The Gift of Thorns “We have to very careful to distinguish between ‘did God let me down?’ or ‘did my expectations of God let me down?’   What if not getting what we want is one of God’s great gifts? “God knows what is good for us when we don’t,” says the Rev. Dr. A. …

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Living your faith, from the “Inside Out” If you’re having trouble helping your kids negotiate their emotions, you’re not alone.    “We always fall into kind of two ends of a spectrum,” says writer and Bible teacher Courtney Reissig. “We either want to protect them too much from experiencing hard things, or we don’t want …

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Little Girls, Adult Pressures  Even the youngest girls feel the pressure to be sexy. Adult pressures on girls begin early. Dr. Danny Huerta talks about ways parents can help their daughters know that their value is deeper than their appearance. Huerta is a father, a licensed clinical social worker, and the vice president of Parenting …

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“Inside Out” on Family Life How do you respond when coworkers tell you they’ve been hurt by Christians, or say that Christianity is offensive? Kaitlin Miller Febles talks about how believers led by the Holy Spirit can live out the most powerful response.     “I think when we first respond with just defensiveness, we can …

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Inside Out:  Managing Family Conflict During the Holidays  Ways to prepare What we can do, and what to avoid Who can offer you comfort? Do upcoming holiday gatherings already have your stomach in knots? A veteran counselor with Focus on the Family suggests thinking ahead of time about how both historic family dynamics and differing …

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We develop our way of looking at the world—our worldview—before we turn 13. Remarkably, new research finds that fewer than one in ten parents think through how to guide their children spiritually during those critical years.   Dr. George Barna directs the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University and includes these findings in his …

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“Inside Out” on Family Life : What can the Church do to reach the “Nones” and the “Dones”? Some churchgoers are walking away. Others you might expect to come aren’t entering. Author and speaker Michelle Van Loon talks about the “Dones” and the “Nones,” and how to we can “spur one another on to good …

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If our understanding of who God is and how He works in the world doesn’t have a foundation in the Bible, it’s possible that we hold “sketchy views.” A great many things work to pull us away from Jesus Christ. That’s not news. “The Scripture teaches us that the world, the flesh, and the devil are …

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When a friend is suffering, we want to help, but so many of us just don’t know how, or feel inadequate for the task.  Vaneetha Rendall Risner is familiar with suffering. She also knows how it can draw us to God. Her first suggestion for those of us who don’t know how to support a …

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Parents can be tempted to make the children the family’s highest priority. But giving our children the best of our time and attention is not actually what’s best for them, according to Dr. Greg Smalley.   Smalley is an author and speaker who serves as vice president of Marriage at Focus on the Family. He …

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