BAPTIST PRESS August 1, 2002 Southern Baptists laud James Dobson, Focus on the Family at 25-year mark By Art Toalston NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Amid a culture that has left many families frayed and others battered, James Dobson has stood strong. For 25 years. The anniversary has provided an occasion for words of appreciation to be voiced for Dobson and the Focus on the Family ministry he founded in 1977 -- appreciation that Dobson is careful to voice to the Lord. With "God's Faithfulness" as the theme for Focus' 25th anniversary, Dobson, 66, reflected, "... as we reflect on our journey thus far we are reminded time and again of how marvelous his blessing has been. Looking back on the joys and sorrows, the periods of elation and the times of discouragement, we can clearly see that the loving hands of our Heavenly Father have sustained us every step of the way. It is a humbling experience to be able to stand at this landmark in the ministry's history, giving thanks for the blessings of the past and looking forward to what God has in store for the future." Jack Graham, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, recounted several ways he is thankful that God raised up Focus on the Family from Dobson's humble start in a small office in Southern California 25 years ago. "On a personal level, my wife Deb and I have been tremendously blessed and encouraged by Dr. Dobson's ministry as we've been in the pastorate and in raising our own family," Graham, pastor of the Dallas-area Prestonwood Baptist Church, told Baptist Press Aug. 1. "He has certainly been an inspiration and a guide not only to pastors like myself but to literally millions of families all across America. "I think a generation has been changed, an entire generation of Christians and families have been changed by the biblical and practical counsel and guidance from Dr. Dobson," Graham said. Focus on the Family "has far-reaching impact on the culture of America," Graham continued. "I believe Dr. Dobson to be one of the most influential citizens in the country. He's like a Daniel, who in his own generation has touched the nation with the biblical message, a message of truth." And Dobson is "highly respected among Southern Baptists," Graham said. "We are appreciative for his ministry and prayerful for his continued ministry." As Southern Baptists are in a time of a convention-wide emphasis on building up families, "he is a tremendous resource," Graham said. Dobson was the closing speaker at the 1998 SBC annual meeting in Salt Lake City. "I have enormous respect for your movement and your love for the Lord," Dobson, a member of a Church of the Nazarene congregation in Colo. Springs, told the '98 convention. "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Southern Baptist." Dobson noted that society "has split now into two broad camps, in what I would call a civil war of values: ... God is [and] God isn't. "If God is, it changes everything," Dobson said. "That's why we believe in the sanctity of life, in the dangers of premarital sex, in sexual loyalty and fidelity, the Ten Commandments, honesty and integrity. There's this whole understanding that influences behavior that comes from that idea that God is, that he exists and his Word is true." On the other hand, Dobson said, those who believe "God isn't" make up their own rules. If something is inconvenient, it's gotten rid of -- including babies and the elderly. If God doesn't exist, everyone is free to do with life as they wish, including determining that homosexuality is no different, morally, than heterosexuality, he said. "These two world views are in collision," Dobson said. "Values are upside down. It is still a $25,000 fine to kill an eagle's egg and it's not even a misdemeanor ... to abort a baby. It's not the equivalent of a parking ticket to do that to a viable healthy baby." Richard Land, president of the SBC Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, told Baptist Press, "I can barely imagine what the cultural landscape of our nation would be like today without Dr. Dobson's prophetic presence over the last 25 years. He has challenged us all to be salt and light and I am grateful for the millions of Christians who have heard his call and determined to make a difference in the culture for our Lord. "From my own experience in ministry," Land said, "I know how hard the fight for hearts and minds has been over the years. Yet God demands we take a stand for righteousness regardless of the cost. Taking such stands often provokes the ire of those who deny God's authority and makes the messenger the target of vicious barbs from the secular media. I praise God for the bold and uncompromising stands that Dr. James Dobson has taken for the family in the face of such bitter assaults. "Southern Baptists, as well as all Bible-believing Christians, owe Dr. Dobson a tremendous debt of gratitude for standing in the gap for the past 25 years as he labored in God's strength to turn hearts toward home," Land said. "We value his partnership and his support of our ministries on behalf of our faith and our families. God bless you, Dr. Dobson." Dobson, before launching Focus on the Family, had earned a Ph.D. in child development from the University of Southern California and served 14 years as an associate clinical professor of pediatrics at USC's School of Medicine and a concurrent 17 years on the attending staff of Los Angeles Children's Hospital in the divisions of child development and medical genetics. During those years, he became burdened by the ever-increasing internal and external pressures on and unprecedented disintegration of American families. Leaving his staff positions at USC and the children's hospital to launch Focus