faith Archives

A Deathbed Blessing

Many of us have sat by the side of a dying loved one, trying to bring comfort, trying to help prepare them for their final journey home. But it’s especially powerful and telling, isn’t it, when the person who is suffering is the one who brings the greatest measure of comfort and perspective?

Joan Batura, the mother of Paul Batura, a colleague here at Focus, received her promotion to glory on January 12th. By her own acknowledgment, she had lived a long and wonderful life.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith January 18, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

How to Get Along with People

One Sunday morning, drowsing in a back pew of a little country church, I dimly heard the old preacher urge his flock to “stop worrying about your own halo and shine up your neighbor’s!” And it left me sitting up, wide awake, because it struck me as just about the best eleven-word formula for getting along with people that I ever heard.

Shine up your neighbors’s halo:

I like it for its implication that everyone, in some area of life, has a halo that’s worth watching for and acknowledging.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith January 17, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Some Numbers Are More Important Than a Score

There wasn’t a lot of celebrating Saturday night in our home state of Colorado, but there was definitely – as Luke 15:7 promises – “rejoicing in heaven.” Our beloved Denver Broncos lost a heartbreaker to the New England Patriots, but that result is really inconsequential when souls are won for Christ.

And that’s precisely what happened during the AFC Divisional Playoffs. How do we know? Because people told us.

They were responding to a 30-second commercial from Focus on the Family aired during the game.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family, kids January 16, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Cal Thomas: An Extraordinary Life

Excerpts from a touching and poignant reflection on the dignity of life from columnist Cal Thomas:

My Brother’s Valuable Life

How does one measure whether a life was a success, or a failure?

Some would measure it by recognition, that is, how many knew the person’s name. For others, the measure of a successful life would be the amount of wealth accumulated, or possessions held. Still others would say a life was successful if the person made a major contribution to society — in medicine, sports, politics, or the arts.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family January 11, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Tebow Makes Kids’ W15Hes Come True

We’ve all seen the ads: Pro sports star wins a huge game, and in the ensuing celebratory bedlam encounters a camera and a voice behind it that says, “You’ve just won the biggest game of your career. What’s next?”

The answer, a stroke of marketing genius by the House That Walt Built: “I’m going to DisneyWorld.”

But Tim Tebow – if we’ve learned anything at all about him by now – is not your typical NFL star.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, pastors, pop culture January 11, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Will You? Do You?

I will do more than belong – I will participate.

I will do more than care – I will help.

I will do more than believe – I will practice.

I will do more than be fair – I will be kind.

I will do more than forgive – I will forget.

I will do more than dream – I will work.

I will do more than teach – I will inspire.

I will do more than earn – I will enrich.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith January 9, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

What John Piper Learned from His Father – Part II

In yesterday’s post I shared six things that John Piper, Pastor for Preaching and Vision of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, learned from his late father, Dr. Bill Piper.

Here are six more:

1. It is a sin to do less than your best. Best always involves the whole thing and several decisions.

2. It is wrong to be yoked to one who has refused the yoke of Christ.

3. The part of your character that is deficient is the part that needs attention.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith January 6, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

What John Piper Learned from His Father – Part I

I’m on my way to New York this morning to record a radio program with Dr. Tim Keller, senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church and author of the excellent new book, The Meaning of Marriage.

I’ll let you know in the coming days when the discussion will air.

For now, I wanted to share with you a powerful list of poignant lessons. They come from the pen of pastor and author, John Piper. They are among the top things he learned from his father, Dr.

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

Why the Iowa Caucus Mirrors Life

For months we’ve been hearing about the big vote in Iowa today, and for good reason. Picking a party’s presidential candidate is a significant opportunity to help advance our country’s ideals. Who we vote for is a reflection of our priorities and personal convictions.

But unlike most states, the Iowa process is a bit complex. It’s also somewhat messy.

Just like life.

In Iowa, there are 1,774 caucus sites. Candidates are permitted to attend and campaign at any of them.

Topics: Current Events Tags: events, faith, news January 3, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

As we look expectantly and excitedly toward 2012, I’d love to share with you some ministerial highlights from this past year. I am humbled and grateful to report the following:

Focus on the Family helped strengthen or save 1.2 million marriages in 2011. This figure is part of the 90 percent of projects and commitments Focus was able to fulfill in spite of the year’s economic downturn, which significantly impacted the organization.

The ministry, through licensed professional counselors on staff, provided counseling to nearly 52,000 individuals since January.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family, pro-life, staff December 30, 2011 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura