Daly Focus Blog
If you’re a new stepmom, you may be entering into one of the toughest jobs a woman can have. It’s not easy to bring together the remnants of two families and make them one.
Forging genuine relationships between new siblings and step-parents takes time … and lots of it.
Even under the most ideal circumstances.
There’s no way to know how long children may grieve the loss of their original family and everything that went with it.
Technology is a way of life for kids. They use it for everything from simple communication with family and friends to entertainment to school-related tasks.
And the numbers prove it. In the course of just one minute, YouTube users upload 48 hours of new video content. Facebook users share over 680,000 pieces of content. More than 2 million Google searches occur. And over 200 million email messages are sent. And did you know teenagers send on average over 3,000 texts every month?
Are you struggling with motherhood? Has your role as “mom” turned out to be more complicated than you expected?
Those are questions Lysa TerKeurst’s organization, Proverbs 31 Ministries, asked on their Facebook page. Within 24 hours, nearly 1,000 moms responded – almost all of them with a resounding “yes.”
If you’re a mom, that statistic might not surprise you. In fact, based on the results of that informal survey, there’s a good chance you feel the same way.
I’ve previously shared how parents can pass along a lasting faith to their kids. In a nutshell, there are two things parents should do:
Live out an authentic, vibrant faith themselves
Help their children develop spiritual habits, like regular prayer and Scripture reading
But as times change and technology brings us increased convenience, I’ve wondered if an unintended consequence is that, in some areas, our digital life could potentially undermine our efforts to model the faith?
Vince Lombardi was the legendary football coach of the Green Bay Packers. Throughout the 1960s, his teams dominated the National Football League. But their astounding success was not the result of new and innovative ways to play the game. It was quite the opposite.
In fact, one notorious example demonstrates how adamant Coach Lombardi was that his players master the fundamentals. At the beginning of training camp the year after one of the team’s most successful seasons, Lombardi gathered his men for a pep talk.
Measles.
It’s not the sort of souvenir you’d expect to bring home from the “Happiest Place on Earth,” but that’s exactly what dozens of children took away from their visit to Disneyland last December.
Ironically, Jean and I were there with the boys the very week of the outbreak.
More than fifty children contracted the disease as a result of exposure to the infection at the California theme park. Some spread it to others, and by the end of January more than a hundred cases had been confirmed in the U.S.
After a few years of Super Bowl commercials featuring Dad as the butt of too many jokes, it seems like this year may be in for a refreshing change. There are two pre-released game day ads that show fathers in a positive light.
First up is Dove Men + Care’s 60-second spot, “#RealStrength,” which shows children of various ages calling their dads and ends with the tagline “Care Makes a Man Stronger.” It’s so well-made it’s likely many viewers will be left with tears in their eyes.
I think almost every parent can relate to this scenario:
You give your 6-year-old a clear instruction to follow. But instead of doing what he’s told, he looks at you and, with a straight face asks, “Why?”
Believe it or not, how you respond to that question as a parent is more crucial than you might think.
There was a time in our society when a “Why do I have to?” from a child would get an immediate “Because I said so” from the parent.
Have you ever ridden one of those amusement park rides that spin at dizzying speeds just before the floor drops out? They leave you glued to the wall, holding on for dear life.
Well, if you’ve ever had a teen daughter shock you with the announcement, “I’m pregnant,” I’m guessing you can relate.
You probably felt like your world was spinning, and the floor had dropped out from beneath you.
The shock is understandable.
The question is, how should a parent respond?
Unfortunately, even good parents might one day see their adult children make poor choices. Here at Focus we’ve spoken with many heartbroken moms and dads who are grappling to understand and respond well to their grown kids’ decisions.
Here are four tips from our counselors on how parents can help their child get back on track.
1. Ease your guilt.
Every parent makes mistakes. However, as an adult, your son or daughter is now old enough to make their own choices and to take responsibility for them.
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.