on the Family, its outreach from the small office in Southern California grew to include to a radio broadcast, a video series, speaking engagements and a ground-breaking book, "Dare to Discipline." Today, Focus on the Family is a national and international ministry based in Colorado Springs, Colo., with 1,300 employees and a yearly budget of more than $125 million producing family broadcasts in more than a dozen languages reaching more than 100 countries including China and Russia, a dozen-plus magazines and an array of newsletters and websites -- as well as maintaining an active role in America's public policy and culture debates. Dobson's half-hour flagship radio broadcast is aired on about 3,000 outlets in the United States and also in 40 other countries, while a 90-second TV commentary is aired by about 100 stations across the country, including numerous network affiliates. In addition to Dare to Discipline, among the 20-some books he has authored are "What Wives Wish Their Husbands Knew About Women," "The Strong-Willed Child," "Straight Talk to Men," "When God Doesn't Make Sense" and, most recently, "Bringing Up Boys." His first film series, also titled "Focus on the Family," has now been seen by more than 70 million people. Two other film series followed, "Turn Your Heart Toward Home" in 1986 and "Life on The Edge" in 1994. In government service, Dobson served on the task force which summarized President Carter's White House Conference on Families in 1980; he was appointed by President Reagan to the National Advisory Commission to the office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, serving from 1982-84; he served as co-chairman of the Citizens Advisory Panel for Tax Reform, in consultation with President Reagan, 1986-88; he served as a member and later chairman of the United States Army's Family Initiative, 1986-88; he was appointed to Attorney General Edwin Meese's Commission on Pornography, 1985-86; he was appointed in 1987 to the Attorney General's Advisory Board on Missing and Exploited Children and to Secretary Otis Bowen's Panel on Teen Pregnancy Prevention, within the Department of Health and Human Services; he was appointed by Sen. Robert Dole to the Commission on Child and Family Welfare in 1994; and he was appointed by Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott to the National Gambling Impact Study Commission in 1996. In 1982, Dobson was named Layman of the Year by the National Association of Evangelicals. His wife, Shirley, meanwhile, chairs the National Day of Prayer movement. Morris H. Chapman, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Executive Committee, told Baptist Press Aug. 1, "We are delighted to send our congratulations and best wishes to Dr. James Dobson on the 25th anniversary of Focus on the Family. Dr. Dobson and Focus have endeared themselves to the Christian community in general, and to Southern Baptists in particular, for their faithful, solid, measured and biblical ministry to the body of Christ in America. ... I believe God raised up James Dobson and Focus on the Family to strengthen and conserve the work of the Lord in our land and around the world." Citing Dobson's "expertise and commitment to assist families to achieve and maintain healthy status," Chapman said Dobson has "blessed a myriad of Southern Baptist families. I suspect that in virtually every Southern Baptist church there are numerous members whose home life has been improved, enriched and benefited by his ministry. ... Focus on the Family does not hold itself out as a church ministry, but it has dependably functioned as a faithful partner to augment the ministry of local church leaders in cultural and social areas." Chapman also noted, "Virtually every Christian leader I know realizes we are in a moral and ethical crisis of gigantic proportion. Focus on the Family has served our nation and the Lord by raising the consciousness of millions of our citizens about these issues and the cultural divide that appears to be widening by the day." Robert E. Reccord, president of the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board, told Baptist Press, "Jim and Shirley Dobson personify for me Micah 6:8 which says what the Lord requires of his people, and especially his leaders - 'To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with [the] Lord.' As they have done that, God has thrust a gifted teacher from one of the nation's leading medical schools and a talented lady to become a force worldwide in matters of justice, mercy and proclaiming a powerful biblical message to the critical issues of our day and calling our nation to prayer. "While known for family related issues and legislative perspective influenced by a biblical worldview, we must never lose sight that Jim and Shirley are also both driven by a passion to share Jesus Christ and his life-transforming message with every person possible," Reccord said. "I thank God for Jim and Shirley, their friendship and their partnership in spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. I pray God will give them years ahead every bit as impacting as the 25 great years they have just celebrated." --30-- (BP) photo posted in the BP Photo Library at http://www.bpnews.net. Photo title: SHIRLEY AND JAMES DOBSON. Dobson sees plenty of work ahead to counter family decline in U.S. By Art Toalston NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--The battle is as intense as ever -- more intense, in fact. James Dobson voiced disappointment over "the continued deterioration of the family" in an interview with the Colorado Springs Gazette in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of Focus on the Family's founding. "It's in worse shape now than it was when I started," he stated