Daly Focus Blog
Speaking on behalf of most men, I can say with confidence that guys love the thrill of a challenge. And although it might pale in comparison to summiting Mount Everest or running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain, today’s radio program features a special invitation to all married men to “man up.”
First, some context:
On today’s show we’re talking with authors Bill and Pam Farrel, who have written the bestselling book, Men Are Like Waffles, Women Are Like Spaghetti.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, husband, marriage, wife by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
Although he struck many of us as something of a curmudgeon, I enjoyed watching and reading Andy Rooney over the years.
Mr. Rooney lived a long and colorful life before passing away at the age of 92 last month. Many of his newspaper columns were compiled into various books. The following essay that I’m going to excerpt, “What Every Kid Should Have Growing Up,” comes from one of his best-selling works titled Sweet and Sour.
Reading over this list, I have to admit that I wish I had all these things growing up.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, kids by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
By now you’ve probably heard the story of an Ohio mother whose 8-year-old son was taken away from her because of the boy’s weight.
The Cleveland Heights youth tips the scales in excess of 200 pounds. Doctors recommend that a child of that age and height should weigh somewhere between 55 and 60 pounds.
To be fair, I’m not aware of all the facts of the case. I did read that state workers had been monitoring the child’s situation for over a year.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, policy, religious liberty by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
It happened again last week, this time at a 7-Eleven in Silver Spring, Maryland.
As many as 50 teens and young adults were caught on camera robbing the store. To look at the video footage is to see modern-day anarchy in full living color. The operators of the business were helpless until police arrived.
Officials in cities where “flash mobs” have wreaked havoc insist they’re investigating the incidents and studying ways to prevent them from happening again.
Topics: Current Events Tags: events, family, news, parenting by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
Tomorrow’s celebration of Thanksgiving conjures up so many memories for all of us. As I’ve shared in the past, my recollections of the holiday as a child bring with them a mixed bag of emotions.
While I looked forward to the celebration, we didn’t have much. And, when my parents got divorced, with mom working several jobs just to make ends meet, times were hard. My mom did her best to pull together enough stuff to make it special.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: events, faith, family by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
I was on a recent flight with our family and encountered something unexpected. There was nothing out of the ordinary about the trip, just another full plane with hundreds of people squeezed together, row upon row. On this particular segment, though, I happened to be sitting right across the aisle from the boys and kept an eye on them as they read and talked with each other.
Then it happened.
Troy proceeded to put up his tray table.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: events, family, kids by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
It’s common to wax nostalgic for the past, to suggest that the “good old days” weren’t just good – but great. If only we could turn back the clock, so the logic goes, all would be well.
The only problem with such a theory is that it’s just so often not true. Case in point:
One hundred years ago, on April 14, 1911, the following headline appeared in the New York Times:
5,000 HAPPY ORPHANS AT A CIRCUS TREAT
Youngsters from Many Institutions in the City Have Their Annual Merry Day
The article went on to highlight just who these orphans were, referring to them as “little waifs and strays, orphans and half orphans” who had their one “happy day” of the year at the Barnum and Bailey Circus.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: adoption, faith, family by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
The late Nobel laureate in economics, Milton Friedman, warned many years ago that the more government does for the family, the less those in the family are likely to do for themselves.
Do you agree?
Dr. Friedman was not alone in his concern about the negative impact government subsidies can have on private households. History tells us that unintended consequences often accompany even well-meaning bureaucratic intervention. Over thirty years ago a contemporary of Friedman, Martin S.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, parenting, policy by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
Dr. Brad Wilcox is a friend and the highly respected Director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia. He’s also an Associate Professor of Sociology.
For years, Brad and his colleagues have been studying the positive impact of marriage on the culture. His work is not manipulated to prove a point. He’s a scientist who studies and analyzes data and draws conclusions based upon facts. In one of his most revealing articles, he makes an interesting statement, but one that also confirms what Christians believe about God’s institution of marriage:
The long-term fortunes of the modern economy rise and fall with the family.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family, marriage by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
In the process of doing some research, one of my colleagues came across a poignant Veterans Day tribute. It dates back over 45 years, but the sentiments are powerful and timeless. Sadly, thousands of mothers and fathers today can relate to the following words of a woman named Mrs. Katherine Jones of Porterville, California, which appeared in the Porterville Evening Recorder in November of 1967:
To the editor:
I am only one of several mothers in Porterville who have lost sons in Vietnam during the past year, but as one mother, this is my tribute to my son.
Topics: Family and Home Tags: events, family, husband, wife by Jim Daly with Paul Batura
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.