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
532 – 552

Making Family Memories

How can we be more intentional about doing things together that will strengthen relational bonds and family ties in the future? I know it's important to make good memories, but it's tough to find time for it with so much going on in day-to-day life. Do you have any suggestions…
18 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Husband Still Struggling After Wife Affair

How can we move forward in our marriage after going through a crisis of infidelity? A year and a half ago, I committed adultery. My spouse says he forgives me, but it's obvious that he still has a lot of anger. I'm doing everything I can to show him that…
15 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Confronting A Disrespectful and Controlling Mother-In-Law

How should I respond to my spouse's mother when she expresses disapproval of my parenting style and speaks to me disrespectfully in front of my husband and our children? I've put up with this kind of treatment for years, but I think I've reached my limit. What can I do?
14 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Child Has A Problem with Truthfulness

How can I get my daughter to stop lying? I catch her inventing "tall tales" all the time at home, and now she's complaining that the kids at school don't believe anything she says. Does she simply have a great imagination, or is this a serious problem?
13 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Is Depression A Sin

Is Depression a Sin is posed by more people than perhaps any other when trying to understand what is going on emotionally with themselves or with someone close to them. The situation isn't helped by well-meaning Christians who don't understand depression saying things like: "You just need to have more…
12 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Young Adult Parents Disapprove of Romantic Relationships

The Bible says that Christians are to honour their mother and father, and when one is living under their parent’s roof, it’s especially important to keep the relationship strong and respectful. But when it comes to friends and romantic relationships, how much say should a parent have, and where do…
8 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Workaholic Husband

It’s natural for a man to want to provide for his wife and children, but sometimes the need to get ahead in business and money making can become a never ending goal. We want to talk more about the effects that this can have on family life, and how to…
7 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

The Significance of a Father's Influence

A father’s influence in a child’s life is vitally important, and yet it’s an area of modern society that is a concern. We want to highlight the need for father figures as we discuss the significance of a father’s influence.
6 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Teaching Girls to Be Discerning About Relationships

Are you looking at your tween daughter’s behavior, especially when it comes to friendships, and wondering what has happened to that little girl you used to know? Pre-teen girls tend to hit an age where they are finding their way in terms of friendships, and enjoying the social aspect of…
5 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Parent Want to Help Teen Struggling with Pornograph

One of the most prevalent and concerning epidemics of modern society, is teenage pornography addiction. With the advent of digital technology, children and teens are being bombarded with sexual images and messages all the time through various media ports, and unfortunately it is just too easy to access pornography, and…
4 Jul 2021 6PM 3 min

-DELETED- Wife Concerned About Husband's Private Meeting with Female Boss

Thriving marriages require a lot of communication and commitment. Safe-guarding your marriage against outside temptation and influences by setting boundaries can be one of the most important steps in protecting your marriage. We’ll talk more about appropriate boundary setting and healthy lines of communication between spouses.
1 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Wife Never Really Loved the Husband

We’ve seen remarkable statistics that show the success rate of pre-arranged marriages, where couples have not had a choice in the matter of who they married but chose to commit to making their marriage work. Questioning if you married the right person can send one down a rabbit trail if…
1 Jul 2021 6PM 4 min

Wife Concerned About Husband's Private Meeting with Female Boss

How should my husband relate to his female boss? Occasionally, she needs to discuss a business matter with him that requires privacy and so she will schedule a lunch appointment with him alone. I'm uncomfortable with this, but he sees no alternative since this kind of practice is common and…
30 Jun 2021 6PM 4 min

Sexual intimacy after mastectomy hysterectomy

Is it normal for a husband to lose interest in sex after his wife has had a hysterectomy or mastectomy? Several years ago I underwent a hysterectomy. More recently, a bout with cancer meant the loss of one of my breasts. That's bad enough, but it gets worse: since my…
29 Jun 2021 6PM 4 min

Christian activism in the end times

If these are the end times, why should Christians pray and get involved in social issues? Many ministries like yours say that believers should be spreading the gospel, praying for solutions to problems like hunger and poverty, and working to shape our country's laws. I have serious problems with this…
28 Jun 2021 6PM 4 min

Substance abuse and adolescent suicide

What's the relationship between drugs, alcohol, and teen suicide? What should we do if we suspect that our child might be at risk for any of these behaviors?
27 Jun 2021 6PM 5 min

Single parent desires help and companionship

As a single mom with three young children, is it okay for me to want another person around to help carry the load? I used to feel pretty self-sufficient, but the burden of doing it all by myself is getting heavier. I work full time, take online college courses, and…
24 Jun 2021 6PM 4 min

Teens and unfulfilled sexual desires

Why has God given teens such strong a sexual drive and no healthy, acceptable way to satisfy it? This just doesn't seem fair. In Bible times people got married at a younger age. As a result, it was normal to have sex and start raising kids before you reached the…
23 Jun 2021 6PM 4 min

Parents concerned about too much homework

What should I do if my primary school child is getting so much homework that family time hardly exists and he has little energy for anything else? He spends hours on his assignments every night. As far as I can see, he isn't slow at completing his tasks. There's just…
22 Jun 2021 6PM 4 min
532 – 552