Fathering Our Future

Raising children is not the easiest thing to do and while being a dad is a privilege and fulfilling, there is still a high demand on us. You have to lead and provide guidance but does your leadership bring condemnation or grace? Are you most concerned with your control or the cultivation of your child's uniqueness? I want to encourage and challenge you to think about your approach to fatherhood an...

As dads, we are not designed to function as dictators where whatever we say goes and our kids have to blindly and mindlessly obey us. We are supposed to be leaders who serve and teach our children so they can grow and find success in their lives. Our kids have questions as to why things happen or work the way that they do. We need to not only let them ask "why?" but we need to encourage it. Also,...

Too many fathers look back at their lives and have regrets. Too many young dads are on the path to have regrets. You do not have to have regrets. I'm going to share a way to eliminate regret from your life and instead achieve the relationship that you desire to have with your children. You can either allow your mistakes to haunt you forever or you can allow them to be stepping stones to the place...

Expectations as a dad can be difficult because life with kids is always a mystery. I hope to provide a few friendly reminders about expectations. First, you are not lowering your expectations when you become a dad. Second, you don't get rid of all expectations because kids can be crazy. Lastly, I'd like to recommend what I believe is a better way to form your expectations.

Brad Lea, a successful businessman and podcast host, stated that money makes you a better dad. That is a bold claim, but is it true? I'll provide some context, explain his logic, and give you my take on the topic.   Plus, here is the link for my shameless plug: https://www.patreon.com/AnthonyVandagriff

I recently took a trip to Washington D.C. and had two key subjects that relate to dads become refreshed in my mind: identity and mission. My goal is not just to remind you of these components but to reignite a passion within you to embrace who you are as a man and to strive with excellence to fulfill the mission you have as a father. Dads are vitals and we need to start living like we believe that...

Are you tired of being a dad or do you love what you get to do? I want to give you an exercise to try periodically, to reorient your love for your kids. It is not easy but it will strengthen and reignite your love for your kids and of being a dad.

Social media is a wonderful thing but it can create some problems for us if we are not careful. It is so easy to see friends or other people getting likes, loves, and positive comments on their posts and for us to be motivated to achieve the same goal. If that is your intent, you've missed the most incredible thing right in front of you and you've fallen into the trap of the comparison game.

It was reported on August 25, 2022, that a man in Minnesota beat his ex-wife to death in front of three of their children. When asked what was going on by the police he responded, "I don't feel right."  We carry the responsibility to display masculinity to our children. Losing control and never addressing our problems is not masculine. It is time that we drop this macho mask that says everything i...

Every dad imagines what their child will be like and they never expect there to be complications. The reality is children are born with disorders regularly. My friend, Greg Peters, has a daughter born with a genetic disorder called CdLS (Cornelia de Lange syndrome). He shares the emotional weight, the challenges, the ups, and the downs of his journey. Spoiler alert: this is not a story of tragedy....

You'll have your methods, you'll have your faults, and people will criticize you because of them. We cannot eliminate criticism but we can control how we handle and deal with it. I'm going to share three tips that can help you overcome dad shaming and keep you on mission to be a better dad every day.

What are we doing as dads? I want men to love being dads, for dads to strive to be better dads everyday, and for us to form a community of dads so that together we can better father our future. The truth is, we are already fathering our future whether we know it or not. I hope we will do it with purpose and that is why I want to share the mission today.

There are a lot of ideas floating around about adoption. Some think it is very expensive, some think the process is incredibly difficult, and some simply do not know what to think. Ryan Hanlon, the President and CEO of the National Council for Adoption, joins me to answer questions about adoption and to bring clarity to a topic we might be overcomplicating. You can learn more about Ryan and the Na...

My five year old son recently lashed out at in anger. As a dad, you know it is incredibly easy to allow your emotions and impulses to determine how you respond to situations. However, if you can be in control of you, you can make a remarkable impact on yourself and your family.

There are numerous children who do not know what it is like to have a family. While not every family may be in a place to adopt, some might be in a place to foster. John Farris and his wife opened their home and fostered children for 16 years. He joins me to share his incredible journey and to help us understand the difference we can make in a child's life.

Do you think you are faithful to your kids because you have not walked out on them? Do you think you are faithful to your spouse because you have not had an affair? If that is how you view faithfulness, allow me to broaden your horizons and help you gain a fuller understanding of what it means to be faithful.

You've had your heart warmed by the video of the adopted son receiving his first birthday cake, but now you get to hear the story that made it all possible! Joe Walker shares how he and his wife, Jamie, came to adopt Abraham and James despite all of the challenges stacked against them. This is truly a story of what love looks like.

Being a dad is fun, or at least it should be. Josh Youngblood is a pastor and a close friend of mine who gave me the best insight to fatherhood. He told me, "It is the most fun you'll ever have." Josh joins me to talk about how to make fatherhood fun and enjoy the time you have with your children regardless of the circumstances.

In our day and age, communicating and connecting with people, in person, seems to be a dying art. My guest, Reggie, shares some simple tips, that were instilled in him as a child, that help him communicate and connect with people regularly. Connecting and communicating with others really is easier than you think and it is critically important especially when it comes to your children.

We all have things we want to accomplish but time passes by and we find ourselves no closer to our goals. Our problem is being disciplined. My friend, Tim Jacobs, joins me to share his expertise and experience on developing and living a disciplined life. You'll get do's and dont's, and a formula to develop and maintain a disciplined lifestyle.

It is easy as a Christian to think you have everything right because you have Jesus. The truth is, we are still human and we still make mistakes, even in fathering. Dr. James Littles, Ph. D. in Family Studies and former seminary professor, brings to light what we as dads of faith tend to miss. Prepare to be challenged and encouraged by this eye opening interview which provides biblical and academi...

Our perspective of our past and future can have a tremendous impact on how we choose to live. We all want to be good dads but if we allow our past mistakes to weigh us down, we miss out on our present and fear our future. I want to help you understand how to deal with and perceive your past, present, and future so you can continue in hope.

It is not uncommon for dads to feel inadequate when considering personal mistakes and failures. I want to help you establish a perspective for self-criticism and tell you why you are always enough for your kids.

As parents, we are not always mindful of our kids' mental health and the truth is, so many factors that determine mental health occur during childhood. I want to share one thing I believe we can do, as dads, that will make a drastic impact on our kids' mental health. The sooner we start, the better.

Moms are awesome! They get their one special day but they deserve and need more. My wife, Lindsey Vandagriff, joins me to help us understand what moms need. We discuss four things that you can work on to tremendously help your spouse and strengthen your family. My wife is always right, so listen good.