Helping Families Thrive

I thought you’d find this note encouraging. These kind words are reflective of what many have felt about Focus on the Family over the years:

“I am at a loss for words to adequately express how much it means to my husband and me to know that there is an organization like Focus that is rooting for us.  Just today I was reading Psalm 37 and thinking about how your ministry provides ways to ‘dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.’  We have two teenagers and an 8-year-old in our household.  Adventures in Odyssey got us through the grade school years, but now our adolescents’ faith is being tested by all the entertainment options that the world offers.  Plugged In Online has become a significant compass for our family.  All three of our kids are dedicated to their walk with Christ but they still encounter challenges.  Thanks for all of your research and persistence in helping us navigate through stormy waters.”

This is exactly what we’re about: coming alongside and helping families thrive. It’s a privilege to be part of what our heavenly is doing at and through Focus on the Family. If you have a story, let us know, please. All to the glory of God!

Integrity

“Outside of Steve Jobs at Apple, it’s hard to imagine a CEO that is more important to his company than Mark Hurd to Hewlett-Packard. He did a massive turnaround job.”

That’s how Rick Munarriz, a Motley Fool analyst, described the leadership of the now-fallen Hurd, who resigned Friday following a probe into a sexual-harassment claim against him made by a former HP contractor. Those allegations included a charge that Hurd had approved false reimbursement submissions by the woman.

While he evidently didn’t violate the company’s sexual-harassment policy, Hurd “demonstrated a profound lack of judgment that seriously undermined his credibility and damaged his effectiveness in leading HP,” according to General Counsel Michael Holston.

I’m not going to sit in judgment of Mr. Hurd, who is guilty of, at the least, making some poor choices.  As a result of the revelations, he has made some sort of settlement with the former contractor. He has lost his job. And stockholders are losing money as HP shares are dropping in value.

I’m sure Hurd regrets what has happened.  He’ll remember this indiscretion for the rest of his life. He doesn’t need me to heap any guilt on him. Instead, I’m letting this news story be a reminder that today I’m capable of poor choices. I need to live with wisdom, avoiding impropriety. I have to keep my life in line with my values and words. I need to demonstrate integrity in all things. I can’t have any holes in my life.

“Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.” That’s a quote attributed to C.S. Lewis, and I think that’s a pretty good thing to keep in mind as I go about my activities. Especially when no one is looking.

Related to this subject: Authenticity. More on that at a later date, but for now, consider this radio interview for a relevant, biblical perspective on living life consistently, in all ways.

Lindsay, LeBron, Who Cares?

Today as I scanned the “most popular” headlines at an online news source, I found it odd that two of the top three most widely read and followed news stories are about celebrities.

Lindsay Lohan’s public self-destruction is, at this time, the most popular news item at Google News. While it all seems rather sad, why is this young woman’s outrageous behavior of such interest to so many?

Tonight NBA superstar LeBron James will announce which team he will play for next season, via an hour-long ESPN special. He needs 60 minutes to tell us something that could be captured in two sentences?

Together, these two pop icons have generated more news reports than these other top stories combined. In fact, a quick tally revealed that people are more interested in Lindsay and LeBron than these other  important items:

Pretty lopsided “news,” don’t you think? And something I heard on the radio this morning makes me wonder: is the media driving this celebrity culture – or are consumers driving the demand for such reporting?A sports writer observed that ESPN is airing what is plainly an hour-long LeBron James infomercial because lots of people will watch it. The public demand for such programming is there, and the network is happy to deliver to the audience (and deliver that audience to advertisers).

Its a chicken-egg question. What do you think?

What's driving our celebrity culture?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Your Feedback

As you probably know, Focus on the Family is here to come alongside families like yours with relevance and grace at each stage of the journey.  We support families as they seek to teach their children about God and His beautiful design for the family, protect themselves from the harmful influences of culture, and equip themselves to make a greater difference in the lives of those around them.

As we often say on-air, we’re here to help.  With practical resources – like our 1-800 Family Help line, counseling, and Websites – we’re committed to providing trustworthy, biblical guidance and support.

Of course, one aspect of our outreach involves radio, and it has been a true privilege to work on the daily Focus program for most of my tenure here at the ministry.  And some of the greatest joy is in hearing from folks who have been touched by our work. We receive a significant number of comments every day about our radio programming, much of it quite encouraging and touching. Let me share just one story that we just received:

Over twenty-five years ago, I began listening to your radio program at the recommendation of a mentor and friend. As a result, I’ve been touched by many of your guests over the years. I just wanted to take a moment to thank Focus for all of your wise counsel. In this day and age when it’s often difficult to see evidence of godly families, be assured that many of us in your listening audience are living testimonies that all of your prayer, hard work, and perseverance has paid off. I praise the Lord for the outstanding ministry of Focus on the Family!

We are grateful that God uses our work to impact lives, and I’m wondering if YOU have a story to tell? Leave a comment below and let others know how these broadcasts have made a difference in your life.

Also, I’d ask that you take a few minutes to answer our broadcast survey. Your answers to eight quick questions will help us evaluate and improve our programming. Here’s the link to that survey.

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

Take Our Listener Survey

I’ll invite you to participate in a new survey of Focus on the Family radio listeners. We’ll ask some questions about your listening habits and things you like – and don’t like. Help us out – take ten minutes and give us some honest feedback. The survey is here.

Strange Days

What are we to make of such days, which seem to have an overabundance of sad, weird, even disturbing stories about family, faith and culture?

Alright, enough railing against the culture…and back to raising my kids and loving my wife.

New Webcast Launches Today!

Your Family Live! launches today live Noon-1 p.m. MT, with Yvette Maher, Juli Slattery and guests Jill Savage, Tammy Maltby, Jennifer McKinney and TobyMac. Live calls and forum questions about balancing the busyness of motherhood. Here’s where to see this exciting new telecast.

Reading Harry

My 15 year-old asked me last night if she can read the Harry Potter books. I know the pros and cons of saying yes, and I am sure my decision will offend someone.

After remembering some excellent opinions from Chuck Colson and Plugged In and further personal deliberation, and after seeing one or two of the Potter movies, I told my daughter she can read the books. She was quite happy and gave me a big hug!

This was a matter of letting go, just a bit, so my daughter can exercise discernment and can apply some of the values and truth-training we’ve given her. She is, after all, almost 16. And I think that as a result of this decision we’ll have some good conversations about the Potter worldview, Truth and life.

I wonder if you’ve allowed – or prohibited – your kids from reading Harry Potter? If so, why? And if they’ve read the books, are you pleased with your decision?

Now That The Oscars Are Over

The Best Picture award went to a war film, and the epic by James Cameron was only a runner up. The Oscars provided a bit of drama for the audience gathered in L.A. It was a surprising night for many film enthusiasts, including our own Plugged In team. Read their live blog account and see Paul and Steve’s reactions to the ceremony. And before you try to see The Hurt Locker, go here for a trustworthy review by Plugged In.

Your Vote For “Best Picture?”

There’s a lot of excitement about this weekend’s Oscars. The movie-going public is seemingly enthralled about Avatar and The Hurt Locker and The Blind Side. While the Academy has expanded the entries to ten for the Best Picture category, I’m sorry to say I’ve only seen one of the possible winners, the Pixar-produced, “Up.” Truth is, I just don’t have a lot of time go to movies, even though I enjoy the art and impact of film.

So, of the ten films nominated for Best Picture, what is your favorite (and note, please, that neither Focus nor I are endorsing any of these films…just learning what you like)?

What's your pick for this year's winner in the Best Picture category?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Next Page →