The Abstinence Clearinghouse Blog

Chuck Colson asks a tough question in the following article: Have American’s forgotten how to raise boys into men? With a lack of fathers in the home and bad cultural role models, it’s no wonder our boys are in trouble. Mr. Colson goes on to recommend a book by William Bennett, The Book of Man: Readings on the Path to Manhood, on how boys can become great men. Mr. Bennett suggests that boys need heroic figures to emulate and they need good men around them showing them how to be good husbands and fathers.

Read and listen to article here

According to Pat Fagan of the Family Research Institute, “The parental relationship, when it’s in marriage, becomes the foundational social relationship in all of society. From that, all the rest breaks; without that, everything else is weakened — everything.” He goes on to report a cultural crisis when it comes to marriage as everything is affected: children, crime rates, poverty rates, longevity, and educational performance. Mr. Fagan sends a message encouraging churches to do more to strengthen marriage and family.

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According to Jim Daly with Focus on the Family, more effort should be spent on marriage preparation and strengthening the institution of marriage. He cites research from the National Marriage Project saying a healthy economy and healthy families go hand in hand. Research has proven many times there are many benefits to a happy marriage including less depression, longer life expectancy, and fewer illnesses.

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The following article is about a society of lost values written by the president of Girl’s Schools Association in the United Kingdom. Although she writes about the United Kingdom, we see the same things here in the U.S. If parents can’t see that dressing their little girls up in sexy clothes is wrong, we have a problem. We don’t necessarily advocate for all-girls or all-boys schools; we encourage parents to choose what’s best for their own children. We do agree with Dr. Wright that parents should be educated and have good communication with their children.

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The news recently reported that the deputy director of the Center for Disease Control, CDC, was arrested for child molestation and bestiality. Her position as deputy director is to care for the health and well-being of children and yet these crimes raise many questions as to her competency at her job and even puts into question the integrity of the CDC. These crimes are truly horrendous.

More information here

Another article here

The following devotional outlines the responsibility of adults to care for and protect children. With so much perversion in our culture, it’s an important task for parents to educate their children and protect them from predators. We hope this will be a good reminder for parents and adults.

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With 95% of teens ages 12-17 online and 80% of those teens using social media, parents may wonder how influential they are in their children’s lives. Research still shows parents are the most influential thing in teenagers’ lives. Parents being involved in children’s lives make for better academic performance and result in teens choosing abstinence until marriage. Be encouraged, parents!

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Jackie Kendall, author and speaker, reminds moms to not let their daughters marry a bozo. A great quote from her talk in Alabama, “The greatest abuse is letting your daughter grow up thinking the world revolves around her.” Isn’t that the truth? I think we can all come up with examples of women we know like that. Parents beware of older boys trying to date your daughter – that’s a red flag. She reminds moms to have open communication with their daughters. She stated, “What’s worse than waiting? Wishing you had.” Please be sure to check out her book, Lady in Waiting, from our online store.

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Do you know any men who need encouragement? The following program by Focus on the Family will help men become better husbands and fathers. Please listen online and share!

Listen here

We’ve reported on the TV show Glee in the past for its crude, graphic, and sexually explicit content. Well, it hasn’t changed any this season. The following article shows how it glamorizes and encourages teen sex. Clearly this show should not be in the family-time slot of 8pm eastern. Columnist Kevin McCullough says the show is “irresponsible” and should be aired at a later hour (or maybe just taken off the air altogether).

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Looking for good family entertainment? Read the following column by Rebecca Hagelin to see what’s good in the entertainment industry.

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