Family and Home Archives

Three Things Bubba Watson and Tim Tebow Have in Common

Rarely do Easter and the world of sports mix so smoothly, but yesterday they did.

In Augusta, Georgia, thirty-three-year-old Bubba Watson won the Masters golf championship, coming from behind and claiming the green jacket on the 2nd hole of a sudden-death playoff round.

Bubba Watson is a Christian and a very exuberant one at that. In describing himself on Twitter, he notes that he’s a “Christian, Husband, Daddy” – in that order. He leads a Bible study during the PGA tour and regularly tweets verses of Scripture.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, parenting, pop culture April 9, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Have You Ever Caught a Glimpse of Heaven?

Do you believe that God sometimes allows heaven and earth to touch?

I certainly do, and not only because I have seen it with my own eyes. I want to tell you about something pretty incredible that once happened to me.

Easter seems to be an ideal time to ponder heaven and the glory of the life that never ends. After all, it was on Easter when God pulled back the veil and allowed man to see the grandest of all miracles firsthand.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith April 4, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Five Things Everybody Can Learn From This Five-Year-Old Boy

His name is Ethan Hendon, and he’s the son of my niece and nephew, Cassandra and Shawn. Born with a congenital defect called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, the left side of Ethan’s heart is underdeveloped.

So, physiologically he’s struggling, but spiritually and mentally the little guy is thriving and making a tremendous difference in the lives of others.

Just the other day I received word that Ethan’s school has raised nearly $4,000 in his name for the American Heart Association.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, kids April 3, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

1940 Census Doesn’t Reveal Most Important Things

After 72 years under lock and key, the 1940 United States Census was released this morning. Accessing census records has never been easier. All the files have been digitized, a labor-intensive effort that involved scanning millions of documents.

According to the 1940 Census there were 132 million people living in the United States, a 7 percent increase from 1930. Taken in the midst of the Great Depression, the records are particularly revealing. For the first time ever, workers asked about household income as well as the education level of all those in the house.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, news April 2, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Dave Barry: Dining with Babies Causes Stressful Ambience

Does the columnist Dave Barry make you laugh?

Here are a few select excerpts from a column titled, “Dining with Babies Causes Stressful Ambience.”

Can you relate?

If you’re a new parent, there will come a time when either you or your spouse will say these words: ‘Let’s take the baby to a restaurant!’… It’s like saying: ‘Let’s take a moose to the opera!’”

It’s best to pay your bill as you enter the restaurant, adding a little extra (say, $800) to compensate for the fact that after you’re finished, your table may have to be burned.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: humor, kids, parenting March 30, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

My Free First-Class Ticket

Before the railroad, Americans on the move traveled by stagecoach. Given the relative ease of modern-day transportation, it’s difficult to imagine just how uncomfortable it must have been to be jammed inside a small open-air compartment and bounced along an unpaved rocky road on wooden wheels. We can get a sense of the atmosphere, though, by some of the “rules” that were posted inside each coach.

Here’s a sampling:

Abstinence from liquor is requested, but if you must drink share the bottle.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, pop culture March 29, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

What Do You Think About The Hunger Games?

The family and I are on spring break this week, but I’m curious for your feedback surrounding Suzanne Collins’ bestseller-turned-Hollywood-thriller The Hunger Games.

Have you gone to see it?

Would you permit your son or daughter to watch if they wanted to?

Why – or why not?

Given the young age of our boys, we haven’t paid attention to the book or the movie. Their minds are focused on much tamer fare, including Legos and other books and games.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: entertainment, kids, parenting, pop culture March 28, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Andy Rooney: The Following Things Are True About Housework

What does spring cleaning look like in your home?

According to the late Andy Rooney, the following things are true about housework:

Vacuuming a large rug is the easiest housekeeping job. Anyone doing it gets more credit than he or she deserves. This is partly because the vacuum cleaner makes so much noise it gives the illusion that someone’s working hard.

Putting away the vacuum cleaner is harder than vacuuming.

The single easiest thing to do in exchange for the most credit, is mopping the kitchen floor.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: marriage, parenting March 27, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Tim Keller: 8 Tips for Marriage Seekers

The following is a condensed excerpt from my friend Tim Keller’s excellent new book, which I strongly endorse, The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God:

Practical Counsel for Marriage Seekers
Recognize that there are seasons for not doing marriage-seeking:

When you are going through a significant transition — starting a new job, starting a new school, death of a parent, or some other fairly absorbing time or event — it might not at all be a good time to begin a relationship.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: intimacy, marriage, relationships March 26, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

A Dose of Pouty Magic

I mentioned the other day that my colleague and Tim Tebow fanatic, Sue, was pouting over the arrival of Peyton Manning to the Denver Broncos and the subsequent trade of Tim to the New York Jets.

Thankfully, her poutiness was rare and short-lived. But I’m not so sure I can say the same thing about my son Troy who’s been known to pout to either make a point or get his way.

His brother calls it “pouty magic.”

The act doesn’t usually work, but that hasn’t stopped him from trying!

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, kids, parenting, pop culture March 22, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura