Focus on the Family Africa Family Matters

Family Matters

Family Matters is a 5 minute programme offering practical advice from Focus on the Family. Receive a daily dose of encouragement and advice for the family with keys to stronger marriages, effective parenting, deeper relationships and a more satisfying lifestyle.
Daily English South Africa Society & Culture · Religion & Spirituality
1,149 Episodes
860 – 880

Disciplining the Primary School Child

Can you provide me with some general principles and guidelines for responding to behavioral problems in a school-age child? What are some effective methods for disciplining kids at this stage of development?
6 May 2020 6PM 4 min

Difficulty Communicating in Marriage

I've had significant problems in the area of talking meaningfully with my spouse. This in turn is creating serious difficulties in our marriage. We've been going to counseling, and I've been trying hard to be more open and available to my wife, but she says she's ready for a divorce…
5 May 2020 6PM 3 min

Parental Guilt Over Child’s Academic Failure

How do we manage our deep sense of failure as parents after learning that our son is being held back a year in school? How do we help him understand why he didn't pass his grade level? What should we do if the other kids start to tease him about…
4 May 2020 6PM 4 min

Men and Unemployment

With an ever changing economy, and the job market being a cut throat arena, it's becoming more and more common for men to lose their jobs and find themselves unemployed for various lengths of time. Providing for our families is an in-built desire for most men and we will talk…
3 May 2020 6PM 4 min

Looking for Answers to Prayer

How does God respond to intercessory prayer? I haven't seen much fruit from my faithful prayers on behalf of a wayward child, and I'm just about ready to give up. Am I missing something? Should I be looking elsewhere for the answers I need?
30 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Miracles present day signs and wonders

Do you believe that God still performs miracles today? Christians who believe in "signs and wonders" say that we're supposed to be doing the same works that Jesus did, "and even greater works than these" (John 14:12). Others claim that the era of supernatural intervention came to an end at…
29 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Marriage in the afterlife

Will I be reunited with my spouse in heaven? He passed away this year, and I've been struggling to adjust to life without him. A friend recently tried to encourage me by saying that I could expect to see my husband again in heaven. But then another friend just as…
28 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Little girls and fairy tale princesses

Is it okay for a young Christian girl to look up to the "Disney Princesses" – for example, Cinderella, Snow White, Jasmine, Belle, and Mulan? My daughter is so infatuated with these characters that she has covered the walls of her room with their pictures. This makes me nervous since…
27 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Inconsistency in miracles healings and answers to prayer

Why is God so "hit-or-miss" in the way He responds to our petitions for His miraculous intervention? When my son was born with a heart defect and needed open-heart surgery, our prayers were answered miraculously. But when my husband was diagnosed with cancer, his condition deteriorated steadily in spite of…
26 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Helping kids avoid opioid addiction

How can I make sure my kids don't get caught up in the opioid epidemic? I've been reading about it, and I'm worried. These particular drugs – especially the prescription varieties – seem to be widely available and easily accessible, even on school campuses. What I really need to know…
23 Apr 2020 6PM 5 min

God of the old testament vs the God of the new

Why is God so angry in the Old Testament and so loving in the New? A non-Christian friend has used this question to plant a seed of doubt in my mind. He argues that the scriptural picture of the Lord's nature and character is inconsistent and self-contradictory. This has really…
22 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Helping a family that has a child with special needs

What are some meaningful and practical ways we can ease the burden of a family who has a child with special needs? My husband and I have friends from church with a child who was recently diagnosed with cerebral palsy. We know this family is juggling a lot of things…
21 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

God and man as male and female implications for gender identity

If God is both genders - or contains both genders - shouldn't people be free to choose their own gender identity? Let me explain what I mean. Focus on the Family claims that its views on gender identity are based on a Scripture verse that says, "God created man in…
20 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Doing all things through Christ what it does and does not mean

Can I really "do all things through Christ?" Besides being a strong Christian, I'm young, full of energy, and enthusiastic about life. As a result, I have big plans and want to do great things for God. When I talk like this, my family and friends tell me I've got…
19 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Dad frustrated because son wants to do it himself

Why doesn't my son want me to teach him things? From the moment he was born I've been looking forward to the time when I could teach him how to do all kinds of fun "guy" stuff. But now that he's old enough, he doesn't want me to teach him…
14 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Woman is sexually unresponsive

Is it wrong that I don't want to have sexual intercourse as often as my husband does? Is my libido unhealthy or deficient? I try to accommodate him as often as I can, both out of love and a sense of duty, but there are times when I simply can't…
13 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Woman dating or engaged to man addicted to pornography

Should I continue a relationship with a man who seems to have a real problem with obscene and sexually explicit material? I've been dating him for some time now, and recently we've begun talking about engagement and marriage. On the whole he's a fantastic person, but I'm wondering whether his…
12 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min

Wife quitting job to be stay at home mom

Do you have any advice for a woman who is about to leave a high-profile career in order to devote all her time to parenting and homemaking? My wife is on the verge of taking this momentous step. How can we make it a smooth transition? We've reached this decision…
9 Apr 2020 6PM 4 min
860 – 880