Continuing Dr. Dobson’s Legacy into the Future – Digital Outreach

SPEAKER 01 : 0:00

You’re listening to Family Talk, the radio broadcasting division of the James Dobson Family Institute. I am that James Dobson, and I’m so pleased that you’ve joined us today.

SPEAKER 03 : 0:18

Well, welcome to Family Talk, the broadcast division of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute. I’m Roger Marsh. Today is Giving Tuesday, a special day designated to encourage people of all different walks of life to seek to reach out to help others through organizations who are committed to providing encouragement and hope to those in need. Here at the JDFI, we recognize the dire need for everyone everywhere to know Jesus Christ and to receive the gift of salvation through his death and resurrection. And that good news, if you will, is still the heartbeat of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute. So for this Giving Tuesday edition of Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk, we’ve invited Gary Bauer, our Senior Vice President of Public Policy here at the JDFI and the Dobson Policy and Culture Center, along with Dr. Bart Brock, the President and Chairman of the Board here at the JDFI, to join us for a discussion about the continuing work of the only organization Dr. James Dobson ordained. to continue his ministry legacy. Gentlemen, Bart and Gary, welcome to the Family Talk broadcast.

SPEAKER 02 : 1:17

Great to be here. Thank you, Roger. Great to be here.

SPEAKER 03 : 1:20

Well, this has certainly been quite a year for us here at the James Dobson Family Institute, of course. It’s been a year of transition, but we know that God has a plan for us and that it was Dr. Dobson’s desire that the ministry of the JDFI would literally outlive him. Bart, it was a serendipity that you just happened to be Gary’s guest here on the Family Talk broadcast. The day before, Dr. Dobson received his eternal reward, and then again on the day he went home to be with the Lord. Talk about the impact his passing had on you personally. I mean, I know that you and Dr. had a very, very close bond.

SPEAKER 02 : 1:53

Yes, Roger, and I would say beyond serendipity, I really believe it was God’s providence. You know, it was such a somber moment. and time for me as I learned of Dr. Dobson’s passing. I’ve talked before that I first learned of him through his daily broadcast and learned from those for years. Later, I was able to meet him personally, and after that, he brought me on his board, and then into the organization as president. And so I knew there had been a time of preparation and we were prepared, but I don’t think anybody can ever fully prepare for the emotional impact of a moment like that and feeling that the mantle has passed. And as I’ve shared with our organization and with our many friends of the ministry, I don’t believe the mantle passed to me independently. It passed to this ministry, as you mentioned, the only ministry that he entrusted to carry on his legacy. And I recall before I talked to the staff, tossing and turning the night before about how could I possibly come in and do this work of this giant legacy. And one, I realized that I can’t. I can do what I can do. But I was so impressed by the Lord as I got up that morning, really with a question that of, Bart, do you want to carry this or do you want me to carry this? And of course, I knew the answer is, Lord, I want you to carry this. But I had to think, how do I really do that? How do I really put it into your hands? And again, I was impressed that, well, Bart, I’m not going to walk with you. You have to walk with me. And that’s what I am attempting to do every day within this ministry is submit it to him because he has shown providentially time after time that this ministry is so critically needed because We have generations that have not yet learned the biblical principles in those practical formats that Dr. Dobson has always been able to bring us.

SPEAKER 03 : 4:26

You know, Gary, I remember us being in studio recording a tribute program for Dr. Dobson and the emotions that you shared that day. I was really overcome because you and I worked together a lot, and you were very emotional thinking about and remembering your friend, Dr. James Dobson. This whole month of December here on Family Talk, we’re going to be featuring tribute programs to doctors, some of his classic works from the early Family Talk days and some of his most recent, including his final programs in studio. Now that you have had a bit of time to reflect upon his passing, I mean, you worked with him on so many different levels, Gary. What stands out the most for you about your relationship with James Dobson and the ministry of JDFI moving forward?

