. A buddy and I were handed the keys to Corvettes, Lamborghinis, and other high performance cars and given just one instruction: “Have fun.” The track had S-turns, hair pin curves, and straightaways where you could reach speeds in excess of 125 miles per hour if you were daring enough.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, family January 27, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

To Impact the Culture for Christ, We Need This

I just posted the other day about kindness, but it’s on my mind again.

I’ve been thinking about kindness a lot because I believe it lies at the heart of the Gospel. It’s why one of my favorite verses is Romans 2:4, which says it’s “God’s kindness that leads us to repentance.”

Have you ever met a single believer who became a Christian as a result of judgment, condemnation, or ridicule? Me neither. It’s the kindness of God that opens people’s hearts to the message of God.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith January 20, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

God’s Mercies for a Prodigal Daughter

One of most iconic and beloved stories in the Bible is that of the Prodigal Son. All of us can find ourselves in that portion of Scripture. Some are prodigal sons, and some are prodigal daughters.

One of the latter is my good friend and former Focus on the Family colleague Yvette Maher. You know how it is with fellow staff members. Years may pass before you learn anything about their history.

I knew and appreciated Yvette’s deep faith from the beginning.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith January 18, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

How to Answer End-of-Life Questions with God’s Truth and Compassion

“They’ve told me that I may have to go on a breathing machine soon. I’m not sure that’s something that I want to do, but I’m afraid to dishonor the Lord. Should I say yes to a respirator, or should I say no?”

If someone asked you that question, how would you answer?

How to apply God’s truth to very real and very dark realities is not always easy. When you’re wrestling with a question as profound as whether or not life is worth living, only God – not conventional wisdom – is adequate to answer.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, pro-life January 16, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Grieving the Loss of an Adult Child

“He wasn’t easy to raise, but it’s been more difficult losing him.”

That’s how Jan Harrison describes the emotional struggle she’s endured since her son, James, passed away six years ago at the age of 27. He was a challenge to raise because he was born with an adventurous spirit. He wasn’t the kind of kid who responded well to boundaries that locked him down.

That’s not easy for a mom whose natural instinct was to keep her son safe.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, parenting January 13, 2017 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura