family Archives

The Search for a Godly Spouse

Many single men and women don’t know how to pursue marriage with purpose.

When asked what they’re looking for in a spouse, most will say something about good looks. While physical attraction is not unimportant, for a marriage that stands the test of time couples must rise beyond that initial connection point. They must keep character top of mind, understanding that marriage is a relationship with a whole person, not just a body.

A second idea for single men and women to consider is the length of their engagement period.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family July 3, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Discovering God Is Enough

Humorist Erma Bombeck once said, “There is a thin line that separates laughter and pain.”

Chonda Pierce has been tip-toeing that line for a long time. She’s been doing stand-up comedy for 30 years and has received more Gold and Platinum awards than any female comic in history. She has a unique ability to describe life’s most challenging moments all while making you laugh out loud with her humor.

Focus on the Family was privileged to have Chonda as a guest speaker at a chapel service here at the ministry.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family June 21, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Understanding Your Spouse’s Emotions

For a stronger marriage, ask yourself, “What’s my EQ?”

Your IQ is a measure of your intelligence. Your EQ is a measure of your “emotional intelligence.”

The term “EQ” was coined in 1995 by Daniel Goleman, who first applied the concept to businessmen and businesswomen. As he defined it, emotional intelligence is the degree to which you are able to make healthy relational choices based on your understanding of your emotions and the emotions of those around you.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, marriage June 17, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Homemade Meals for Busy Families

You’re probably running a lot of directions at high speed. You’re so busy that even after your workday ends, there’s more work to be done. Somebody has to pick up the kids from soccer practice and run to the store for groceries. After that, you still have to get home and make dinner, which can take a couple of hours once you cook, eat and clean up the mess.

Who’s got time for that?

Hiring a chef or buying pre-packaged dinners can be expensive.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family June 7, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Turn Toward Your Spouse

Ten minutes. That’s all it takes to turn your marriage around.

Sound too easy? Widely respected marriage therapist Dr. John Gottman has published research that shows unhappy couples can dramatically change their relationship if they’ll devote at least ten minutes throughout the day to one another.

It’s what happens in those ten minutes that the magic happens. It’s where couples “turn toward” one another. That means couples shift their focus away from work, kids, and other distractions of the day and turn their attention toward their spouse.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, marriage June 6, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Absolute Zero

People who aren’t religious typically share a common belief: They only trust in tangible things that can be physically detected. That sounds reasonable until you realize how much of reality exists outside our ability to perceive it.

Let me give you an example. Scientists talk about a thing called Absolute Zero. That’s the temperature at which all heat in a system is completely gone – so cold that even atoms become fully motionless. Absolute Zero is a whopping 460 degrees below zero.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family June 5, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Trusting God with Your Adult Child

My friend Rob Parsons tells the story of a couple whose daughter disappeared from home in a fit of rebellion on her 18th birthday. Her parents were devastated. For years, they didn’t know if she was alive or dead.

Early on, her mother made a simple decision. Every night she would turn on the porch light and leave it on all night. It was an unspoken message to her daughter: “You’re always welcome home.”

Many nights, tears streamed down the mother’s face as she locked the front door, switched on the light, and prayed for her daughter.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family June 4, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Loving Your Wife with Your Words

One of the keys to a great marriage is thoughtful, intentional communication. The words you use, the way you speak, your body language and how you listen and respond will either build up your relationship or tear it down.

While strong communication is important for both spouses, husbands often need extra help developing this skill. Author Ryan Frederick is joining me on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly to help husbands love their wives well through good communication habits.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, marriage June 3, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

A Hard Day’s Night

Both of my boys had colic as infants. On a good night, they might only sleep for a couple of hours at a time. Jean and I tried everything to get them to rest, including placing them on top of our clothes dryer, hoping the movement would calm them. Other nights, I would drive Trent – and two years later, Troy – around the neighborhood at two o’clock in the morning. But every time, as soon as I brought them home and lay them down – boom!

Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, parenting May 30, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

For Those in the Background

Here’s a trivia question for you: Which team has the worst win-loss record in all of sports?

The answer is a basketball team called the Washington Generals. They’ve been losing nonstop to the Harlem Globetrotters since 1926 – a mind-bending 16,000 times. Obviously, the Washington Generals are a spoof, but they illustrate the importance of people who make an organization successful even though they never get the spotlight – which is most of us.

The Generals are supposed to lose.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: faith, family May 28, 2024 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura