family Archives

Thank you, President Trump & Vice President Pence for Your Ongoing Support of Adoption & Foster Care

As the broadcast team and I continue to make our way across the country this week (we’re in Tampa tonight!) as part of the Focus on the Family Live! tour, I followed with interest the National Adoption Month celebration taking place yesterday in Washington, D.C.

My colleague and friend Dr. Sharen Ford was in the audience for Vice President Pence’s eloquent and moving address in which he extolled the gift of adoption while highlighting the critical needs of too many children currently in our state’s foster care systems.

Topics: Current Events Tags: adoption, family, foster care November 13, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Getting Organized for Christmas

Is it too early to start thinking about Christmas?

It’s not if you hope to have a smooth December and enjoy a stress-free Christmas season. That can be tough to do if you’re not organized.

Christmas is supposed to be a time of joy. A time for us to reflect on our Savior who came as a baby in a manger and soon took upon Himself the sins of the world.

Instead, we get caught up in all the “stuff” of Christmas: the lights, the decorations, the shopping.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, christmas, family, holidays November 12, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Preparing Your Child for the Teen Years

Have you had “The Talk” with your child? You know, the one about sex?

If so, how did it go?

If not, why not? Maybe you feel nervous because you don’t know what to say.

I don’t blame you. The talk I had with one of my boys didn’t go as well as I’d hoped. I’d planned a weekend long father/son getaway. We had a good time, and I did my best to explain everything in a way he’d understand.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, family, parenting September 30, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Catching a God-Sized Vision for Your Family

Amy Rienow says she and her husband Rob got married … then dated for 10 years.

It was just a few months from first their first date to their wedding, which meant the years that followed were filled with surprises. They both loved the Lord, but they were clueless about the purpose of marriage and family.

Their crisis moment came 10 years into their marriage. Rob was a dedicated youth pastor. His number one passion was passing his faith to other people’s children.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, family, parenting September 27, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Preparing to Care for Aging Loved Ones

We don’t like to think about getting older. We especially don’t like to think about death.

Maybe that’s why studies show only a third of us prepare for the inevitable with advanced directives. It’s also why a growing number of people are finding themselves ill-equipped for the rigors and responsibilities of caring for an aging loved one.

Taking on the care of an aging parent or family member is a big job that rarely comes about at a convenient time for the caregiver.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family September 23, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

What to Do When Tragedy Impacts Your Family

I still remember when a small airplane crashed across the street from where I lived when I was 14 years old. I heard the crash, then called 911 and ran to the plane. I was able to help two 20-somethings get out of the burning wreckage.

At first, I thought the young men were the only two in the plane. I soon realized two other men had been in the front – the young men’s fathers.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, family, tragedy September 12, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Raising Mission-Minded Kids

Author Shauna Pilgreen says, “A life of comfort is a win for the enemy. When you’re comfortable, you’re usually leaning on your own strength, which means you’re leaning less on God’s strength.”

Shauna and her husband have learned to rely on God in uncomfortable circumstances, and they’re actively passing that faith on to their children.

It started in earnest when God led the Pilgreens from their cozy suburban life in Missouri to plant a church in San Francisco, where their lives are anything but comfortable.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: book, broadcast, faith, family September 9, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Following God’s Pace Instead of Your Own

It’s easy for us as Christians to lose track of God’s timing in our lives. Our culture is driven, and we often fall prey to busyness. We work hard at our jobs. We volunteer at church. We have hobbies and responsibilities around the house. Some days there’s not much left of our time or our energy to keep our relationships in order.

That was true for Terry Looper. His goal was to become a wealthy businessman.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family August 16, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Heroic Moms Raising Godly Heroes

“We practiced an active shooter drill today.”

Those words from Lee Nienhuis’ grade-school aged son, Ryan, felt like a gut punch. She could barely hold herself together when he told her, “We pile up in the corner like puppies, and we hide.”

That wasn’t the only time Lee was confronted by the darkness her children face in this world. Another incident happened in church. The congregation was singing the hymn I Have Decided to Follow Jesus. Lee could hear her son Ryan singing when they reached the words: “The cross before me, the world behind me.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family, parenting August 15, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

How to Help Your Angry Child

Author Tricia Goyer says she never thought she had an anger problem … until she had to deal with children who had anger problems. She and her husband had three kids of their own and adopted seven others.

Their adopted children had emotions that Tricia didn’t know how to handle. They struggled with pain from their past. They were angry from being away from their biological families. Some of them had faced difficulties in foster care.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: anger, broadcast, faith, family, kids March 18, 2019 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura