Daly Focus Blog
To be a good father, you have to be a good man.
Not perfect. After all, there are no perfect dads or men.
You just have to be there.
Sadly, there are too many dads who aren’t. Twenty-five million children in the United States go to bed each night without their biological father in the home.
Statistically, these children are more likely to grow up in financially difficult circumstances and more likely to drop out of school.
Could you welcome a child who’s in need into your home?
Reports show there are approximately 100,000 children in foster care in the United States who don’t have a mom and dad because the courts have deemed them unfit and have terminated their parental rights.
But think about this: There are about 300,000 churches in the U.S. If just one church out of three had a family who was willing to adopt a child, the number of kids on the foster adoption rolls would be zero.
“An unhappy child is a healthy child.”
At first glance, that comment from Dr. Kevin Leman catches you off guard a little, doesn’t it?
But dig a little deeper, and I think you’ll see what he means. There really are times when your son or daughter needs to be unhappy.
Why?
Well, maybe they’ve just talked back to you, disobeyed you, or disrespected you. Whatever they’ve done, you need to create an unhappy experience to help them learn that sort of behavior is unacceptable.
Moms, what are you afraid of?
Chances are, you’ve got a few things that sometimes keep you awake at night. In fact, with the help of Barna Research Group, Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) did a survey of hundreds of women to find out their greatest fears.
The top five were:
Fear # 1: I’m afraid I’m not enough as a mom. I’m not capable of being a good mom. I won’t have enough money or resources to adequately care for my kids.
Imagine if you put lions, otters, beavers, and a few golden retrievers all in the same room. What do you think would happen?
Talk about crazy. It’d be like Wild Kingdom in there.
There’s no surprise why. They’re nothing alike. They each approach the world through their own unique perspective and don’t see eye-to-eye on much of anything.
By this point, if you’re not familiar with the concept or the terminology, I should tell you that the scenario I just described isn’t an actual zoo (although it can sure feel like one some days).
If you’re the parent of a middle schooler, I have a suggestion for you: buckle up.
This may be the most tumultuous time in childhood.
It’s like a prism that focuses a remarkable amount of life change into a short time span. Our two boys are smack in the center of their middle school years, so we’re witnessing it firsthand.
The physical, mental, and hormonal changes alone are intense. But many kids also face the added stress of leaving behind elementary school and entering a larger environment with more classes, new friends to meet, and more responsibility to bear.
We’re about to enter the first school year after the Supreme Court’s sweeping redefinition of marriage, a decision that will deeply impact our children’s schools and education. Today I want to share a Q&A with Focus on the Family’s Education Analyst, Candi Cushman, where she’ll help explain how the legalization of same-sex marriage will affect the way we educate our children. –JD
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Q. Give us the big picture: How will this court decision change the environment in our schools?
Parents of older children often get bombarded with requests to watch the latest movie popular among their friends. But for those moms and dads who are hoping to instill Christian values in their kids, these common requests pose a real dilemma: how can we equip our children to be in the world, but not part of it? How can we teach them to take in entertainment through discerning eyes and not as a “blind consumer”?
One mom found a way.
Few things are as painful for a Christian parent as a child who turns away from his or her faith. And the deeper the pain, the deeper our need for hope.
Maybe that’s why the story of the prodigal son has remained one of the most beloved parables in Scripture for centuries.
The story doesn’t make promises or guarantees about “wayward” children, of course. But it does offer hope to parents in desperate need of it.
Long before the Supreme Court imposed same-sex marriage on the country, Christian parents had been dealing with the culture’s growing acceptance of homosexuality and same-sex relationships and the impact it has on their children.
We at Focus are hearing from more and more of them as they navigate these difficult waters with friends and relatives who are homosexual while also trying to model Christian behavior for their own children. Here’s a question typical of those we receive:
My sister-in-law is currently married to her partner.
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.