frankly. "Look at the census reports from last May. The percentage of households headed by cohabitating adults increased 72 percent. The households headed by single fathers increased 62 percent. The households headed by single mothers increased by 25 percent. The households involving nuclear families fell below 25 percent in the first time in history. "Those statistics speak for themselves," Dobson, 66, told the Gazette. "We are continuing to lose ground. "We're one organization. You can't get your arms around 260 million people in this country," Dobson said, noting that Focus on the Family also has become a worldwide ministry. "We recognize the limitations of that. If you measure yourself by the human family, there's no way you're going to feel good about yourself" in having an impact. "On the other hand," he reflected, "we get 250,000 letters and phone calls a month. And the response of the people who contact us gives us much more credit than we deserve." In an interview with The New York Times, Dobson said, "Wherever you choose to stick the thermometer, you can see that we are a nation in a great deal of trouble ... unraveling at a faster pace than ever. ... I was very concerned in 1977 about the disintegration of the family and felt that I had to do what I could to support it and to assist with the task of raising children. I still have that passion, but now it's in the context of what I would describe as a moral free fall." Fewer than half of evangelical Christians voted in 2000, Dobson also told The Times, while citing polls showing that still fewer believe in moral absolutes and some studies which show evangelicals divorcing at higher rates than others. "There are huge numbers of people who consider themselves deeply religious folks but who can't spare 20 minutes every other year to influence our representative form of government," he told The Times. "I find that breathtaking." Another challenge facing the ministry, Dobson acknowledged, is that its income was down for the first time last year and has remained flat this year, which he described to the Gazette as "one of the more serious economic shortfalls we have experienced for a while." Since October 1999, donations have been about 2.4 below budget. The downturn could stem from the economy, donor fatigue from Sept. 11's terrorist attacks or other causes, ministry officials told the Gazette. Focus calculates the average age of its audience at 47, a fact it also is addressing, while buoyed by the fact that its Internet sites for parents, collegians, youth and other segments are increasing in usage. One recent initiative, Heritage Builders, is seeking to provide materials for parents to help pass down their faith from one generation to the next. An upcoming initiative, a newsletter called Focus on Your Child, meanwhile, will feature editions targeted to families with children in various age ranges, such as 9-14. Along the way, Dobson has suffered a minor heart attack, in 1990, and a mild stroke, eight years later, and is now following a daily exercise regimen and other doctors' orders. "Since Dec. 13, 1993, I've only missed exercising four times," he told the Gazette. "Three of those were when I had the stroke. The fourth was because I flat-out forgot." Any notion of being a celebrity, Dobson told the Gazette, is an illusion. "First of all, it's very temporary, and you can lose it in an afternoon," he said. "Secondly, it's not to be taken very seriously. I don't say that falsely humble. I just am keenly aware I'm an ordinary man with ordinary flaws and some of them pretty pronounced, and I'm just doing the best I can to deal with an awful lot of hurt that's going on out there. "I think there's been a divine ordination on what we try to do, and God has blessed it, and that's the greatest gratification of all," he told the paper. "I think I could [retire someday] and not feel lost, like some people do. I think there will come a time for that, and I believe I will know it when the time comes.... But at this moment, I'm heard every day by 220 million people in 117 countries, and it just does not seem that this is the time." With a mission statement as timeless as ever -- "To cooperate with the Holy Spirit in disseminating the Gospel of Jesus Christ to as many people as possible, and, specifically, to accomplish that objective by helping to preserve traditional values and the institution of the family" -- God alone knows Focus on the Family's future. "I wish I could say that I knew where the Lord was leading when I started Focus on the Family, but that is not true," Dobson said. "I simply felt he wanted me to prepare a regular broadcast and to speak to family related issues. Everything that has happened since then has been a surprise and a labor of love." Alan Sears, president of the Alliance Defense Fund, a religious liberty organization Dobson helped launch with other evangelical leaders, said, "I shudder to think where our country would be today without the courage of James Dobson to stand up for what is right." "Sometimes he can be a little controversial," Prison Fellowship founder Charles Colson told the Associated Press during Focus on the Family's 25th anniversary celebration July 25-28 in Colorado Springs and Denver. "If you're going to wrestle with principalities and powers and the forces of evil, of course you're going to be controversial." --30-- *********** Please submit any prayer requests via http://www.sbcpray.net. *********** Search ALL SBC sites at http://www.sbcsearch.net *********** To have a friend subscribe, tell them to visit http://www.bpnews.net and enter their e-mail address under the "Subscribe to BP" link at the top of the page. ***********
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