family Archives

The Polys Are Coming, and That’s a Problem

The idea of the time-honored definition of family – a married mother and father with biological or adopted children – has increasingly become not just passé, but repugnant to society’s elite.

The most recent evidence comes from the editors at the New York Times, who just published an opinion piece by a Harvard professor extolling the joys and wonders of the “poly” family and the overthrow of the natural family of mom and dad, married for life raising their own biological or adopted children.

Of course, this is not surprising to those of us who have been watching with great concern the decline of the family, which has been aided and abetted by a hostile media, entertainment industry and academia.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family August 27, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Your Baby’s First Year: What You Need to Know

If you’ve just had a baby – or are about to – you’ll want to hear our Focus on the Family Broadcast “Your Baby’s First Year: What You Need to Know.” Our guest is Dr. Robert Hamilton.

Dr. Hamilton has over three decades of experience, both as a pediatrician and as a father of 6 children and a grandfather of 9 grandchildren. You might have heard of Dr. Hamilton because of the famous “Hamilton Hold.” At the time I’m writing this, his video which demonstrates a special way of holding crying newborns that calms them has been viewed nearly 50 million times on YouTube.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: baby, family August 24, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Preparing for the Empty Nest Years

The empty nest years can be a “tight ring season.”

That’s a term coined by Marci Seither and her husband after a customer hired the Seithers’ sawmill in Northern California to remove a huge tree from the spot where the customer’s new home would be built.

Feeling it a shame to lose such a beautiful tree, the homeowners planned to recycle the lumber by using it in the house’s construction. Once the tree was cut down, however, the wood was determined to be too weak for use.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family August 21, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

What Your Kids Need Most to Grow Up Well

Every day parents face a new fork in the road of some kind. You want what’s best for your child. But it’s not always clear what is best.

Will your children thrive with more boundaries? Or more freedom?

Is your child old enough for technology? If so, what kind? And how much screen time should they be allowed?

Are their friends a good influence? Are your children a good influence on their friends?

There is no formula for parenting but there are seven traits to guide moms and dads toward:

AdaptabilityRespectIntentionalityLoveGratitudeGraceForgiveness

How can we raise our children with an approach that infuses them with godly maturity and grace for others?

Topics: Family and Home Tags: children, family August 18, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Balancing Bonding and Boundaries as a Parent

To raise happy, healthy children, remember this: Rules alone won’t work.

Rules only control a child’s outer behavior. To develop a child’s inner character, you have to go deeper. Until children develop an inner motivation to do the right thing, they’ll keep sticking their toe over the line.

Like a friend of mine’s five-year-old daughter. They were playing together in the front yard. “Stay in the grass,” he told her. “Don’t step onto the sidewalk or the driveway.” The little girl looked her dad right in the eye, playfully danced to the edge of the grass … and stuck her big toe across the forbidden line.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, parenting July 31, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Dreaming with Your Child

Shelia Erwin is the mother of filmmaking duo the Erwin Brothers, known for the popular Christian films October Baby, Moms’ Night Out, and I Can Only Imagine. Her sons, Andrew and Jon, were always discovering new interests in junior high school, so Shelia wasn’t surprised when they became passionate about the visual arts.

She couldn’t foresee at the time how her boys’ newest hobby would someday blossom. Still, she and her husband Hank encouraged them however they could.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: children, family July 22, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Please Pray: Couple Celebrates 67th Anniversary Apart Due to COVID-19 Restrictions

The coronavirus pandemic has been extremely difficult for all Americans for many reasons. Many have died due to the disease. Others have had friends and relatives pass away. And some have delayed or missed funerals because of social distancing and stay-at-home orders.

Yet another unfortunate consequence of the restrictions is the isolation and loneliness that many have faced.

I’ve recently learned of one such situation relayed to me by a supporter of Focus on the Family.

Topics: Current Events Tags: Coronavirus, family July 14, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Showing Unconditional Love to Your Children

It’s easy to bless a child. It really is.

Not long ago, I asked my son, Troy, if he remembered the day almost ten years ago when I blessed him while we were out hiking on a camping trip. Somewhere along the trail, we stopped, I placed a hand on his shoulder, told him how important he was to me and his mother, and how much we – and God – loved him. Then I prayed over him.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: children, family July 14, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Hidden Gems

Today, on our Focus on the Family Broadcast, you’re in for a special treat. We’re airing an episode of our award-winning children’s radio drama Adventures in Odyssey.

Not only are these dramas one of the best things we do here at Focus to communicate the gospel message, they’re a lot of fun, too!

This episode is titled “Hidden Gems.” The story follows young Olivia as Whit teaches her why reading the Bible is important.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, prayer June 22, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

A Father’s Lament: What Kind of Country are We Leaving Our Kids and Grandkids?

Since the first national Father’s Day in 1910, dads of every generation have wondered and worried about the future world in which their children would live.

Such concern is not entirely misplaced.

If you had become a father back at the time the holiday was first celebrated at a YMCA in Spokane, Wa., your kids would have had to navigate the Spanish flu (50 million deaths), World War I (20 million deaths) and the reprise of the KKK.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, father June 19, 2020 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura