New Life LIVE

Caller Questions & Discussion: JJ shares how he recently spoke at a retreat about getting irritated with his wife over contact lens solution left too far away on the bathroom counter. A painful pool slide mishap reinforced the lesson: don’t seek personal glory, but point people to God. I’ve looked at porn for decades since I found it among my dad’s things. I recently betrayed my wife by looking at porn; can I still be saved? My ex-husband told my kids not to let me visit while he and his wife are having a family reunion. None of us have all been together for about 10 years. How can I help my 24-year-old autistic son get a job if he can’t interact with coworkers? He graduated from college and is job hunting, but he has no social life or friends.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Marc discusses the identified patient dynamic, in which one person is blamed for relationship problems. He shares three things to consider when someone blames you and refuses to take responsibility for their part. Why am I still struggling with feelings of betrayal after discovering in 2009 that my husband and his circle of friends were exchanging hardcore pornography? One of the friends involved was on his recent golf trip. Why do people settle for unhealthy relationships, make excuses for their spouse’s behavior, or accept less than they deserve?

Caller Questions & Discussion: Dr. Jacqui Mack-Harris explains that trauma often comes from the people we love and trust most. Coping mechanisms that once helped us survive in the past can turn into unhealthy patterns that keep us from building healthy relationships today. I need to grieve leaving my church of nine years because I don’t participate and they never supported me after my husband died. How do I write a letter explaining why I’m leaving? Churches reject me when I tell them that the church is not a building but a community of people. Should I give money to churches that want to build larger facilities? Would a New Life intensive workshop help my friend who is divorcing a narcissist?

Caller Questions & Discussion: Chris discusses how despair can often overshadow everything else in our lives. Drawing from Lamentations 3:22-23, he explains how we can practice gratitude and recognize God’s goodness while remaining honest about the pain and sorrow we experience. How can my 14-year-old nephew’s parents encourage him to take his ADHD medication? How can they help him stop cursing and exhibiting aggressive behavior? How can I help my daughter, who is addicted to meth and fentanyl and sells herself to obtain drugs? I gave her a Life Recovery Bible, but she says someone stole it. She also lies and tells me she is clean when she is still using.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Laura shares a dynamic she’s seen in her counseling practice that she calls “Different Face, Same Place.” She shares three steps we can take to replace negative relationship patterns. I’m in my third marriage, and I provide 100% of the financial support for my husband! My husband of 25 years hid that he was a drug addict. I started taking care of others when I was a child because my parents made me take care of my 15 siblings. Are there any tools to deal with my son’s mother-in-law hitting me two years ago at my son’s wedding? I recently saw her at a baby shower and still feel hurt and confused. If I ask my husband about finances or ask him to help with the kids, he tells me he’s not a bank and that I’m ungrateful! Will this work in the long term?

Caller Questions & Discussion: Dr. Jacqui discusses why we shouldn’t try to be the project manager for our spouse or other close relationships. Accept people for who they are, work with reality, and make choices based on that truth. I’m 58 and recovering from addiction, but my ADHD symptoms are getting worse. Will things get better? I was told to get a “Medicaid divorce” because I make more money than my husband, who is in a nursing home. Does this happen to other married couples? How can I help my 25-year-old daughter, who has experienced human trafficking twice and keeps returning to her abusive boyfriend? How can we reconcile our adult daughter with my husband? She won’t speak to him because of his past anger and she’s expecting our first grandchild.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Dr. Henry discusses his new devotional Renewal and explains how the Fall affected human nature across generations. He shares how modern technology amplifies our dysfunction. I’m 87, and I have a 54-year-old son with special needs. During COVID, the Lord gave us more time together, and now we spend each morning affirming one another. I lost my husband of 60 years almost two years ago; I’m finding it’s a struggle to figure out who I am and what my purpose is at this point in my life. How can I make better decisions by combining faith in God with practical wisdom? For example, if two financial advisers have similar qualifications, but one is a Christian and the other isn’t, how should I decide?