SPEAKER 01 : 5:05

You know, Roger, I’ve thought a lot about this in the weeks that have passed. I don’t know if you all have ever had this happen. Periodically over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to listen to two veterans that served in the same conflict together, whether it was back in World War II, my father and some of the people he knew, but others recently. And And when one of those veterans passes away, the other one is overwhelmed with emotion because they shared so much in combat together. Now, I’m not suggesting that what we’ve done in civilian life is anything like the sacrifices of actual war. but we are having a war in America over fundamental issues. And I think what made me so emotional is that for many decades, Dr. Dobson and I were in the same foxhole, battles over religious liberty, over the sanctity of life, and over even fundamental things of what is a man and what is a woman, and where does our liberty come from? And time and time again, In those battles, we’d look around and people that we thought were our friends and allies were long gone. You know, they had run for the tall grass. But Dr. Dobson was always there. Sometimes we would disagree a little bit on something, but I never had to worry about him suddenly going in the opposite direction. And I think the reason for that is that when we first met, we agreed on a fundamental thing. In Washington and really in the country, there are powerful interests that represent everybody. You know, unions and big business and the drug companies and the insurance companies and this group and that group. But there really wasn’t much out there that represented the most important special interest of all. And that special interest is the American family. The men and women that have children, raise them well. bring them up, hopefully in a godly way. And Dr. Dobson always wanted to be the voice for that special interest. And I felt that same impulse. And of course, that is what the James Dobson Family Institute, under the leadership of Bart now, is committed to. We get up every morning asking ourselves, how can we help families raise their children? How can we keep their marriages strong? And how we can make sure that that nobody in Washington, D.C. or in the popular culture is hurting those families, undermining those families, or restricting their liberty.

SPEAKER 03 : 7:45

You know, it’s interesting, Gary, you talk about that continuing ongoing need for a ministry like the JDFI, and I don’t know how many of our listeners recognize the fact that when we started this ministry 15 years ago, it was started as the Ministry of Family Talk, and then a few years after that, we kind of grew into the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute and BART that was established so that the work of Dr. Dobson would continue. I mean, that was Dr. Dobson’s desire to have it outlive him, if you will. Talk about why that is so important for us looking at a new year, a new year ahead and and finding that we’re hearing from literally thousands of people over the past several months who are saying, you’re continuing, right? This is still going to happen, right? And it’s wonderful to be able to say, absolutely, we are moving forward.

SPEAKER 02 : 8:31

Roger, you’re absolutely right. I talked to a gathering of Dr. Dobson’s friends just a few weeks after he passed, and they were elated to hear that our plans for the future and for continuing the ministry. And it’s not just to continue, but to continue with a purpose, to continue with a mission. And we see that Dr. Dobson’s mission to help and actually save the American family still has much to be realized. If we look back, We notice that over time, our culture has lost so much of its biblical foundation. And it’s really good to see some of the move back toward traditional values. But traditional values without a biblical foundation will not long last. And we know that. But how do you get that biblical foundation? When I grew up, I talked about on the prior broadcast, That was common. Everybody pretty much agreed on that, and you had a biblical foundation. Ten Commandments were in the schools. This was just the morality code that we had, whether somebody professed to be a Christian or did not profess to be a Christian. Nowadays, we’ve probably lost two generations that have not had that foundation and And the question is, where will they obtain it? And what I have seen over time is there are many ministries out there, and there’s a lot of good preaching, a lot of good teaching. What often is lacking is the practicality of biblical wisdom. And that’s what I received from Dr. Dobson was how to actually apply this. And that’s why I’m so excited for us for the future, because it’s not just a desire. There are stable plans in place and structured plans in place to carry forward this vision.

SPEAKER 03 : 10:48

One of those areas that we talk about often here, of course, is our broadcast ministry. But we’ve expanded our digital reach over the past year in particular. And, Gary, I know that you and I, it was interesting. We were having a moment, kind of another serendipitous moment a couple months ago. We were in Colorado Springs. at an event and you were in one room talking with Joel Rosenberg. And I was literally in the room right next to you talking to Pastor Jack Hibbs. And when I listened to the playback of what we had both recorded with them and how effusive they were about how Dr. Dobson, you mentioned, Bart, the discipling that Dr. Dobson did. That’s what, I mean, JDFI, whether it’s marriage, parenting, public policy, culture watch, it’s all about discipleship. And that’s ringing true everywhere we talk to people, even on Capitol Hill, Gary, where you spend a lot of your time.

