Daly Focus Blog
Respect, humility and courage – foundational to a happy, healthy society – have been diminished in our culture.
My wife and I aimed to instill those values in our boys, Trent and Troy, by enrolling them in Cotillion, an etiquette class that prepares children to interact with each other with manners as mature young men and women.
The boys were apprehensive, but I assured them, “Don’t worry, guys. They’ll mostly teach you table manners.” Boy, was I wrong.
Let me ask you three questions.
First, if God said to you, “I will answer every single prayer that you pray this week,” how many people in your life would you pray to receive Jesus?
Second question: Are you praying for them now?
Christians often grow weary of praying for someone – or give up entirely – because nothing seems to be happening.
Which leads me to my third question: What if, as we pray for others, God does something in us?
My childhood was tough. My mom died when I was nine years old. My stepdad walked out on my siblings and me the day of her funeral. After that, I spent almost two years in foster care. When I think back on those days now, I have to search through the darkness to find bright spots.
One of them was when I was 11 years old. My dad and I shared an afternoon I’ll never forget.
Each year, about six million women in the United States become pregnant. Of those pregnancies, nearly half – 45 percent – are unplanned.
Most of the time, teenagers are the focus of such conversation, but many married adult women with children are surprised by unexpected pregnancies as well. They watch their youngest child enter elementary school, or their oldest graduate from high school, then discover they’re pregnant and starting over at stage one. They feel shocked, exhausted, and embarrassed.
What do you want out of life? A good career? A good marriage? Kids with good character? Whatever you’re after, success won’t come easy. You gotta stick with it until you get where you want to go.
If your dreams seem out of reach, don’t be dismayed. You’re in good company. Colonel Sanders, the man who started the KFC restaurant chain, was rejected by over 1,000 investors before he got a single yes. KFC now operates almost 20,000 stores around the world.
Modern Christians are, let’s say, comfortable. We like our comfort zones, our religious routines and our focus on “doing right.”
But what if God is calling us to something more meaningful and challenging, like living a life of service, sacrifice, and forgiveness in a way that transforms the world?
Jesus was a radical. We don’t often think of Him that way. Modern society portrays Him as respectable and polite. But Jesus not only touched lepers, but He also drove corrupted merchants out of the temple with a whip made of cords.
Here at Focus on the Family, we hear from parents who wonder how to guide their children through cultural messages about race and ethnicity that are often divisive and dehumanizing.
Author Trillia Newbell has a balanced, informed, and grace-filled approach. Despite the racism she’s experienced, she has learned to move through life with forgiveness, compassion, and understanding. But she also believes parents should prioritize teaching their kids proper views about race, saying, “Either we teach our children, or the culture will.”
Trillia is joining me on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly to help Christian parents teach their children a biblical perspective about racial unity.
Have you had “The Talk” with your children?
Yes, that talk – the one about sex.
When the time came for me to talk with my oldest son, Trent, I was pretty nervous. Sex can be uncomfortable for two adults to talk about openly, let alone a child. Nevertheless, I was pushed forward.
After explaining the sacredness of human sexuality, I carefully described, in simple and age-appropriate terms, the basic mechanics of sex. When I finished, Trent was awfully quiet.
Kristen Hatton – counselor, author, and mom of three children – says there are two types of parenting:
Reactive Parenting. Mom and Dad respond to situations as they come up, without forethought.
Proactive Parenting. Mom and Dad seek to identify and prevent potential issues before they happen.
Number two is the best approach.
But how can parents intentionally influence their teenagers with biblical wisdom in the face of a culture whose values contradict God’s word?
Kristen is joing me on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly to help parents better understand how to convey God’s truth through everyday encounters.
Everyday we’re encouraged to go out and change the world and make it a better place. But how can one person truly have a genuine impact?
I like the advice one woman gave to her six-year-old nephew when he asked her how to change the world. She told him to imagine a circle around him then said, “You change the world by doing what’s right in the three feet around you.”
That’s wisdom even a six-year-old can understand.
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.