Caller Questions: Dr. Alice shares how borrowing tools from her neighbor, who is like a father figure to her, made her realize she had relapsed into old behaviors of hiding, avoiding, and delaying when she thinks she’s in trouble. Is my secular 12-step recovery group holding me back? I have been clean from drugs and alcohol for 12 years, but a woman in my Sunday School class thinks my secular recovery group is like living in the past. Could my misguided expectations be an example of a generational curse? I have expectations, such as thinking I’m going to get a return on my investment in a relationship. How do I deal with a family member who is struggling with addiction when my significant other disagrees with how we should approach them? I’ve been sober for nine years, and my significant other has been sober for eight.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Dr. Jill discusses the history of Halloween and its connection to All Hallows’ Eve, the evening before All Saints’ Day on November 1. She also shares her tradition of hosting an annual harvest soup party. I’m very discouraged with my marriage; my husband lost his father, and there has been infidelity and alcohol issues. Any advice on how to feel differently? I’m in my mid-60s; sex addiction destroyed my marriage and career, then I ended up in prison. But I found Jesus for real and got help with an addiction specialist!

Caller Questions: Dr. Cloud discusses his newest devotional book Renewal: 90 Daily Readings for Restoring Your Mind, Your Boundaries, Your Relationships, and Your Peace, written to help readers connect with God and identify one area to work on each day. Some people say that something that happened years ago can’t still affect them today. What would you say to them? I’m a single mom; how do I take care of others and take care of myself?

Caller Questions & Discussion: Dr. Jill discusses Joseph’s story, forgiveness, and reconciliation from her book Forgiving Our Fathers and Mothers. She explains why forgiveness takes time and reconciliation requires accountability and healthy boundaries. How can I get my 86-year-old cousin with dementia and cancer into assisted living when she refuses to leave home? I travel out of state every other week to care for her. What should I say to my son-in-law after seeing him shove my daughter? He seems angry toward me, but my daughter says he was in a bad mood, and I’ll see him next week. I grew up with an abusive father who said questioning him was blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, and my mother was neglectful. How can I stop feeling that everyone else is right and I’m always wrong?

Caller Questions & Discussion: Becky shares that the opposite of despair is joy. Bible verses like Nehemiah 8:10 inspire us to have the joy of the Lord, and she discusses ways to let joy come back into your life. How do I respond to my 30-year-old son’s text about his feelings? He says we kicked him out after he told us he was gay in high school, but I don’t remember it that way. Should I tell my friends about a disturbing, hateful handwritten note I found in their home? My friend is an elder in our church, and I’m concerned about how to bring it up without accusing one of their children. How does childhood attachment affect our adult relationships, especially when we can’t remember what happened in our early years?

