Spotlight

Written and Produced by Jenna Smith This episode of Spotlight features two guests that Illinois Family staff is proud to call our friends and allies: State Senator  and  candidate for Illinois Governor  Darren Bailey  and his amazing wife  Cindy . If you’ve been following Illinois politics, you have doubtless heard of Senator Bailey as he has been on the front lines challenging the legalities of C...

While attending the National Religious Broadcasters Convention near Dallas, Monte Larrick had the opportunity to speak with Kelly Shackelford , President and CEO of First Liberty Institute, the largest legal firm in the U.S. solely focused on protecting religious freedom for all Americans. Their conversation begins with a discussion of the dangers of the Equality Act, or as Newt Gingrich calls it...

In this Father’s Day sermon, Dave reviews Matthew 9:18 -26, specifically the story of Jairus and his sick daughter. The faith of this father is recorded not only in Matthew chapter nine, but it is also found in Mark chapter five, and Luke chapter eight. In verse 18, Matthew tells us that Jairus came to Jesus for help: “While He was saying these things to them, behold, a synagogue official ca...

In this installment of Spotlight, David Smith is joined by Jennifer Burns, founder of the Classical Consortium Academy . The two converse about the benefits of a classical upbringing, involvement of parents, and the art of teaching children HIS-story, math, science, and all the other essentials, with a Godly foundation. They also discuss winsomeness and confronting ideas contrary to Scripture with...

On this edition of Spotlight, the Reverend C.L. Bryant urges Americans to “push back and stand up against the tyranny that is encroaching upon our civil liberties.” Speaking with Monte Larrick, he stresses that individual freedom and our right to self-governance are in jeopardy. Rev. Bryant recounts his experience growing up in Shreveport, LA in the midst of the civil rights movement and contrasts...

Kirk Smith , executive director of Illinois Christian Home Educators (ICHE) , wonders what will be the straw that finally breaks the camel’s back – the backs of Christian parents, even the backs of moral, non-Christian parents – when it comes to deciding to leave the cesspool of government schools? Will it be the recently passed legislation that requires availability of feminine hygiene products i...

Back for a last hurrah, this week’s podcast features the last installment of the “catastrophe cubed” interview. Featuring Kenna and Eliana Hartian and Jenna Smith, the offspring of IFA’s executive director David Smith and board member Richard Hartian, this treble of rollicking females conclude their guest appearance with a discussion about effective Christianity, the many b...

Producer’s note: I apologize for not apprising listeners that last week’s podcast (#253) would be one segment and not two. This podcast will have the same format, likewise the third part next week. David Smith, Rich Hartian and their daughters recorded this series of podcasts all at one time, thus the questionable ending last week. Any homeschooler who’s had any homeschooling exp...

Written by Benjamin Smith If you are reading this, the chances are pretty good that you know a homeschool family or two–or may be homeschooled yourself. Christian homeschooling in Illinois is a thing mostly because Illinois is surprisingly a rather free state for parents to train their children at home. In the IFA Spotlight this week to reflect on their homeschool experience are two home-high scho...

Those who love the darkness don’t want to come into the light. They flee like so many cockroaches to the shadows. As the Scriptures say, men loved the darkness rather than light, for fear their deeds would be exposed. Newly minted Illinois state senator (and former state representative) Darren Bailey is not one of those swamp roaches. His career in Springfield has been in exposing the utter...

On this edition of Spotlight, Laurie Higgins joins Jim Schneider , host of VCY America’s CrossTalk program, for a lively discussion of the ubiquitous indoctrination agenda in our nation’s government schools. Laurie’s experience as an educator and, for the past thirteen years, IFI’s cultural affairs writer has given her valuable insight on the small, subtle, incremental steps that have led public s...

Ever wonder why most secularists seem perpetually angry? Consider the possibility that they are trying to be justified by works–dry bones trying to walk around all by themselves. This phenomena is especially evident in Critical Race Theory (CRT), where people are either prompted to feel like they are the chosen “race,” or are told that they are inherently evil and can only be sav...

For better or worse, the Illinois General Assembly is back in session and a plethora of controversial, radical, and just plain ridiculous bills are scheduled for consideration. Monte Larrick and David Smith are joined by Jenna Smith, David’s oldest daughter, as they discuss the compelling reasons to retain the Parental Notice of Abortion Act. Jenna shares her perspective as an older teen and artic...

Gambling isn’t a niche issue. It may be low in a hierarchy of important issues, but this sin easily destroys lives, families and communities. Like all sin, gambling promises unprecedented reward in exchange nothing but ends up taking everything. Ken Darnell joins this episode of spotlight to discuss gambling–specifically, how it denies the sovereignty of God and is contrary to the Word...

America was founded on the principles of the Scriptures, which contain the prescription for the family unit. Joining Monte Larrick to discuss the absolute necessity of a strong biblical family (one man, one woman–in covenant till death–with many children) for healthy civilization is Dr. Allan C. Carlson, the founder of the World Congress of Families. Monte and Allan discuss the role th...

This past Saturday, Dave Smith was invited to join the Black & Right radio program on AM 560 The Answer . John Anthony and Rev. Ceasar LeFlore discuss the importance of getting children out of government indoctrination centers and the responsibilities of Christian parents and grandparents. Government schools are not simply failing to educate students, they are corrupting them morally, spiritua...

It’s a fact – all laws discriminate. While discrimination based on ethnicity or skin color is never acceptable, discrimination based on behavior is appropriate. Speaking at IFI’s 2017 Worldview Conference, Dr. Frank Turek highlights the lies and hypocrisy surrounding the establishment of protected classes of individuals, public bathroom policies, and transgenderism. The second half of this podcast...

Legislation has consequences. Good legislation can bring about beneficial improvements and protections, but unwise legislation can have harmful, devastating effects on the people who must abide by it. With that dichotomy in mind, this edition of Spotlight takes an in-depth look at the ramifications of repealing Illinois’ Parental Notice of Abortion Act by considering its impact on the unborn child...

March Madness is in full swing. By this time next week, the NCAA will have crowned the national champion for the 2020-2021 college basketball season. Also, by this time next week, tens of thousands of people will have lost a staggering amount of money due to legalized, online sports betting in our and other states across the nation – and, if Illinois residents had legally been able to bet on colle...

Parents for the Protection of Girls–a grassroots movement to uphold and defend parental notice–recently hosted an online forum in defense of Illinois’s parental notice of abortion act. This spotlight features that especially timely news session with: Mary Hallan FioRito , a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center . She served as a moderator for this forum. John Jones, a wor...

Here’s a topic that appears to have been lost in the shuffle: gambling. But we are surrounded by a culture of gambling. Illinois recently approved a piece of gambling expansion legislation, which IFI and IFA fought against, but has now been encoded. On this episode of spotlight, IFA’s Dave Smith and Monte Larrick take a deep dive into the issues with gambling, and most importantly, wha...

Written by Benjamin Smith Just when Illinoisans thought things couldn’t get any worse, the Illinois State Legislature’s spring session sets out to prove us all wrong. On this week’s podcast, Monte Larrick and David Smith discuss several of the reprehensible, sin-enabling bills that are on the Democratic Party’s agenda for the 102nd General Assembly. Monte and David emphasize the urgent need for pa...

According to Laurie Higgins , public schools in Illinois are too far gone – no Christian parent should subject their children to the indoctrination curricula that is being forced on our state’s K-12 students. Laurie was speaking as a featured guest of Janet Parshall on her radio program, In the Market with Janet Parshall , where they discussed the tsunami of radically liberal, pro-LGBTQ and anti-C...

Recently, I gave the Sunday morning message at my church and since we captured the audio, I thought we could post it as a special addition for those who may be interested. In this sermon, we examine 2 Thessalonians 2  and really dive into verse three in which Paul warns God’s people, “ let no one deceive you by any means .” The ESV translates it as “ let no one deceive you in any way. … Cont...

Successful plans are best built on a foundation of strategic thinking. When it comes to political involvement, Christian apologist Dr. Frank Turek states that Christians ought to focus their efforts on motivating and mobilizing the citizens who share their worldview on the most critical issues of the day. Speaking at the 2017 IFI Worldview Conference, Dr. Turek also poses and answers these key que...