SPEAKER 01 : 11:36

Well, you’re absolutely right, Roger. And I do remember what you’re referring to, because at one point, I think I heard you talking through the wall a little bit. You were saying the same thing we were saying. So at any rate, you know, I was struck again after the news broke about Dr. Dobson’s passing. I had gone up to Capitol Hill, which I do regularly, just to check with members of Congress and see what they’re thinking about various things. And The news had spread that he had gone on to be with the Lord. And I ran into a number of congressmen that were very emotional about it because they had their own personal stories of how he had touched their lives. Some of them were very personal, and I don’t want to violate any confidences. But let me just give you one example. There’s a congressman from Alabama. His name is Gary Palmer. And years ago, Dr. Dobson started these family policy councils at the state level. It’s one of the things that JDFI does now. We work with those family policy councils on all of these issues, and we continue to give them guidance and so forth. And one of those family policy councils was in Alabama, and Gary Palmer was chosen by a group of concerned Christians in that state to head that Family Policy Council. He did a great job. He began to get a reputation of being an articulate spokesman and that he knew Dr. Dobson and sought advice from Dr. Dobson. The next thing you know, Gary Palmer is leaving the Family Policy Council and running for the United States Congress, was elected by a solid majority. And today in the United States Congress, He brings in those committee hearings and on the floor of the House a Christian conservative perspective to these debates. He desperately wanted to be at the memorial service, but he had an accident and had broken his ankle and wasn’t able to travel. But he’s not an exception. There are dozens— of members of the House and Senate and all over the federal government right now in positions of leadership who have stories about how Dr. Dobson strengthened their marriage or helped them understand a complex issue from a Christian perspective or led them when they had a troubled child with principles of how they could get through those times and still raise that child in the way that he should go. So I think the ripple effect is almost unmeasurable. But I noticed something else, that in every case, these political or governmental bigwigs in Washington have said to me, well, Gary, what’s going to happen next? Is that the end of things? And for when I’m able to tell them, no way, because Dr. Dobson had made it absolutely clear. This is the ministry he had devoted his years to for over 15 years, and it’s the only ministry that he put his hands on and made it clear to the board and to Bart and to all of us that his last wish was was that it would continue so that all the work of a lifetime would not be lost. And we’re excited. I know, Bart, you’re excited that that is exactly what we’re doing every day.

SPEAKER 03 : 15:15

I wanted to dovetail what Gary said, too. On the policy side, I’ve heard you mention that Dr. Dobson, your first intro to him was as your radio counselor, as it were. And we have gone so far beyond just radio.

SPEAKER 02 : 15:27

Absolutely. As Gary was talking about, what is exciting to me is that we know – The Bible tells us that the biblical foundation, the understanding of God, the biblical wisdom is not passed genetically. It’s passed through training. And as you do that training, it has to be done wherever the people are. I tell a longer story, but at the end of the day, it was with a fishing trip, actually, with Dr. Dobson. And I’m not a good fisherman at all. Dr. Dobson was phenomenal at that. And finally, in that trip, I had someone that pointed out to me, Bart, just put your hook right there. That’s where the fish are. And I learned… a fundamental principle there. We have to put the message where the fish are, where the people are. So the training, as I talked about, is so, so needed. And it’s not passed genetically. It has to be passed with purpose. But as we do that, The beauty is we have nearly 50 years of Dr. Dobson’s content from his broadcast, from his books, from his articles, nearly 50 years. They’re just not present as they should be in the digital world. And that’s something we can fix. And that is our strategy to fix because it’s all about putting the content right. where the people are. My background, the listeners may not know, but was in consumer packaged goods. And so my professional career was spent in taking products or taking ideas and and getting them to the people that wanted to use those products or needed those ideas. And I see these same principles in place for Dr. Dobson’s ministry. The content is there. The content is timeless because it’s biblical. And what we’re doing now is getting it into the digital world in a major way so that it can reach the families that need it the most.

SPEAKER 03 : 17:54

Many of our listeners may not be aware of the fact that we’ve already been working behind the scenes, and this was under doctor’s direction, to take the whole word to the whole world, if you will, borrowing from another ministry there that we’re fond of. And taking these principles that are currently impacting society, as Gary mentioned, in Congress and other places, but putting them in different platforms and in different languages too. Bart, I understand that we’ve made considerable headway in that area. Can you give us kind of a 35,000-foot view of the types of efforts that we’ve been putting in during the past 12 months?

SPEAKER 02 : 18:25

Thank you, Roger. And that is a critical point. I’ve talked earlier about Dr. Dobson saving the American family. What many people don’t know is Dr. Dobson cared about families all around the world, and his voice has been heard all around the world for a very long time. Now, the beauty of of doing more digital work is it’s easier to get it out there and we can actually translate his own voice into multiple languages. Listeners may want to go to the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute app, which is on the iPhone platform. If they go to that app, in the Media tab, Under audio, there are approximately 190 Dr. Dobson minutes. This is what I’m talking about with practical formats. This is biblical wisdom in easy-to-digest, easy-to-access formats. And the beauty is, we have it there in seven days. languages. So the listener doesn’t have to change the phone, anything, just select the language desired. And here comes Dr. Dobson’s voice. I love it. I am often in the Miami area. I’m able to share that with my Spanish speaking friends and they love it to hear him going from the very same minute in English to to talking about the same concept, the same Dr. Dobson minute in Spanish is just incredible. So now it’s not just the American family, it’s the entire world that we can reach. And we can do that on digital platforms forever. various social media. So listeners should expect to see us popping up more in their reels, in their feeds, in their various social media apps. They’ll be seeing us there soon.

