Daly Focus Blog
Trevor Hendershot is quite a young man. I think you’d like meeting him.
Cheerleaders in his high school once made banners to cheer him on, and he was so popular he was voted homecoming king. He was a little quirky, too. He had a habit of loudly singing Christian songs in the hallway before, during, and after school. He gave everyone he talked to a high-five, a hug, or a fist bump.
He’s now in his mid-20’s and works for the Los Angeles Angels, a Major League Baseball franchise.
Today’s broadcast, “Changing the World Through Adoption,” features a conversation with my friend, Focus colleague and co-writer, Paul Batura. The discussion is based on his latest book, Chosen for Greatness: How Adoption Changes the World.
Paul serves as our vice-president of communications. He’s currently in his 20th year at the ministry.
Although Paul often works behind the scenes, you might remember him from a Focus program several years ago where he discussed his popular book, “Good Day!
We’re currently in the midst of National Marriage Week (Feb. 7-14), a yearly celebration that recognizes the importance of this most basic human institution.
We’re also living in an age where cohabitation rates are increasing, in part because our culture increasingly doesn’t value the importance of God’s sacred and foundational gift to men and women.
Too many couples simply don’t see the value in getting married. To them, “marriage is just a piece of paper.” From their vantage point, marriage doesn’t bring any added benefits as long as they’re “secure” in their relationship.
A colleague once shared with me a quote from Abraham Lincoln. It dealt with his perspective on public opinion and its impact on the direction of America, as well as the power of culture to shape politics and law:
In this age, in this country, public sentiment is everything. With it, nothing can fail; against it, nothing can succeed. Whoever molds public sentiment goes deeper than he who enacts statutes, or pronounces judicial decisions.
That’s a statement that just as easily could have been uttered today.
Not many families are considered a “dynasty.”
And only one is credited with building a “Duck Dynasty.”
But I guess that’s the way you’d expect a family like the Robertsons to be characterized. After all, the family patriarch, Phil Robertson, turned down an opportunity for a professional football career because it would interfere with duck hunting season.
They’ve also built a highly successful duck call business, have starred in a record-breaking cable television series for several years now, and the men of the family are all well-known for wearing beards that have become something of a cultural icon.
If you’re a fan of home improvement shows, it’s hard not to love Chip and Joanna Gaines, the stars of the hit HGTV reality program “Fixer Upper.”
The couple has taken the television world by storm since the show first aired in 2013. And while they’re talented home renovators and savvy businesspeople, those aren’t the main reasons for their popularity.
Fans will happily tell you there’s something different about the Gaineses. They’re kind, funny, and devoted to their four young children.
By now you may have heard that the actress Florence Henderson died last week on Thanksgiving Day. She was best known as Carol Brady, the “lovely lady … who met this fellow” on the iconic 1970s sitcom “The Brady Bunch.”
The show wasn’t a ratings hit during its initial run, but “The Brady Bunch” found its niche when it first aired in syndication in 1975. It’s been on the air ever since.
Some of that success is undoubtedly due to Henderson’s take on the family matriarch, which made Mrs.
The longest drought in the history of American sports is over.
As we all know by now, after 108 years without a championship, baseball’s Chicago Cubs won the World Series last night, giving life-long fans like me a chance to celebrate after a lifetime of frustration, futility, and being the easy punch line to a seemingly limitless supply of jokes.
Simba: Hey Dad, what is a World Series?
Mufasa: I wouldn’t expect you to know, Simba.
By the time the 1800’s came to a close, Lew Wallace’s bestselling novel, Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, was considered by many to be “the most influential Christian book of the nineteenth century.” Adapted for film a couple times, most recently in 1959, Ben-Hur became a runaway Hollywood hit, eventually capturing eleven Academy Awards.
Even today, over a half-century later, many critics consider it to be one of America’s greatest movies of all time.
Tomorrow, Mark Burnett and Roma Downey are releasing a new version of the classic adventure for the big screen.
If you’re a fan of women’s gymnastics, chances are you’re familiar with Rick and Lynn Raisman, parents of U.S. gymnast and gold medal winner Aly Raisman.
The Raismans have achieved “viral” status thanks to their all-too-obvious nervousness when Aly performs. They squirm and grimace their way through their daughter’s leaps, somersaults, and dismounts – Aly’s mom sometimes even watches her routines through her hands!
If you haven’t watched the Raismans’ reactions, take a look:
As entertaining as it is to watch, if you’re a parent, you have to admit: the Raismans are simply emoting what all of us feel on the inside as our children grow up and journey towards independence.
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.
