Dr. James Dobson's Family Talk

Gospel music pioneer Bill Gaither has been recognized with many accolades, including his induction into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. He has also been awarded over 100 gold and platinum records, plus eight Grammys. However, on today’s edition of Family Talk, this former English teacher reveals to Dr. James Dobson that his passion is to teach the next generation some key lessons. He just happens to do it through music and storytelling. His words of wisdom to Dr. Dobson include: be generous; act responsibly; have compassion; make memories; encourage others; and, most of all, love God.

Music. It’s an art form and an instrument of expression that has been used throughout the ages to release praise, share deep emotions, and heal the soul. It affects everyone differently but is consistently influential. On today’s special program, Dr. James Dobson visits with gospel music legend Bill Gaither about what inspired him to write over 700 worship songs, including "Because He Lives," "The King Is Coming," and "He Touched Me."

When a military veteran grapples with post-traumatic stress disorder, we empathize. But do we feel the same for the person who endures PTSD as a result of domestic violence or physical abuse? On today’s Family Talk, Dr. Shannae (SHAWN-ay) Anderson explains that, similar to Joseph, whom we learned from Scripture was thrown into a pit and sold into slavery, our past experiences shape who we are. Dr. Anderson encourages listeners that what Satan means for evil, God can redeem for your good. Through Christian counseling, the Lord can heal your emotional trauma.

Tragically, during the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a noted increase in domestic violence in the U.S. On today’s edition of Family Talk, Dr. Tim Clinton and clinical psychologist, Dr. Shannae (SHAWN-ay) Anderson reveal that the ongoing isolation has compounded spousal abuse. In order to survive, victims often experience dissociation, in which the mind essentially separates from the body. The helplessness and powerlessness that the victim feels at the hands of their abuser is often unspeakable terror. Dr. Anderson reveals the means necessary for a survivor to regain their voice and feel safe again.

Today, some pro-life advocates believe that abortion is okay if the woman has been victimized by rape or incest. On today’s edition of Family Talk, Dr. Robert Jackson, Jr., author of The Family Doctor Speaks: The Truth About Life, declares that it is morally wrong to kill an unborn child for the misdeed of one of the parents. Unborn children are all created in the image of God! Dr. Jackson’s wife, Carlotta, joins the conversation and shares how their two special-needs children teach them how to be more like Christ.

While Dr. Robert Jackson, Jr. was a second-year medical resident, he was asked to administer a drug to induce premature labor for a woman who was carrying a special needs baby in order to abort the pregnancy. He refused, but another doctor did so, prompting the woman to deliver a 22-week-old infant. On today’s edition of Family Talk, Dr. Jackson recounts that the patient’s little baby, born alive, was wrapped in a cold, wet towel, and abandoned to die in a metal basin. Since that horrific moment, Dr. Jackson has been a passionate and staunch pro-life defender of the child in the womb.

Perhaps you yourself, or someone you know are one of the 40 million Americans who regularly visit Internet porn sites. On today’s edition of Family Talk, Jim Cress, a certified sex addiction therapist, explains to Dr. Tim Clinton that while viewing porn, you’re short circuiting the God-designed pleasurable reactions in your body that were intended to bond you to your spouse. Instead, you’re bonding to an illusion. But, there is hope! Galatians 5:1 says, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." By confessing your sin and through much prayer, you can be rid of this addiction. In some situations, professional counseling is required and is ministered with successful results. People can and do get their lives back and are freed of the sinful shackles that bind!

Did you know that 68% of church-going men view porn on a regular basis and that more than half of American divorces involve a spouse’s use of pornography? On today’s edition of Family Talk, Jim Cress, a certified sex addiction therapist, explains that porn is crack cocaine to the soul. When people are bored or stressed, they self-medicate with pornography and its instant rush of pleasure, but often feel shame afterwards. In 2 Corinthians 10:4, the Apostle Paul urges us to demolish strongholds through divine power. That includes the stronghold of porn.

The Bible says that we are to run with endurance the race set before us and keep our eyes on Christ. On today’s edition of Family Talk, past decathlete Mark Anderson shares his testimony of how his success on the track pushed him into a sinful life but how God drastically interrupted that life and delivered him.

Not only was sex God’s idea, but He designed it to help bond the husband and wife for a lifetime. Tragically, today’s mainstream media presents it as the moral equivalent of sharing a cup of coffee. On today’s edition of Family Talk, Dr. James Dobson sits down with Drs. Joe McIlhaney and Freda McKissic-Bush to discuss their book, Girls Uncovered: New Research on What America's Sexual Culture Does to Young Women. They identify the lies of "safe sex," and the fallacy that abortion is a woman’s choice. They go on to offer hope and a path to healing for those who have fallen into these traps of deception.

Sadly, too many women believe the lie that they can have pre-marital sex without consequences. On today’s edition of Family Talk, Drs. Joe McIlhaney and Freda McKissic-Bush declare that our Western culture is the first society in history that has entirely abandoned the biblical role of protecting the sexuality of its young women. We are leaving girls and young women uncovered and unprotected before all of the evil forces that surround them. The result? Unplanned pregnancies, a record number of sexually transmitted infections, and spiritually wayward adults. Our guests explain the harms of cohabitation, the threats of sexually transmitted infections, and why culture has normalized promiscuity.

As Christian parents, we have two primary responsibilities. The first is to evangelize our kids, revealing God’s character through word and deed. The second, as our children’s stewards, is to prayerfully release them back to the Lord. On today’s program, Dr. James Dobson presents one of his favorite interviews from the Family Talk archives, a conversation he had with Jonathan and Wynter Pitts, just one year before Wynter’s sudden passing. Together they examine the Pitts’ book, She is Yours, which encourages moms and dads to breathe a sigh of relief because God is in control of their daughters’ lives. Abba is the one Who protects them, and He is the one Who will guide their future.

Because Nick Vujicic (VOO-yi-chich) was born without arms or legs, he often struggled with God about his purpose in life. On today’s edition of Family Talk, the author of Life Without Limits, echoes the Apostle Paul who wrote "I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances." The married 38-year-old evangelist with four children came to Christ at age 15, after depression and a suicide attempt. Nick proclaims, "When you don't get a miracle, you can still be a miracle for someone else."

Have you ever felt as though your prayers were bouncing off the ceiling? On today’s edition of Family Talk, Nick Vujicic (VOO-yi-chich), author of Life Without Limits, can totally relate! After he was born without arms or legs, he begged God for a miracle so he could look like every other boy. His depression led to a suicide attempt at age 10. But, as a teen, the Lord revealed to Nick through John 9:3, that he was born this way, "so that the works of God might be displayed in him." Indeed, the 38-year-old evangelist has led one million people to Christ since 2005!

Suicide is always a permanent solution to a temporary problem. As teens try to navigate their way through the emotional struggles that often come with adolescence, the option of ending it all might seem attractive. On today’s Family Talk, Dr. Tim Clinton and Jennifer Cisney-Ellers, a professional counselor and crisis response trainer, urge moms and dads to listen attentively to their children. Parents, don't hesitate to ask, "Are you thinking about hurting yourself?" Contrary to the old wives' tale that discussing suicide triggers the act, talking about it actually saves lives.