SPEAKER 01 : 20:32

You know, Bart, I even get excited when I hear you talking about this, and I’m so happy to be part of it. You know, I’m way behind the curve on technology. I still have a VCR, and it’s blinking 12 o’clock. Someday I’ll learn how to change the time. But, you know, when the printing press was invented— Really bad books over the years got written, like Karl Marx wrote his book about communism, right? And look at all of that and what happened. But the printing press allowed the Bible to go all over the world. That was – it suddenly became a doable thing. And I know today we’ve all talked about this at JDFI. People are worried about the technology out there and its impact on our kids. And there’s some really terrible things. There’s the whole problem with, unfortunately, pornography, which Dr. Dobson fought his whole life against. But I think what everybody understands at JDFI is that the technology itself is is not evil. Technology, for the most part, is neutral. We can’t allow only the bad forces in life to control technology. We’ve got to get God’s Word out there with the family values out there, stuff about the sanctity of life. And I don’t know anybody that’s on the curb and fighting this as effectively as we are right now and getting better at it every day, bringing that message so that we’re not leaving the playing field to Satan, but we’re putting the cause of Christ in everything we do, everything we send out on social media and on all these platforms, and we’re doing it to have a worldwide impact.

SPEAKER 03 : 22:24

Well, the mission of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute matters more today than ever before, and it is our honor and privilege to carry that mission forward. You’re listening to Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk. I’m Roger Marsh, and I’ve been joined in studio today by Dr. Bart Brock, the president of the JDFI. He’s also the chairman of our board of directors. And Gary Bauer, senior vice president of public policy here at the Dobson Policy and Culture Center. We’ve been sharing an important conversation about carrying forward Dr. Dobson’s vision for families everywhere. Now, if you’d like to revisit today’s program, you can go to drjamesdobson.org forward slash family talk, and you’ll find the audio right there for you. Well, today is Giving Tuesday. It’s a day when people all around the world pause to support the causes closest to their hearts. And personally, I can’t think of a more pressing cause than the one Dr. Dobson dedicated his life to, defending biblical truth, strengthening marriages, protecting children, and equipping parents with practical wisdom rooted in Scripture. As you heard Bart and Gary describe how Dr. Dobson’s teaching has shaped members of Congress, influenced family policy across the nation, and touched millions of families through nearly five decades of faithful ministry, well, we know that the work has been plentiful, but the work is not finished yet. In fact, it is needed now more than ever before. biblical wisdom presented in practical, accessible ways. Now, this Giving Tuesday brings an extraordinary opportunity for you. Thanks to the Dr. James Dobson Memorial Matching Grant, every dollar you donate today will be doubled, up to $6 million, and that continues on through December 31st. This remarkable grant honors Dr. Dobson’s nearly five decades of faithful service and ensures that the only organization he entrusted to continue his work can reach even more families in the year to come. Now think about what this means. Your gift of $50 today becomes $100. Whatever amount God leads you to donate today, it will have twice the impact in strengthening marriages, equipping parents, and defending religious freedom and protecting the sanctity of human life, but most importantly, sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with a hurting world. To take advantage of this special Giving Tuesday opportunity, go to drjamesdobson.org forward slash broadcasts. And when you make your donation today, we would love to thank you for your gift of any amount by sending you our 2025 Best of Broadcast Collection. This powerful six CD set is our way of thanking you for standing with us as we carry forward Dr. Dobson’s mission to strengthen families with biblical truth. Go to drjamesdobson.org forward slash broadcasts. You can also call a member of our constituent care team at 877-732-6825. Or if you’d prefer to send your donation through the U.S. Postal Service, our ministry mailing address is Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk, PO Box 39000, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 80949. Well, I’m Roger Marsh, and on behalf of all of us here at the James Dobson Family Institute, thanks so much for joining us today. Be sure to join us again next time for part two of my conversation with Dr. Bart Brock and Gary Bauer discussing continuing Dr. Dobson’s legacy into the future. That’s coming right here on the next edition of Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk, the voice you can still trust for the family you love. This has been a presentation of the Dr. James Thompson Family Institute.