Caller Questions & Discussion: Dr. Alice asks: How can parents best pray for their children and their screen time? She suggests 3 things parents can pray for. My husband of four years grew up in a family of manipulators; what should I do to deal with his family, who are all takers? What should I do if the man I’ve dated for 8 years has betrayed me 3 times with an older woman from our apartment building? It’ll be good for 4 months then it turns bad. Should I take on caring for my blind 5-year-old grandson who has been placed into foster care? I’m 68 and already care for my 19-year-old autistic grandson. I have chronic fatigue syndrome and feel burned out after growing up in a narcissistic household and marrying two narcissistic men. I had a panic attack at church that I believe was a spiritual attack. How do I accept that my ex-husband wants to be with someone else after 38 years of marriage? I divorced in February, but I can’t stop thinking about him.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Chris celebrates his 25th wedding anniversary and shares biblical wisdom for a healthy marriage. Ephesians 5:21 teaches mutual submission, while 1 Peter 3:8 encourages spouses to be like-minded. Chris’s stepfather calls to congratulate Chris and his wife Ember on their 25th wedding anniversary. Would attending Every Man’s Battle make my boyfriend relive his past? When I suggested the workshop to help him, he said he didn’t want to relive his past. I have a genetic predisposition to dementia; would the Amen Clinic help me? I’m in my 60s and getting married for the first time in 25 days. We’re waiting until marriage to have sex.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Marc discusses how to transform your relationship in 30 days using four rules of engagement. The biggest obstacle may not be your differences, but how you treat each other. I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease 10 years ago, and my marriage was better before my diagnosis. How do I cope with my wife blaming me for having Parkinson’s? A couple in our life group took an Advent wreath I had used in a retreat exercise and joked about it by putting it on the front of our car. How can I trust my abusive, bipolar ex-husband with my kids, one of whom is disabled? He has been violent toward me in the past, including raping me.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Dr. Jill discusses why the phrase “you’re too sensitive” may be a way to dismiss feelings or deflect responsibility. She encourages open communication and taking ownership of our reactions. My 5-year-old grandson has been licking other children, putting kids in a chokehold, and looking under bathroom stalls at school. His parents are divorced, and he constantly has to adapt to change. Should we pull him out of school? I struggle with depression and anxiety and have difficulty setting boundaries with people at my church. I can’t get into therapy until November. What can I do in the meantime? Should I accept my marriage as it is instead of trying to change it? I want to feel close to my wife, but she seems emotionally disconnected.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Dr. Alice shares how a man found relief from schizophrenia after trying the keto diet recommended in Dr. Christopher Palmer’s book, Brain Energy. My daughter was yelled at by her mother, who abandoned her at age 4. Now she plans to marry a man who has moved in with her but isn’t a Christian. How should I handle this? How do I deal with my wife who may have bipolar disorder? We’ve been married for 42 years, and I’m a recovering alcoholic. My adult daughter discovered my husband’s 35-year affair. I believe he ended the affair, but I still feel bitter and hollow. How do I begin to heal?

Caller Questions & Discussion: Laura, a presenter at New Life’s Restore and Intimacy in Marriage Workshops, discusses three common myths about forgiveness that contradict God’s truth, based on John 8:31–32. God calls us to live in truth, not pretend. How do I handle my wife wanting a brand-new home and bigger vacations? I feel like I’ve provided for years, but now it’s not good enough. What will I learn at the Intimacy in Marriage Workshop? Who is the Restore Workshop for? How can I help my 29-year-old son who experiences same-sex attraction? He’s a Christian and says he’s tried not to give in to it.

Caller Questions & Discussion: Becky discusses the quote she’s heard, “God’s call on your life is so bigger than your ability to miss it.” The seed never looks like the plant. If there’s something you’re struggling with and the plant hasn’t surfaced yet, take hope that God is still working. I’m a single mom of an 18-year-old daughter. She recently moved in with her boyfriend after his parents encouraged her to share an apartment with him. How do I handle her boyfriend pushing her around when he drinks? Last weekend, my ex-husband asked if he could move stuff into my new home, and I let him. Since then, I’ve thought about letting him move back in with me. Should I let him move back in? I’m disabled and stopped working 3 months ago. Where do I look in the Bible to deal with chronic pain?

Caller Questions & Discussion: Marc explains that our feelings tell us about what’s happening on the inside, but not necessarily what’s happening on the outside. He shares a personal experience that triggered panic; it reminds us that feelings can be good indicators but shouldn’t become dictators. Am I being clueless, or is my husband too involved with a married woman at church who shares her problems with him but not with me? I’m taking a road trip from California to Florida with my 43-year-old lesbian daughter. I want to talk about things on my heart, including our differences and the fact that I won’t be here one day. But she gets defensive, and it turns into a screaming match. I’m concerned about my daughter, who has Asperger’s, and my young grandchildren’s safety because of my son-in-law’s heavy drinking, suicide threats, sexual coercion, and guns left out in the open. Should I request a welfare check?