Family and Home Archives

God’s Grace for Those Trapped in Addiction

Gary Morland believes families are like a river – good and bad choices alike flow downstream across generations. Gary’s family of origin was an unhappy one. There was a lot of arguing and disharmony. His dad was an alcoholic. So was his grandfather, who left the family as a result of his addiction. Gary learned to accept dysfunction as normal and unchangeable. The influence of his past sent him on a 15-year journey down what he calls the “Rocky Rapids of Addiction.”

When Gary turned 21, his dad took him drinking, and for the next 15 years, three quarts of beer a day became his habit.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: addiction, broadcast May 24, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

What to Do When You and Your Spouse Are Different

When Jean and I entered premarital counseling, we were goo-goo-eyed and knew that we were meant for each other. We enjoyed most of the same things and were alike in almost every way.

When we finished our last session a week later, that had all changed. We were both thinking, “Wow, we are nothing alike,” and we were wondering, “Are we going to be okay?”

At some point, every couple begins to recognize their differences. And something strange happens when they do: The whole idea of “two becoming one” gets turned into, “My spouse should become more like me.”

How do couples manage their differences effectively?

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, family, husband, marriage, wife May 22, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Thriving in Your Role as a Dad

Do dads have to be perfect?

The answer to that question seems obvious: No.

But what if the answer is yes?

Nobody’s perfect, of course. We all fall short in word, thought, and deed every day. That’s why we need God’s grace.

But hold on. Even if the goal isn’t literal perfection, can’t every dad improve somewhere? This isn’t condemnation, this is a call for men to rise up and thrive as fathers. After all, being a dad is one of the most important jobs a man will ever have.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, family, kids, parenting May 21, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

The Recipe for Cooking Up a Happy Marriage

Some of the best influence on my boys’ future marriages takes place in our kitchen. That’s where Jean, I, and our sons gather to prepare the evening meal and catch up on our day.

Okay, Jean does most of the cooking, but the rest of us help out where we can. Most importantly, we’re all together. We talk about life. We talk about goals. We talk about success and failure. We laugh a lot. We’re doing more than fixing and eating dinner – we’re immersing our boys in relationship.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, family, marriage May 18, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Returning to a Godly Perspective on Sex and Romance

One of the most powerful forces God created for humanity exists in the realm of love, sex, and romance. The potential for both pleasure and blessing is virtually immeasurable. So is the potential for destruction.

As a group, Millennials and younger generations don’t tend to believe that. A significant percentage see sex as a purely physical experience. That shouldn’t surprise anyone. From an evolutionary standpoint, there isn’t anything sacred about sex. If there is no God, then sex is strictly biological.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, husband, intimacy, marriage, wife May 17, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Disciplining Your Kids with Grace

It wasn’t the first time that Karis Kimmel Murray was confronted with how to discipline her young daughter, Riley, properly, but it was one of the more memorable.

At the end of a shopping trip at Walmart, Karis stopped by the shoe aisle for a new pair of flip-flops. Her daughter decided she’d sat patiently in the cart long enough. Karis allowed Riley down, but Riley didn’t just want out of the cart, she wanted out of the store … and Karis stood between her and that goal.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, discipline, family, kids, parenting May 15, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Why Moms Should STOP

Mom, could you use some practical ways to place God at the center of your relationship with your children? Do you have the right identity balance between “mom” and “me”?

In answer to those questions and others like them, author Brooke McGlothlin has this suggestion for moms: STOP.

Submit your thoughts to Christ.

Tell yourself the truth.

Open your eyes to understanding

Persist in prayer

Moms can be passionate about creating the ideal childhood for their kids.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, faith, kids, parenting May 11, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Where Is God in Our Darkest Hours?

“Honey, does life get any better than this?”

That’s what Carol Kent asked her husband one October night as they strolled hand-in-hand along the St. Clair River, watching the beauty of the changing seasons. She believed they were entering a time of change themselves.

She was right about that … but not in the way she had hoped. Little did she know that they were about to face the darkest chapter their family had ever encountered.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, events, faith May 10, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

I’ll Never Forget These Four Things My Mom Told Me Before She Died

It’s been over 46 years since my mother slipped from this life into the next.

I was just 9 years old when she died, and her death disoriented me in ways big and small. In a very practical way, her passing marked the abrupt end of my childhood. Already reeling from the abandonment of my father at 5, it came at the worst possible time, though it’s never a good time for a child to lose a parent.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: kids, parenting, relationships May 9, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

How Should Christians Respond to Domestic Abuse?

Of the many calls, emails and letters we receive at Focus on the Family, those involving the tragic subject of spousal abuse are among the most heart-wrenching. They’re also inquiries that demand an unequivocal response with no room for misinterpretation.

I raise this issue today in light of the current controversy involving Southwestern Seminary President Dr. Paige Patterson. The former head of the Southern Baptist Convention, Dr. Patterson has been rightly credited with helping lead a conservative theological revolution within the denomination at a time when progressives were attempting to liberalize the understanding of Scripture.

Topics: Current Events/ Family and Home Tags: Domestic abuse, paige patterson, southern baptist convention May 8, 2018 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura