pop culture Archives

What One Mom Has Learned from the Olympics

The London Games continue to serve up hours and hours of spirited fun for millions around the world. For parents, the Olympics also provide all kinds of “teachable moments” for our kids, from talking about the dedication required in training to how to handle disappointment when a medal is just beyond reach.

For one mom, the delayed broadcast of the Games has also served to give her some much needed perspective. Christy Cabe is a talented writer who chronicles life with a mother’s heart because, well, she’s a happy mom who is busily raising three young children.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: entertainment, family, kids, parenting, pop culture August 2, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

A Son’s Reaction: “That is Really Weird!”

I promised to share an update with you regarding “the talk” I had with my son Trent over the weekend. Thanks to all of you who offered counsel and prayed for us. It was greatly appreciated!

In short, the conversation went very well. I decided to organize it into three sections:

God’s design for marriage
God’s design for human sexuality
The practical application of sections 1 and 2.

I was extremely pleased with how well and warmly Trent received and connected with the discussion about God’s view of marriage and sexuality.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: kids, pop culture July 30, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Family is a Social Justice Issue

I want to share an article with you written by my colleague, Glenn Stanton. It was originally posted over at ChristianityToday.com and makes the case how strong marriages and families are a community’s most important social justice driver.

It’s an important article for all students of the family, making a tight, reasoned and diversely-documented case that marital status matters more significantly than other assumptive factors when it comes to lifting women and children out of poverty and protecting them from it.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: church, family, pop culture July 19, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Why Mike Huckabee Makes Me Laugh

Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate-turned radio talk show host, was recently asked a series of questions by a reporter named Andrew Goldmen. I want to share two of them with you.

I appreciate a guy who doesn’t take himself too seriously.

Q: Could it possibly be true that you have never, ever tried alcohol in your life?
A: That’s true, other than communion wine in Europe. But I’ve never, ever tasted beer.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, humor, policy, pop culture July 12, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes, Scientology and Divorce

The dissolution of any marriage is tragic. In fact, the southern novelist Pat Conroy may have said it best, declaring that “every divorce is the death of a small civilization.” It is.Tabloids have been abuzz lately regarding the high profile split between Hollywood stars Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes.

The couple has a six-year-old daughter, Suri. I don’t know much about them, but their split seems a bit unusual, even for Hollywood.Prior to the divorce proceedings, the Cruises were arguably the highest-profile members of the Church of Scientology, a movement that was started in 1950 by the release of Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health by L.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: pop culture July 12, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Free Slurpees and Our Twenty-Four-Hour Culture

7-Eleven celebrates its 85th anniversary today (7/11/12) and to mark the occasion, stores will be handing out free seven-ounce Slurpees. And all the kids – and adults who have a little kid inside them – rejoiced. Coming from a business background, the explosion of the convenience store model is pretty fascinating.

Started as the Southland Ice Company in 1927 in Dallas, Texas, the original store evolved and expanded over the years.In 1946 operators decided to open at 7 AM and close at 11 PM – a bold and unprecedented move at the time.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: events, policy, pop culture July 11, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

How One Girl Influenced Seventeen Magazine

Never let it be said that one teenager can’t make a difference in the lives of millions of other girls.This past spring, Julie Bluhm, 14, of Maine, began petitioning the editors of Seventeen to stop altering the images of the girls pictured in the magazine.

“Here’s what lots of girls don’t know,” Bluhm wrote. “Those ‘pretty women’ that we see in magazines are fake. They’re often photo shopped, air-brushed, edited to look thinner, and to appear like they have perfect skin.

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

Tebow, Kardashian and Our Worship of Idols

All it takes is a 30-second perusal of the supermarket tabloids to confirm what you already know:

There is an excessive, if not obsessive, draw to celebrity in the culture. From Tim Tebow to Kate Middleton to Kim Kardashian, people are drawn to certain individuals, for any number of reasons.

But a fascination with the famous is by no means a new phenomenon. It manifests itself differently today than 50 years ago, but human nature is still the same.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: news, pop culture July 2, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

The Real War on Women

If you ingest a steady dose of daily news, it would be easy to grow weary of the din of the average day, the discordant sounds of a culture awash in controversy. An issue may startle and grab you, but just as soon as you begin to digest it, another wild and upsetting story comes along, like the rolling tide of a stormy sea.

I was thinking about this the other day, pondering how it’s possible that both the president of the United States and the House of Representatives support sex-selection abortion.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: kids, parenting, pop culture, pro-life June 24, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura

Ten Books Every Christian Should Read

Settling into a comfortable chair with a good book is among life’s greatest pleasures. If you’re looking to pick one up, our online resource center is packed with exciting and entertaining titles.

Whatever your taste, I think you’ll find a title to your liking.

If you’re more inclined to invest in the classics (including some modern ones), the following list should be helpful to you. It was compiled by several of our senior members on the Focus team.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: church, faith, pop culture May 28, 2012 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura